New Orleans Rear-End Car Accidents Lawyer

The jarring impact of a rear-end collision can shatter more than just your vehicle—it can break you physically, evaporate your sense of safety when in a motor vehicle, upend your financial stability, and cause lasting effects that substantially diminish your quality of life. Demanding compensation for such harm is only fair, and we want to help.

We understand the unique challenges that rear-end accident victims face, and we’re here to fight for the justice and compensation you deserve. Attorney Seth Smiley is the son of a general contractor who brings a blue-collar work ethic and an astute legal mind to your case. Call Smiley Law Firm today at (504) 822-2222 for a free consultation about hiring the New Orleans rear-end car accident lawyer who will fight tirelessly for you.

Why Choose Seth Smiley and the Smiley Law Firm to Lead Your Rear-End Accident Case in New Orleans?

New Orleans is full of fun-loving residents whose default mode is seeing life’s bright side. When a car accident introduces serious turmoil without warning, most victims have not even considered where to turn or what to look for in a car accident attorney.

Just know that Attorney Seth Smiley and his team strive to exceed everything you could want in your New Orleans car accident lawyer. As our client, you can expect:

A legal team with the trademark New Orleans warmth: Visitors are struck by our city’s welcoming spirit, and that’s the same demeanor you should expect from the Smiley Law Firm team. While we tend not to be quite as friendly with liable parties that try to underpay our clients, our clients are family to us.

A resident’s knowledge of New Orleans, its streets, its courts, and its people: Attorney Smiley and his family live in Uptown New Orleans, the same city as most of the clients we represent. As an LSU and Loyola graduate, Seth’s local roots run deep. We know this city from New Orleans East to the boundaries of Metairie. Having a lawyer with a resident’s perspective provides a significant advantage, as it allows us to document accidents promptly, anticipate local court tendencies, and connect with our clients.

A work ethic that our clients appreciate: While some consider the law a “white-collar” profession, Attorney Smiley works just as hard as a rig worker in Plaquemines Parish. Being raised by a general contractor instilled in Seth that hard work is a core virtue, and our clients often mention how we doggedly pursue the compensation they deserve.

No financial stress: We will handle your case on a contingency basis, which means your lawyer will be paid as a percentage of any compensation they secure for you. Our clients never worry about the cost of hiring an expert, filing a lawsuit, or making any other investments in their case. We cover these expenses because we always believe in the cases we take.
Start-to-finish care for your case (and your well-being): Our firm will handle even the smallest detail of your car accident claim or lawsuit. We believe our duty extends beyond just securing a settlement or verdict, though—it means being there for you throughout the entire process, answering your questions, aiding in your recovery, and helping you avoid legal pitfalls that can jeopardize your case.

At our firm, NOLA may as well stand for “No One Left Alone” because our clients are never alone with Smiley Law Firm on their side. All you have to do is reach out for your free consultation, and you will have an ally throughout the remainder of your case.

The Cost of Rear-End Collisions Can Be Much Greater Than You Think

Somewhere along the line, popular culture perpetrated the idea that rear-end accidents were less serious than other accident types. They can even be dismissed as “fender benders,” but you may have already realized that rear-end collisions can be truly devastating.

Often associated with whiplash, the impact of another vehicle slamming into yours might also cause serious brain injuries, broken bones, internal injuries, facial injuries, spinal cord injuries, and other physical, emotional, and psychological trauma. These kinds of ailments generally result in two primary categories of harm:

Your Economic Damages

These are the dollar-and-cents costs that can quickly pile up after you’ve suffered an injury. Think of them as the bills and income you can put concrete numbers to, like:

Your medical bills: This may cover everything from an ambulance ride and ER visit to surgeries, rehab sessions, medications, and whatever ongoing treatment you’ll need down the road.
The paychecks you’re missing: This is the cost of all those days you couldn’t work while healing, the loss of paid time off or sick days after the accident, lost chances for bonuses, promotions, and overtime pay, and any other professional harm stemming from the crash.
Your reduced earning power: This applies when injuries prevent you from earning the exact amount you did before the crash.
Property damaged or destroyed: This may include your vehicle, phone, laptop, or anything else that got wrecked in the wreck.
Transportation costs: These may include cab rides, Uber, rental vehicles, and other transportation-related to the accident.

We expect your accident will also have a non-economic cost, which we will include in our settlement demands.

The Harder-to-Measure Impact of Rear-End Car Accidents

We call these non-economic damages. These damages reflect all the ways your life has worsened, outside of the strictly financial costs of an accident. Such non-economic harm can include:

Physical pain and discomfort
The mental and emotional toll of the crash
The loss of aspects of life that you derive joy from (sometimes referred to as loss of enjoyment)
Appearance changes, such as scarring or amputation injuries
Mood and personality changes
Strain on your relationships

If the at-fault party did something extremely reckless, like driving drunk or flying into a rage, you might also get what’s called punitive damages. However, these damages are relatively rare.

Then, There Is the Tragic Cost of Fatal Rear-End Accidents

Rear-end accidents are less likely to be fatal than, say, head-on collisions. However, rear-end collisions can cost victims their lives, particularly when the rear-ending vehicle is heavy or traveling at high speeds.

If you’re suffering the fallout of a fatal crash, we may seek compensation to cover your:

Grief (and any other forms of emotional or psychological harm you’ve suffered)
Loved one’s funeral and burial
Financial hardship resulting from losing your loved one
Loss of consortium
Other economic and non-economic damages

Because we listen to our clients and rely on qualified experts, we can build our clients’ cases on a detailed accounting of their damages and confidently pursue the full and fair compensation they deserve.

