With four major highways running through town and Las Vegas right next door, Henderson roads see a near-constant traffic flow. With it comes a drumbeat of car accidents, many of which result in fatalities and severe injuries.
If you or someone you love suffered harm in a Henderson car accident, you may have the right to seek compensation for your losses. An experienced Henderson car accident lawyer from Edward Bernstein and Associates can help you explore your options. Contact us today.
Henderson Car Accident Guide
- Causes of Car Accidents in Henderson
- Types of Henderson Car Accidents We Can Handle
- The Process of Seeking Compensation After a Henderson Car Accident
- Contact a Skilled Henderson Car Accident Attorney Today
About the Ed Bernstein and Associates Team
Established by renowned personal injury attorney Edward M. Bernstein, our law firm has advocated for injured people in the Henderson area for over 40 years. Representing victims of car accidents constitutes a major part of our law practice. Day in, and day out, we fight to secure compensation for the losses car crash victims suffered because of someone else's negligent or reckless actions.
Our award-winning team of trial lawyers provides personalized service to meet your needs after a car accident. Former clients praise our compassion, responsiveness, and unwavering commitment to seeing justice done for them. Connect with us today for a free consultation with a knowledgeable lawyer who can explain your options after a Henderson car accident disrupts your life.
Causes of Car Accidents in Henderson
According to the Henderson Police Department, our roads see more than 4,000 traffic accidents annually.
Many collisions occur on the city's major highways or at high-traffic intersections like:
- South Eastern Avenue/ St. Rose Parkway
- South Eastern Avenue/ West Horizon Ridge Parkway
- North Stephanie Street/ West Sunset Road
- Coronado Center Drive/ St. Rose Parkway
- East Lake Mead Parkway/ N. Boulder Highway
- Marks Street / West Sunset Road
- North Green Valley Parkway/ West Warm Springs Road
- North Stephanie Street/ Wigwam Parkway
- South Eastern Avenue/ Siena Heights Drive
- West Sunset Road/ Whitney Ranch Drive
However, no matter where car accidents happen in Henderson, they have uniformly tragic consequences. In a recent year, hundreds of Henderson car accident victims sustained injuries—often severe—and ten died.
Henderson crashes have numerous, diverse causes. But most of them share the common trait that a negligent or reckless driver could have prevented them.
Here are some common human error-related causes of Henderson car accidents that we regularly encounter in representing injured crash victims.
Speeding
The Henderson Police Department issued more than 3,000 citations to speeding drivers in a recent year, its most cited traffic offense. Nationally, more than 11,000 people die each year due to accidents where speeding is a factor—accounting for nearly one-third of all traffic fatalities and hundreds of thousands of injuries.
Speeding is dangerous because of:
- A greater likelihood of losing control of the vehicle.
- Less time to perceive a hazard on the roadway and avoid colliding with it.
- More distance that the vehicle will travel after the driver has pressed on the brakes due to the increased work the brakes must do to pull the vehicle to a safe stop.
- Increased crash severity due to the added force of the speed.
Distracted Driving
The police cite more than 250 people a year for distracted driving in Henderson.
Driver distractions include anything that causes a driver to:
- Look away from the road.
- Take their hands from the proper position on the steering wheel.
- Let their attention stray from the task of driving safely.
Texting constitutes a particularly concerning distraction because it involves the driver looking away from the road, taking their hands from the wheel, and focusing on reading or replying simultaneously. In Nevada, it is illegal for drivers to text or use a handheld cell phone while driving.
Alcohol Impairment
Alcohol impairment is another major cause of traffic accidents in Henderson. The effects of alcohol deprive drivers of the skills they need for safe driving, including the ability to control braking and steering, perceive speed and distance, and make sound driving decisions. These effects begin far sooner than when an individual reaches the legal impairment limit of 0.08 grams of alcohol per deciliter of blood. They start with the first drink and worsen as someone consumes alcohol.
Tailgating (a.k.a. Following too Close)
Around 1.7 million rear-end collisions occur yearly in the U.S., including many in Henderson. While these accidents are commonly regarded as minor fender benders, in actuality, around 1,700 people die in rear-end collisions annually. About half a million more suffer injuries. The most common cause of rear-end collisions is one vehicle following another too closely, also called tailgating.
Tailgating is dangerous because it deprives the trailing driver of the time and space they need to avoid a collision if the vehicle ahead suddenly stops or slows.
Fatigued Driving
Driver fatigue is commonly characterized as only affecting long-haul truck drivers and swing or night shift workers. Those drivers are most commonly affected by driver fatigue because they must drive late at night when the human body instinctively wants sleep.
But any driver can experience fatigue due to lack of adequate, quality sleep, too many hours behind the wheel, or even certain medical conditions that affect sleep quality, such as sleep apnea. Fatigued driving impairs driving ability in the same manner as consuming alcohol and is just as dangerous.
Failure to Yield
The rules of the road require drivers to yield the right of way to others in various circumstances, many occurring at intersections. Failure to yield is the most common cause of broadside (T-bone) collisions, in which the front of one vehicle collides with the side of another. This accident often results in severe injuries to the vehicle occupants sitting on the struck side because most cars and trucks offer minimal crash injury protection in the door panels.
Aggressive Driving
Aggressive driving refers to various traffic infractions that drivers commonly commit, often when trying to navigate traffic congestion. Aggressive drivers often commit speed and tailgating, along with red light running, improper passing (threading traffic), honking or flashing high beams, or deliberately not allowing another driver to pass or turn.
