Long Island Hit and Run Accident Attorney

Skilled Hit and Run Injury Attorneys Serving Long Island, NY

A hit and run accident is defined as an accident when at least one of the motor vehicle operators involved in the accident leaves the scene without leaving their contact information. More than 11% of all motor vehicle accidents are classified as hit and run accidents. The most common type of hit and run accident involves motor vehicles striking pedestrians. Long Island roads and highways can be particularly dangerous and hit and run accident injuries pose a significant risk to all motorists.

Should you suffer an injury as a result of a hit and run accident there are ways to ensure that you receive payment of your medical bills, lost wages and even receive financial compensation for your injuries. However, the process is complicated and knowing which insurance company to file your claim with can be tricky. Palermo Law is a Long Island Personal Injury Law Firm dedicated to representing individuals that have suffered serious injuries as a result of a hit and run accident.

Get Help After Your Hit & Run Accident

If you have suffered injuries in Suffolk County, Long Island from a car accident, it is a good idea to consult with a car accident attorney as soon as possible. Hiring an attorney early on in the process will help protect your legal rights, ensure your medical bills and lost wages are paid and give you an advantage building a strong personal injury case. An early investigation will also help preserve key evidence in your case.

Important deadlines to know for your hit & run accident case:

Medical bills and lost wages are paid through no-fault insurance. All no-fault insurance carriers require a no-fault application be filed within thirty days. Failing to do so may result in denial of your no-fault benefits and may make you personally responsible for the bills.

In car accident cases there is generally a three-year statute of limitations to initiate a lawsuit. However, that time period may be reduced to as little as 90 days if your car accident involves a municipal, state or federal entity. So, it’s best to check with a qualified car accident attorney as soon as possible.

How Much Is My Hit & Run Case Worth?

The value of an injury suffered in a car accident is an accumulation of several different factors. These include any accident related economic expenses such as lost wages and damage to your car as well as non-economic losses such as pain and suffering and mental anguish. At Palermo Law, our experience in handling thousands of car accident cases allows us to accurately assess the value of your case to determine the fairest settlement or jury award. In cases of long-term injuries, we partner with experts in the fields of medicine and economics to make sure that your compensation is adjusted for future inflation. This allows you the peace of mind knowing that you will be compensated for years to come.

Essential Tips Following a hit and run accident

Pull Over. Do not chase the driver trying to escape. Now you are contributing to an unsafe driving environment.
Call 911. Any time you are in an accident it is essential to call the police. But this is especially important for a hit and run so that a police report can be made and will benefit you should you need to make a claim with your insurance company.
Record information. First write down everything you remember about the car that hit you. Any kind of details are helpful, but especially the license plate, model, make and color of the vehicle. Then record the damages on your car. It is very important to get good pictures from multiple angles. Sometimes the color of the car that hit you can be seen on dents and scratches of your car, make sure that is seen clearly.
See if there are witnesses. The more information the better and witnesses can back up your story. They may even notice a detail that you weren’t able to notice. Make sure that witness information is recorded in the police report. If you were involved in a hit and run in a parking lot, investigate to see if there were any security cameras that may have recorded the incident.
Assess yourself. The adrenaline and shock of a hit and run accident might distract you from noticing any injuries. So check your body for any injuries. If you feel any kind of pain it’s important that you seek medical attention right away. It might be worse than you initially thought.
Contact your insurance company and file a claim. If you have collision coverage you should get reimbursed, but these types of accidents can be complicated. This is why you need a lawyer to help you.

Frequently Asked Questions In Long Island

If I’m injured in a hit and run accident by an unknown motorist, can I still recover?

Did the person responsible for your accident leave the scene? Are you unable to identify the party who caused your injuries?

If the answer is yes, there’s no need to fear. You’re still entitled to compensation. A hit and run motorist who is responsible for your injuries does not preclude you from establishing a claim and receiving compensation for your injuries. Palermo Law offers free consultations at our Car Accident Law Firm where we can examine and analyze the conditions related to your specific situation in order to determine the next course of action.

What Should I Do If Someone Tries to Hit and Run?