The Smiley Law Firm Team: Fighting for Rear-End Accident Victims Every Step of the Way

Like a loyal Saints fan, our legal team sticks by clients no matter what. Once we become your trusted car accident attorneys, we have your back all the way. No unexpected challenge will deter us from leading your case toward the goal line. After we accept your case, expect us to begin immediately:

Getting to the bottom of why the accident happened: The work starts right when you reach out to a law firm. Your lawyer will size up whether you have a solid case, collect crucial evidence before it disappears, talk to people who saw what happened while it’s still fresh in their minds, and bring in any experts who might help us prove your case.
Dealing with insurers: Insurance companies are well-known for placing their own interests before the claimants. We generally expect insurance companies to fight us, so we ensure they don’t have direct access to you. This distance greatly diminishes the likelihood that an insurer will violate your rights.
Figuring out the exact cost of your damages: We will extensively evaluate the harm you’ve suffered so far and what harm you’ll likely suffer going forward. We often work with financial experts, medical specialists, and other professionals to inform our case valuations.
Fighting for a fair settlement: We want you to get the compensation you deserve as soon as possible, which often means negotiating a settlement rather than going to trial.

While most lawyers and accident victims prefer to work things out without going to trial, great attorneys are always ready to go in front of a judge and jury if that’s what it takes to get you justice. We are always prepared for that possibility.

We Aim to Prove That Someone’s Negligence Caused Your Rear-End Crash

Most rear-end crashes don’t just happen by accident. Usually, someone does something careless or reckless that causes the crash, and that might include:

Not paying attention is one of the greatest threats to safety these days. People are constantly using their phones, fiddling with their GPS, or just zoning out instead of watching the road.
Riding someone’s bumper is another surefire way to cause a crash. Some drivers follow too closely without considering that tailgating drastically increases the likelihood of a rear-end collision.
Driving under the influence is an all-too-common problem in New Orleans and Louisiana more broadly.
Driving too fast for road conditions is a recipe for disaster. Rain, heavy traffic, or construction zones are all good reasons to slow down.
Driving while tired can be just as dangerous as driving drunk. Fatigue can slow reaction times, impair attention, and make a crash far more likely.
Ignoring vehicle issues also increases the likelihood of an accident, especially if a vehicle’s brakes or tires are in poor condition.

Let us figure out who let you down and who must pay for that negligence.

Your Role During the Legal Process: Stay Calm, Get Better, and Smile Because We’re Fighting for You

While we handle the complex legal work, your cooperation and participation are essential for achieving the best possible outcome in your rear-end accident case. We don’t ask much, but we urge our clients to:

Make yourself available: We ask clients to respond promptly to our communications and promise to be available to you. Prompt communication can make a significant difference in a case’s outcome, and we will set the tone by providing you with regular updates.
Listen to your doctors: Prioritizing your recovery means attending all medical appointments, trusting your treatment plans, taking medications as directed, participating in physical therapy or other recommended rehabilitation, and avoiding activities that might worsen your injuries or conflict with your doctor’s instructions.
If in doubt, hang onto things: If you’re considering throwing away a medical bill, a copy of a police report, or anything else accident-related, just hang onto it until you’ve had a chance to ask us about it.
Being upfront with us: Honesty is the only acceptable policy for a lawyer-client relationship. We will be forthcoming with you and ask that you do the same with us.

Trust our leadership; we will build the strongest case for you. Quality legal work takes time, and we will look out for your long-term well-being. We empower clients to make the right decisions and will work hard to ensure your case falls in your favor.

Frequently Asked Questions About New Orleans Rear-End Accidents

What should I do if the driver who rear-ended me has no insurance?

If an uninsured driver hits you, you may still recover compensation through your own Uninsured/Underinsured Motorist (UM/UIM) coverage.

Louisiana law requires insurance companies to offer this coverage, and it protects you in these exact situations. We can review your policy and manage the entire claim with your insurer.

What if I believe I was partially at fault for the rear-end collision?

You should still contact an attorney. Louisiana uses a pure comparative negligence rule. This means you may still recover damages even if you were partially at fault, but your percentage of fault will reduce your final compensation award. We will work to minimize any fault assigned to you.

How is fault typically determined in a Louisiana rear-end accident?

In Louisiana, there is a legal presumption that the rear-ending driver is at fault. The law assumes the following driver failed to maintain a safe distance or pay adequate attention.

However, the insurance company for the other driver will work to rebut this presumption with evidence of a sudden, unexpected stop or other contributing factors. Our job is to gather the evidence needed to hold the at-fault driver accountable.

The other driver’s insurance company already offered me a settlement. Should I accept it?

You should not accept any offer from an insurance company without first consulting an attorney. Initial offers are almost always far less than the full value of your claim. Insurers make these offers hoping you will accept a quick, low payout before you understand the long-term costs of your injuries.

Accepting the offer finalizes your claim, preventing you from seeking additional compensation later if your injuries worsen.

Call Smiley Law Firm and Hire Your New Orleans Rear-End Car Accident Lawyer Toady

The trauma of a rear-end accident doesn’t have to define the rest of your life. Still, the decisions you make in the coming days and weeks will significantly impact your ability to recover both physically and financially. Louisiana’s one-year filing deadline for personal injury cases like yours is substantially shorter than most other states, and there’s plenty of reason (among others) to contact us right away.

Let an attorney handle the legal hurdles, allowing you to recover physically while they pursue financial recovery. Acting quickly can preserve key evidence and meet all key deadlines.

Don’t let this opportunity slip away. Call Smiley Law Firm today at (504) 822-2222 for your free consultation about working with a New Orleans car accident attorney who will put nothing before your best interests.