The term aggressive driving is often used synonymously with road rage. However, road rage is an even more serious situation that involves one driver attempting to cause harm to others by running them off the road, convincing them to pull over for a physical confrontation, ramming their vehicle, or even using a firearm or other weapon against another motorist.
What Types of Henderson Car Accidents Do We Handle?
Many types of car accidents occur in Henderson, and each has the potential to cause severe or fatal injuries. Here are some common accidents for which we can help clients recover compensation.
Rear-End Accidents
Rear-end accidents involve a collision between the front of one vehicle and the rear of another. These accidents commonly result from tailgating. They frequently occur at intersections but can also happen when a driver pulls into a travel lane without ensuring that there is a sufficient gap to do so.
Head-On Collisions
Head-on collisions occur when the front of one vehicle collides with the front of another. These accidents happen less often than others but can be particularly deadly because they inflict catastrophic damage to vehicles often traveling at high speeds.
Broadside (T-Bone) Accidents
As noted, broadside accidents occur when the front of one vehicle collides with the side of another. While they are most often the result of one driver’s failure to yield, that driver’s vehicle can take either position in the accident. T-bone accidents are the most dangerous when there is a large size discrepancy between the vehicles involved.
Sideswipes
Sideswipe accidents occur when the side of one vehicle contacts the side of another vehicle. These accidents are most commonly the result of improper passing or lane changing. Additionally, sideswipes can happen if a driver —perhaps while impaired by alcohol or fatigue—weaves in and out of a travel lane.
Single Vehicle Accidents
As their name suggests, single-vehicle accidents involve only one motor vehicle that either runs off the road or collides with an object in the roadway. The object they collide with can be another roadway user, such as a bicyclist or pedestrian, or a road feature like a bridge abutment or guardrail.
The Process of Seeking Compensation After a Henderson Car Accident
Getting hurt in a Henderson car accident is rarely simple or inexpensive. In addition to medical and other accident-related expenses, those injured often face income loss due to being too injured to work.
They also endure physical pain and emotional suffering. And they can face changes to their relationships with family members and friends, and loss of their ability to participate in activities that were important to them before the injury.
If you suffered injuries in a Henderson car accident caused by someone else's negligence, you generally have the right to seek compensation for these harms.
This process typically involves demanding compensation from the at-fault party and that party’s liability insurance (assuming they carry it), exploring the possibility of settling the claim, and if settlement is not a possibility, presenting the case in court to a judge or jury.
Within those broad parameters, securing compensation for Henderson car accident injuries can take varied forms. Here's an overview of how an experienced lawyer might approach claiming compensation on your behalf.
Case Investigation and Analysis
The experienced car accident team at Ed Bernstein and Associates aims to build the strongest possible case for compensation on behalf of our clients. Doing so typically starts by investigating how a car accident happened and who should pay for our client's losses.
We gather critical evidence, interview witnesses, research the law, answer our clients' questions, and develop a strategy we believe has the best chance of success.
Insurance Claims
Often, the plan we propose will include demanding compensation from the at-fault party's liability insurance coverage. In many Henderson car accidents, another motorist bears at least some fault for what happened. All Nevada drivers must carry auto liability insurance to cover harm done to others in a crash, and consequently, we can usually pursue compensation under an at-fault motorist's policy.
Typically, the at-fault driver’s insurance carrier will assign a claims adjuster or defense lawyer to evaluate our client’s claim and to decide how to respond.
The insurer could:
- Accept their insured’s liability and agree to pay the claim;
- Deny their insured’s liability and refuse to pay any of the claim; or
- Insist on investigating further before deciding how to respond.
The nature of the insurance company's response will often dictate what we decide to do next. We may negotiate a settlement with the at-fault party's insurance company, which most clients prefer. But we also may explore other options and avenues for securing compensation from the at-fault party or someone else, or prepare and file a lawsuit against the at-fault party, the insurer, or others. Or we may opt for a combination of these strategies.
Lawsuits
As personal injury lawyers, we frequently prepare and file lawsuits against at-fault parties and insurance companies as part of our plan to secure as much money as possible for our clients. Sometimes we will file a lawsuit immediately after identifying the at-fault party. Sometimes we will wait for settlement negotiations with an insurer to take their course before deciding whether to go to court. It depends on how the case develops and what route we believe will best serve our client's needs and priorities.
Henderson car accident claimants generally have at most two years, and sometimes as little as a few months, to file a lawsuit for damages. The amount of time that has passed since a Henderson car accident will also frequently factor into our decision about what strategy to pursue to recover compensation for our client. If time is running out to file a lawsuit, we may take that step immediately to preserve our client's rights. If deadlines are not looming, we may pursue alternate strategies first.
Filing a lawsuit doesn't necessarily mean a Henderson car accident case will end up in a courtroom trial (although sometimes that's what happens). Frequently, lawsuits create conditions ideal for negotiating a settlement with the at-fault party and its insurance company.
No matter what direction a Henderson car accident claim takes, clients of Ed Bernstein and Associates can always rest assured they have a team behind them that knows how to win.
Contact a Skilled Henderson Car Accident Attorney Today
For over 40 years, the award-winning lawyers at Edward Bernstein and Associates have been fighting to get injured car accident victims justice and compensation. If you or someone you love suffered harm in a Henderson car accident, we want to help you explore your options. Contact us online or call (702) 728-4137 today for a free case consultation.