First and foremost do not chase the driver trying to escape. Now you are contributing to an unsafe driving environment. Instead, pull over and call 911. Any time you are in an accident it is essential to call the police. But this is especially important for a hit and run so that a police report can be made and will benefit you should you need to make a claim with your insurance company.

Next, record any information you can. Write down everything you remember about the car that hit you. Any kind of details are helpful, but especially the license plate, model, make and color of the vehicle. Then record the damages on your car. It is very important to get good pictures from multiple angles. Sometimes the color of the car that hit you can be seen on dents and scratches of your car, make sure that is seen clearly. It also helps to have a landmark in view with the scene of the accident so the location is identifiable. See if there were witnesses. The more information the better and witnesses can back up your story. They may even notice a detail that you weren’t able to notice. Make sure that witness information is recorded in the police report.

If you were involved in a hit and run in a parking lot, investigate to see if there were any security cameras that may have recorded the incident.

Finally, assess yourself. The adrenaline and shock of a hit and run accident might distract you from noticing any injuries. So check your body for any injuries. If you feel any kind of pain it’s important that you seek medical attention right away. Sometimes you don’t feel the severity of your injuries, so any pain should be evaluated right away. It also helps your case because the injuries you suffered can be directly pinpointed to the accident. Contact your insurance company and file a claim. If you have collision coverage you should get reimbursed, but these types of accidents can be complicated. This is why you need a lawyer to help you.

How can I get lost wages if I am in a Hit and Run accident?

If you are injured in a car accident in New York State you are eligible to receive lost wage compensation through your no-fault insurance carrier. Every motor vehicle insurance policy issued in New York requires at least two thousand dollars a month of lost wage protection. You are eligible to receive 80% of your total salary up to the two thousand dollar per month limit. If you have purchased additional lost wage coverage you may be eligible for a higher amount. If you are a high wage earner, this amount will not be sufficient. In those instances, any unreimbursed wages will have to be recovered from the responsible party’s insurance carrier at the end of your case.

In order to receive lost wages from your no-fault carrier, they must receive a completed no-fault application, verification of your employment, and a disability note from a healthcare provider. The no-fault application must be filed within thirty days of the date of the accident or your carrier may deny the claim. Further, the wage verification must be completed by your employer. It should be completed as soon as possible. However there is no specific deadline. Once you start receiving lost wages from your no-fault carrier, you will need to submit updated disability notes from your doctor from time to time. Also, your lost wage benefits may be terminated by your no-fault carrier should you be deemed to be fully recovered during a no-fault IME.

Dealing with no-fault insurance can often be confusing and frustrating. There is so much red tape that it usually requires a professional such as a personal injury law firm to get your full benefits. At Palermo Law, our Suffolk Car Accident Law Firm is dedicated to all aspects of your personal injury claim. That means that we not only file a bodily injury claim on your behalf, but we also handle all no-fault paperwork and all property damage claims. It’s our goal to take as much stress off your shoulders allowing you to concentrate on your recovery. Our law firm does not charge a fee for handling no-fault claims and we only receive compensation if we win your bodily injury claim.

I was recently in a car accident and felt fine at the time. However, I am now feeling symptoms consistent with an injury. Can I still pursue a case?

Have you been in an accident and thought you were uninjured only for symptoms of an injury to appear days, weeks or sometimes months later?

Many times, the onset of injuries incurred during a car accident are not felt until well after the occurrence. Further, mere discomfort immediately after a motor vehicle accident instead of intense pain can be indicative of a more serious injury. While it is best to immediately seek medical treatment after an accident in order to document your issue, as well as inform your respective health and automobile insurance carriers, failure to do so should not discourage you from bringing forth a claim where you may be entitled to compensation. The attorneys at Palermo Law have experience dealing with such situations and are happy to examine your specific facts during a free consultation.

What does it cost to hire your Suffolk Car Accident Law Firm?

There is absolutely no cost to hire our law firm. We work on a contingency basis. That means that if we are not able to win your case there is no charge. If we are successful in winning your case, we earn a fee of 1/3 of the recovery for your bodily injury claim. We never charge additional fees for handling No-Fault and property damage issues. We also will lay out all of the litigation expenses in the case. This way there is no financial risk to you.

