Sometimes, your car can be damaged as a result of poor road conditions. Potholes, guardrail damage, and poorly designed roads can cause significant damage to your car. To get your car repaired by the responsible party, you might have to jump through some hoops.
Find the Responsible Party
Before you can take action to get your car repaired, you have to determine who is responsible for paying for your car's damages. For instance, if your car is damaged due to a pothole, is the city responsible for fixing your car?
The question could be complicated. The city might be responsible, but there is also a chance that the county or state is liable. Finding which government agency is responsible for paying for the damages is important because you only have a certain amount of time to file a claim. If you send a claim to the wrong agency, this could eat up valuable time you do not have.
The best way to find out which agency is liable for the injuries to your car is to contact the city's road maintenance
Prove the Agency Was Negligent
Just because your car was damaged while driving down a road, does not necessarily mean that the government is responsible for the damage. Since this falls under personal injury law, you have to prove that the agency was negligent in maintaining the road.
For instance, you have to prove that the responsible agency failed to repair the pothole you drive into in a timely manner. What is considered a timely manner is debatable. The agency is responsible for monitoring the roads, but it is impossible to find all problems right away.
Your lawyer could possibly cite reports from other drivers that were made bout the road's condition as proof of the government agency's negligence. If the roads were not prepared after the complaints were received, you might have a case. How long ago the complaints were made is important.
If the agency had a reasonable amount of time, it will be easier to prove negligence. However, if the reports are fairly new, your case would be in jeopardy.
Your lawyer could also claim the agency was negligent because they were responsible for routinely checking the conditions of the roads. Your lawyer might ask the agency for its maintenance records to check for the frequency of road assessments.
If the agency rejects your claim, your lawyer at places like Kuzyk Law can explore other options with you. The sooner you bring a lawyer on board in your case, the better chance of getting your claim paid you will have.
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