A crash near the Botetourt County, Virginia (VA), community of Trinity left an older couple dead, their young passenger injured, and three people in another vehicle hospitalized with injuries. The fatal t-bone collision occurred on the night of June 25, 2015, when the elderly driver of a Cadillac tried to turn from U.S. 220/Roanoke Road onto Country Club Road. The driver and front-seat passenger in the car lost their lives, and a 12-year-old girl in the back seat got hurt. Injured in the Jeep were a 21-year-old woman and children aged 1 and 3.
News reports do not mention whether the driver of the Cadillac or the person behind the wheel of the Jeep bore primary responsibility for causing the crash. A person turning left must yield right of way to all vehicles traveling straight through an intersection. On the other hand, a driver who exceeds the posted speed limit, ignores a stop signal or becomes too distracted to spot and avoid a turning vehicle can be found liable for causing a wreck like this one north of Roanoke.
The family members of the deceased couple and parents of the injured children will need to wait for the results of the crash investigation to know which driver’s insurance policy to file claims against. Knowing that may not be enough to secure settlements and compensation, however. Insurers do not welcome opportunities to pay claims and often try to pressure wreck victims and people whose loved ones have died into accepting unfairly low payments. Companies sometimes also attempt to reassign blame by arguing that victims acted unsafely or irresponsibly and contributed to the harm that befell them.
Experienced Virginia personal injury and wrongful death attorneys can offer legal advice on how to deal with insurance companies. When their physical and emotional health allow them to do so, all the people affected by this t-bone crash should consider contacting a plaintiff’s lawyer to request a free consultation.
EJL