A driver who takes an unnecessary risk on the road can leave you dealing with injuries, vehicle damage, medical appointments, and time away from work. When the other driver’s behavior went beyond an ordinary mistake, understanding exactly what happened can become an important part of your claim.
Earley Law Group Injury Lawyers has helped injured people across Massachusetts since 2006. A Quincy car accident lawyer from our team can investigate the collision, document your losses, and deal with the insurance claim while you concentrate on your recovery.
If another driver’s conduct caused your injuries, a reckless driving lawyer in Quincy can look at the evidence surrounding the crash and explain your options. We offer free consultations and handle these cases on a contingency fee basis.
How Can a Quincy Reckless Driving Accident Lawyer Help?
A reckless driving claim is not decided simply by describing the other driver’s behavior as dangerous. We need to look at what they actually did and whether that conduct caused the collision.
A Quincy personal injury lawyer can review the police report, photographs, witness accounts, available video, vehicle data, and medical evidence connected with the crash.
Earley Law Group can also handle communication with the insurance companies, document the financial impact of your injuries, and explain what happens as the claim moves forward.
What Is Reckless Driving Under Massachusetts Law?
Massachusetts law makes reckless operation of a motor vehicle a criminal offense.
Massachusetts General Laws Chapter 90, § 24 covers operating a vehicle recklessly as well as operating negligently in a way that may endanger the lives or safety of the public.
Recklessness involves more than simply showing that a driver made a mistake. Whether particular conduct qualifies depends on what happened and the circumstances surrounding it.
What Can Reckless Driving Look Like?
Conduct that may raise questions about reckless operation can include excessive speed, racing, dangerous passing, ignoring traffic controls, or deliberately making unsafe maneuvers around other vehicles.
Driving aggressively through traffic or continuing dangerous behavior despite an obvious risk may also become relevant.
Those actions do not automatically establish liability in a civil case. The evidence still needs to connect the driver’s conduct with the crash and your injuries.
What Is the Difference Between a Criminal Case and Your Injury Claim?
A reckless operation charge and a personal injury claim are separate proceedings.
The government decides whether to bring a criminal case against the driver. Your civil claim focuses instead on responsibility for the collision and the losses you suffered because of it.
A traffic citation, criminal charge, or police investigation may provide useful evidence for your case, but it does not automatically decide the outcome of your injury claim.
A Quincy reckless driving accident lawyer can review what happened in the criminal investigation alongside the other evidence available in the civil case.
What Evidence Can Show That a Driver Was Acting Recklessly?
Some crashes leave behind more information than others.
Police reports may describe what officers saw at the scene or what witnesses told them. Video from a dashcam, traffic camera, or nearby business may show how the vehicles were moving before impact.
Vehicle event data can sometimes provide information about speed, braking, or throttle use. Phone records may also become relevant when there is evidence that a driver was using a device immediately before the collision.
Witnesses Can Add Context
A witness may have seen dangerous driving before the actual impact.
For example, someone may remember the vehicle weaving through traffic, passing unsafely, accelerating toward an intersection, or ignoring a traffic signal.
Those observations can be considered alongside the physical evidence rather than treated as proof on their own.
What Injuries Can Result From Reckless Driving Crashes?
The injuries from a reckless driving collision depend on the speed, angle of impact, vehicles involved, and other circumstances.
Some people suffer fractures, head injuries, back or neck injuries, or damage to internal organs. Others develop soft-tissue injuries that may not be obvious immediately after the crash.
Medical records can help show when your symptoms appeared, what treatment you needed, and how long those problems continued.
A reckless driving crash lawyer in Quincy can use that medical evidence to connect your injuries and treatment with the losses included in your claim.
What Compensation Can You Pursue?
Compensation depends on how the accident affected you.
Medical expenses may include emergency treatment, diagnostic testing, surgery, medication, physical therapy, and reasonable future care. You may also have lost wages if your injuries kept you away from work.
If your condition affects your ability to do the same job in the future, reduced earning capacity may need to be considered.
Property damage can also include reasonable costs associated with repairing or replacing your vehicle.
Pain, Suffering, and Reduced Quality of Life
Not every effect of a crash appears on a bill.
Depending on the circumstances, compensation may address physical pain and the way your injuries have affected your usual activities and quality of life.
What if You Were Partly Responsible for the Crash?
Massachusetts uses modified comparative negligence. Under M.G.L. ch. 231, § 85, you can still recover damages when your negligence was not greater than the combined negligence of the parties you are seeking compensation from.
If you are assigned some responsibility, your damages will be reduced by that percentage. If your share of fault is greater than the defendants’ combined share, recovery is barred.
That can become important when drivers disagree about speed, signaling, lane position, or what happened immediately before the collision.
How Long Do You Have to File a Reckless Driving Injury Claim?
M.G.L. ch. 260, § 2A states that tort actions for personal injuries generally must be started within three years after the cause of action accrues.
Exceptions and shorter notice requirements can apply in some cases, so the deadline should be checked based on the circumstances rather than assumed.
There is also a practical reason to investigate sooner. Video may be overwritten, witnesses can become harder to find, and details about the collision may become less clear as time passes.
What Should You Do After a Reckless Driving Crash?
Your health comes first. Get medical attention after the collision, particularly if you have pain, dizziness, reduced movement, or other symptoms.
If you are able to do so safely, photographs of the vehicles, road, traffic controls, skid marks, and surrounding area can help preserve how the scene looked shortly after the crash.
Keep copies of medical paperwork, repair estimates, insurance correspondence, and anything else connected with the accident. You should also avoid guessing about fault when speaking with an insurance company.
Why Choose Earley Law Group After a Reckless Driving Accident?
Earley Law Group has served injured people in Massachusetts since 2006 and has recovered millions for clients. Our lawyers bring 25 years of combined legal experience to personal injury cases. Past results do not determine what will happen in another claim.
We focus on clear communication and the white-glove client service that has become part of our firm’s approach. You should know what is happening with your case rather than wondering when you will hear from someone.
Our team can investigate the crash, document your injuries and financial losses, handle the insurance process, and discuss your options if a reasonable settlement cannot be reached.
What Is a Contingency Fee?
Earley Law Group handles personal injury cases on a contingency fee basis.
You do not pay an upfront or hourly legal fee to have us begin working on your claim. Our legal fee is tied to obtaining a recovery for you.
We will explain the agreement and how case expenses are handled before representation starts, so you know exactly how the arrangement works.
Talk to a Reckless Driving Accident Attorney in Quincy
You do not have to prove on your own that the other driver’s conduct amounted to reckless operation before asking for legal advice.
Earley Law Group can review the police report, available video, witness accounts, medical evidence, and other information to help determine what happened and what legal options you have.
Contact us for a free consultation with a reckless driving accident lawyer in Quincy. Call Earley Before It’s Too Late!™