Hazardous Road Conditions Accident Attorney in Louisiana

It doesn’t take a lot of driving in Louisiana to figure it out: the roads in our state are some of the worst in the country. Especially in large metro areas like New Orleans, potholes, sinkholes, street construction, and other hazards contribute to Louisiana’s “F” grade for poor road quality and overall maintenance efforts.

Not only do bad roads cause increased traffic and delays—they cost Louisiana motorists millions a year in increased maintenance and car repair costs due to wrecks. If you’ve been involved in a car or truck wreck due to a poorly-maintained Louisiana road or highway, you could be entitled to compensation from the state to cover your car repairs or injuries. An experienced hazardous road injury lawyer can help you recover damages by filing a claim or even taking your case to court.

Types of Hazardous Road Conditions

Driving on Louisiana roads, streets, and highways, you could come across a number of hazardous road conditions. These can include the following:

• Construction debris
• Fallen trees from storms or high winds
• Uncovered manholes
• Potholes and sinkholes
• Loose gravel on the shoulder
• Steep or narrow shoulders
• Sharp turns on narrow roads
• Defective traffic signals like stop lights
• Uneven lanes and other road surfaces
• Improper drainage leading to flooded streets
• And more

All of these hazards can lead to a car accident, either by running into them and getting stuck, by losing control and running off the road, or even by colliding with another vehicle. When the state, parish, or local governments fail to fix these roads, they cost Louisiana citizens millions of dollars.

The High Cost of Bad Louisiana Roads

With the poor quality of Louisiana roads, the chances of getting into an accident are greatly increased. The bad roads also necessitate a lot of construction to fix them, which narrows lanes and blocks off roads, making drivers re-route around the construction and making accidents more likely.

Not only are cars wrecked due to bad infrastructure, but injuries are common as well. Potholes alone cost American drivers $3 billion annually, according to the American Automobile Association. This is due to the cost of repairing those potholes, but also due to the following accidents that can be caused by potholes:

• Drivers can lose control of their vehicle after hitting a pothole at a high speed
• The impact force of hitting a pothole can cause the vehicle to drift into oncoming traffic
• A driver might stop short to avoid a pothole, indirectly causing a rear-end accident
• Wheels and even whole vehicles can get stuck in potholes
• Cyclists can be ejected from their bike after hitting a pothole

Other road hazards have similar risks, and they all add up to much more dangerous—and expensive—roads.

Who Is to Blame for Road Hazard Accidents?

The poor state of Louisiana’s roads can be partially blamed on the warming climate, but a large portion is also caused by neglect from the entities tasked to maintain the roads. Most roadways are built and maintained by city, state, or federal agencies, which are required to discover, inspect, and repair bad roads in a reasonable amount of time.

Unfortunately, many government entities are immune from being sued for damages. In order to prove the government’s responsibility for a car accident in which you were injured, you must prove the following:

• The government knew, or should have known, about the road’s condition
• The government failed to repair the faulty road
• The government failed to act in a reasonable amount of time

Making a Personal Injury Claim Against the Government

If you’ve been hurt in a traffic accident and you think bad road conditions were the cause, you should call an experienced accident injury lawyer as soon as possible to start on your case. Immediately after your accident, however, you should call 911, then note the following:

• The location and time of the accident, including street or highway name, the direction you were traveling in, and the surrounding environs
• The specific location of the road damage that caused your wreck
• A specific description of the road damage, including its size, depth, and other details—take photos if you can
• Names and contact information of witnesses

You’ll also need to know which government entity is responsible for the particular section of road that caused your wreck. You can call the parish commissioner’s office to find out, or this is another area that your personal injury lawyer can help with.

Your Hazardous Road Conditions Injury Needs an Experienced Advocate

Fortunately, Louisiana does not shield the government from personal injury lawsuits. This means you have every right to sue a government board, agency, commission, or department whose negligence in highway upkeep has led to your injuries, lost income, property damages, and emotional trauma.

However, you still need an experienced hazardous road injury lawyer to serve as your advocate in your case. When you hire Gordon McKernan Injury Attorneys, you’ll have a dedicated lawyer to discover evidence, negotiate on your behalf with the government and insurance companies, and even take your case to court. 

We’ve helped our clients recover $3 Billion over the years, so we’re confident we can help your case. In fact, we’re so sure we can help you that we offer the G Guarantee: we don’t charge you a dime until we win your case!

Areas in Louisiana We Serve