Harlingen is by no means the largest city in the Rio Grande Valley, having a population of a shade over 65,000. However, despite that, it gets well more than its’ fair share of road traffic accidents. As a Harlingen auto accident lawyer, we know the figures because we see them every day.
It is largely down to the airport. The traffic to and from Valley International Airport is very heavy, not only in numbers but in the actual weight of the vehicles. There are an awful lot of big trucks that run back and forwards there, including 18-wheelers, of course.
The problem with those big boys is that, if you are involved in an accident with them, they can do a horrendous amount of damage. If you drive a car and get hit by another car, that’s bad enough. But if you get hit by an 18-wheeler you are going to know all about it!
A car may weigh a couple of tons, but even an empty 18-wheeler weighs 35,000 lbs. Fully loaded, you are looking at 80,000 lbs – 40 tons! Even at 30 mph you don’t want to get hit by one of those things.
Life-Changing Injuries
This is why so many people who are hit by large trucks can suffer injuries which can be life-changing, and sometimes permanent, even if they are not fatal. And it is also why, if the worst should happen, that you need a Harlingen auto accident lawyer to fight for the compensation that you deserve.
And believe us, you are in a fight. Compensation for serious injuries can run into the hundreds of thousands, and that has to be paid by the insurance company for the vehicle that hit you. Now, as it happens, insurance companies don’t like to pay out. In fact, they do everything that they can to keep compensation to the minimum. Oh sure, when they advertise, they make things seem that it will all be a breeze, but it is a whole different ball game when it comes down to it.
Why else would they pay expensive lawyers to fight you and get your claim down to as low as possible? Answer: because the less they pay out, the more profit they make. We’ve said this before, but it’s a very simple sum. If your compensation should be, let’s say, $500,000 and they pay a lawyer, say, $40,000 dollars and he/she can reduce your claim to even $400,000, they are going to be very happy. If they can get it down to $100,000, they are going to hold a party!
And that is why you need us at Villarreal Law Firm as your Harlingen auto accident lawyer in a situation like that.
