Updated on: 6/10/2020
Three car crash on Highway 97 north of Orondo kills 2 and injures 11 more Sunday afternoon.
The head on collision involved a van and two large pickup trucks, one carrying a boat, the other a camping trailer.
The van as reportedly carrying nine people traveling south when it crossed the center line where it struck the first pickup which was towing a camper, and eventually struck the second pickup which was towing a boat.
One of the nine passenger from the van as well as the 29-year-old driver were pronounced dead at the scene, and conditions of the various others injured including a couple in their 70's have not been released at this time.
Investigators have not released information on what caused the van to cross the center line or further details on the individuals involved.
Commercial vs Personal Why It Matters Who Owns The Van
Tragic car accidents like this one involving over a dozen people being hurt or killed are very rare in this state but unfortunately not unheard of.
Without more information from law enforcement we do not know if the van involved was personal or a commercial vehicle, which will have a huge impact on the outcome of the numerous personal injury claims that could result from this crash.
Commercial vehicles policies will carry much higher limits than your average personal policy, meaning there is a greater chance that in mass injury accidents like this all parties can reach reasonable settlement.
Whether or not the vehicle is commercial however, investigations will need to uncover more information about what lead up to the accident and those involved will continue to heal and seek treatment.
Wrongful Death And Serious Injury Accidents With Multiple Victims
This phase of information gathering and healing is important as it allows victims and their families time to heal, while those working on their behalf for their claim can manage their case tracking their damages.
Negotiations with insurance should not take place in earnest until the injured parties are healed as much as possible so that all parties can have a complete understanding of the damages caused by the incident.
This is one of the main reasons any personal injury claim can take a long time to settle, but claims involving injuries to numerous parties can take even longer because the claim can only be settled once all parties have agreed.
This leads to complex negotiations not just between injured parties and insurance companies but often between representatives from one injured party to another advocating for the rights of their client.
If individual injured parties carry coverage options such as personal injury protection, (PIP) or uninsured/ underinsured motorist protection (UIM) on their personal policies they could seek additional recovery from these resources without draining the shared pool of funds for all victims from the at fault drivers policy.
Every person who is injured by no fault of their own in a mass injury accident have the right to a fair and complete recovery, but whenever there are multiple parties injured in an accident competing for a single pool of insurance money, it is even more important to have the best possible advocates for every personal claim.
Davis Law Group has been handling complex wrongful death accidents for more than 20 years and getting results for accident victims and their family members from all kinds of personal injury cases.
If you or a loved one have been injured in an accident and have questions about your claim, Davis Law Group is here to help, call 206-727-4000 or use the chat or contact options on this page to request your free case evaluation today.