Finally, we always offer a free initial consultation at any of our six locations throughout Suffolk and Nassau Counties. Further, we offer in home or hospital initial consultations for our Car Accident Clients. If you were in a hit and run accident, and aren’t sure if you have a case, there is no risk in giving us a call. It is always our goal to be the best car accident law firm in Suffolk County and Nassau County. Therefore, we’re always willing to go the extra mile for our clients.

Why Hire Palermo Law?

We always offer a free no obligation consultation.
We never charge a fee unless we win your case.
We provide personal one on one attention to every client.
We handle all no-fault insurance communications and paperwork for you free of charge.
We have over two decades of experience litigating car accident cases on Long Island.
We have obtained numerous million dollar verdicts and settlements for our clients.

About Our Suffolk County Car Accident Law Firm:

Palermo Law was founded in 1994 as a general practice. In 1997, Steven Palermo joined the firm and by the early 2000’s the law firm shifted it’s primary focus to personal injury law. Steven Palermo focuses his entire practice on Personal injury law, with a large majority of those cases being Suffolk County car accidents. He personally oversees every car accident case that the firm handles. He brings to each case over twenty years of experience, numerous successful trial verdicts and a passion for helping Suffolk County car accident victims in their fight for justice against large insurance companies.

While Steven and his team are proud of their record of achievements in the court room, they are equally excited about how their clients feel about their experiences with the law firm. The firm has over two hundred positive reviews from former clients on various websites such as Google, Lawyers.com, Avvo and Facebook. Palermo Law takes particular pride in the fact that they have some of the best reviews in Suffolk County. If you would like to set up an appointment for a free initial no obligation consultation with an experienced Suffolk County car accident attorney, feel free to call today.

Service We perform:

Identifying all potential sources of recover including no-fault insurance limits and all bodily injury insurance limits.
Complete investigative services including gathering of all relevant documentation such as accident reports and witness statements, medical records and reports. We often engage the help of experts in the field of accident reconstruction, medicine and economics to help support your claim.
We will handle all no-fault insurance communications and paper work free of charge.
We litigate your case. If your case cannot be settled we will litigate it in court. It is always our goal to obtain fair compensation for our clients without the need for trial. But rest assured, if your case does not settle we will be prepared to take your case to trial.

Trial Ready Strategy

Most personal injury lawsuits are settled out of court at some point before a trial. Many personal injury law firms on Long Island don’t fully prepare their cases for trial when anticipating a settlement. This weakens their position when it comes time to negotiating a settlement. At Palermo Law, we always fully prepare every case as if it is going to trial. This level of preparation gives us the leverage to negotiate the highest possible compensation for our clients and puts us in a strong position should a trial become necessary.

Focused on Helping the Injured

We realize that being really well versed in any one area of law takes focus. Personal injury law is no exception. That’s why our Long Island personal injury lawyers only handle personal injury cases. Steven Palermo, our managing partner, has been exclusively handling personal injury cases for the last two decades. We handle all types of personal injury cases for the injured, including car accidents, slip and falls and work related accidents. We have never represented an insurance company and never will. We do what we do because we love helping people.

Free Consultation

We offer every potential personal injury client a free, no obligation consultation at any of our five locations throughout Long Island. During the consultation, we will discuss your case in detail and give you our opinion on the chances of success. We will also discuss our potential strategy and our process for handling your case. If after fully discussing your case we feel it is a good fit for our Long Island Personal Injury law firm, we will discuss our fees and give you the option of moving forward with us as your lawyers.

Additional Hit & Run Resources

Reach Out to a Long Island Hit and Run Accident Attorney Today

We have litigated hundreds of accident cases over the last two decades. As a result, we’ve become very proficient in handling all aspects of accident litigation including no-fault and property damage claims. We know all the ins and outs of Long Island accident claims and will use our experience to make sure you receive full compensation. We handle all Suffolk county accident cases on a contingency basis. This means we never charge an upfront fee and only get paid if we win your case. Give us a call today.