road debris, and snow can lead to dangerous accidents and painful injuries. Did you know you might receive compensation from the city for failure to keep its roads safe?
Call Ball, Kirk & Holm, P.C., today to discuss your accident. A Des Moines car accident lawyer can meet to discuss what happened and how your injuries are healing. From our bases in Iowa City and Waterloo, we can come out to meet you personally, where circumstances allow.
Accidents caused by road defects are in many ways no different than accidents caused by another driver. You can suffer terrible, painful injuries and need compensation. Let us analyze whether you can bring a case for financial compensation.
Potholes
Gigantic potholes can open up on any Des Moines road. Potholes are common in states like Iowa, which have wild swings in temperature throughout the year, and where roads freeze in the winter. Unfortunately, a big pothole can damage your car when you strike it. You might crack an axle or damage some other part, suffering bodily injuries in the process.
A pothole can also cause a driver to lose control, sending them flying into oncoming traffic. Let us investigate. Ideally, you should take a picture of the pothole soon after the crash. Use your phone, so we have proof of what it looked like the day of your crash.
Unplowed Roads
Iowa gets a lot of snow. And snow is one of the most dangerous hazards on the road, along with ice. The municipal government is responsible for ensuring the roads are safe to drive on, so they should plow the road after a storm.
Under Iowa Code § 670.2, municipal governments are responsible for torts committed by their employees. Refusing to plow the roads probably qualifies as a tort. Doing a bad job plowing the road that snow remains is also likely a tort.
Of course, the government needs time to plow. During a heavy snowfall, they cannot keep the roads perfectly clear as the snow comes down. Anyone heading out in the thick of a snowstorm is accepting some risk and probably can’t sue if they slide off the road. However, once the storm has been over for a decent period, the city must clear the road. Call our office to discuss.
Defective Guardrails
Guardrails keep vehicles from going off the road or jumping a median and heading into oncoming traffic. Some guardrails are defective—quite possibly very old and corroded, or they were not installed properly. If a guardrail fails, then the government could have liability for a wreck.
Call the police after any accident. outpoint out to the officer that the guardrail failed and definitely get a picture. Your lawyer can visit the scene, also, to perform a more thorough investigation.
Missing Signs & Malfunctioning Lights
Stop signs and traffic lights are necessary for the orderly flow of traffic. When signs are missing or obscured, then someone might fail to slow down when they approach an intersection. People sometimes steal signs, which is hard to believe. But the municipal government should replace any stolen signs to protect public safety.
Malfunctioning lights can also have people jumping into an intersection and crashing into people. Take video of the lights to show how they failed to work properly.
Road Debris
Debris on the road is dangerous. For example, you might come upon tree branches in the road, forcing you to jerk your wheel to the left. Consequently, you end up crashing into someone in the other lane.
Storms can scatter debris all over Des Moines roads, causing you to lose control when you hit it. As with snow, the municipal government needs a reasonable amount of time to clean up debris after a storm, but they can’t let debris sit on the road indefinitely.
Some construction debris includes tools, lumber, and cones which are lying in the road. It’s scary to hit debris and feel yourself lose control. As with other accidents, take pictures of any debris soon after the crash.
Improperly Set Up Work Zones
Road construction is a common sight in Des Moines. Workers usually shut down one lane at a time. A work zone should consist of barriers, as well as flaggers stopping traffic. The crew should also set up signs to warn drivers they are approaching a work zone and need to slow down.
Some work zones are not constructed properly:
- Missing or obscured signs;
- No flaggers or flaggers who do their job poorly;
- Barriers which are set up in the wrong place, forcing drivers off the road or into the zone.
You can hold the municipality or the state responsible for accidents in a work zone which is dangerous.
We Can Help with Obtaining Compensation
In most of the situations described above, the government will be the defendant. We need to hold them accountable for failing to keep the roads safe. They should pay compensation to injured victims, just as a driver would pay compensation for failing to drive safely.
However, bringing a claim against the government is unique. There are different deadlines and hoops to jump through. You deserve a lawyer with ample experience handling cases where a road defect is at issue.
As the victim, your biggest challenge is to prove the road was dangerous and why you crashed. The best time to collect evidence is right after the collision, if you’re in the right frame of mind. Try to:
- Document the hazard with pictures or video. A day later, the road might be fixed.
- Talk with witnesses. Ask for their name and phone number or email. Your Des Moines car accident lawyer can talk to them later.
- Call the police to report the accident. An officer can try to document the hazard as well with a crash report.
Call to Speak with a Lawyer at Our Office
Ball, Kirk & Holm, P.C. has handled all types of car accident cases. Contact us to schedule a consultation. We are available 24/7 for all our clients.