Arizona is one of the most popular vacation states in the U.S. According to the Arizona Office of Tourism, an estimated 40 million people visit the Grand Canyon state each year. If you are vacationing in Arizona and suffer a personal injury, what can you do to ensure you receive compensation for your medical bills and/or property damage?

Experiencing an accident that causes injury at home is difficult enough, but while traveling this can present additional challenges if not handled correctly. The most important step to take after most accidents is to be diligent by visiting a professional doctor for evaluation and to create a documented paper-trail. Many times, effects from accidents don't show up immediately and without a documented doctor visit compensation can be very difficult.

Depending on the severity of the accident researching and interviewing a few experienced local attorneys can be greatly beneficial. The best time to do this is soon after the accident occurred and before returning home. This can save additional travel requirements, time, and unnecessary costs that could easily incur.

Common Personal Injury Accidents While on Vacation Include:

Vehicle Accidents

Car crashes are the most common type of personal injury that occurs for visitors in Arizona. Residents can drive aggressively and cause any number of auto-accident types including:

Impaired drivers, especially during late night hours, can cause serious accidents. The laws throughout Arizona for drunk drivers are significant and strictly enforced. This does not stop all individuals from getting behind the wheel after consuming alcoholic beverages.

With the rise of popularity for ride share services, come additional accidents. If an accident occurs while using Uber, Lyft, or a local taxi, passengers have rights whether caused by the driver or the other automobile.

Defined as collisions involving cars going less than 10 mph, low speed impacts include fender-benders, parking lot impacts or accidents happening on side streets where the speed limit is typically 25 mph. Although low speed impacts typically result in only minor car damage, they may cause injuries such as whiplash or other musculoskeletal strain, especially in older individuals prone to such injuries.

Frontal impact collisions mostly involve animals, trees, road obstructions and other automobiles. Injuries seen in people suffering head-on collisions include whiplash, broken ribs (due to the chest hitting the steering wheel), shoulder bruising/strain and severe bruising. High-speed head-on collisions will cause much more serious injuries requiring emergency medical treatment.

The leading cause of rear-end accidents is distracted driving. If you are struck from behind while vacationing in Arizona, chances are a negligent driver was texting or talking on their cellphone.

DRAM Shop Liability

A lesser known type of personal injury but not uncommon for visitors to Arizona. Dram shop laws hold bars, restaurants, liquor stores and other establishments liable for injuries caused from over consumption.

Slips and Falls

Slipping and falling typically happens when a business neglects to maintain a safe and secure environment in which you can shop, visit landmarks and engage in popular outdoor activities like golf. Our attorneys know exactly what evidence to look for in a liability accident scenario. For example, an attorney proving liability in a personal injury case would provide solid evidence that a business was responsible for leaving a recently mopped, wet floor unmarked, resulting in someone slipping, falling and breaking a bone.

Alternately, if a "wet floor" sign was clearly posted and you fell because the floor was slippery, you may not have a case of premises liability. However, if you are vacationing in Arizona and suffer a slip and fall, always contact a slip and fall lawyer before signing any documents provided by the premises owner.

Dog Bites

Arizona residents, like many other states, love their dogs. Arizona has strict laws that hold dog owners liable for attacks that cause injury. Dog owners failing to control a vicious dog can be brought to court and held accountable for a victim's medical bills and pain and suffering. In some cases, negligent dog owners may spend time in jail, depending on the severity and circumstances of the dog bite injury. In addition, dog attack victims may be awarded punitive damages when represented by an experienced personal injury lawyer who knows the law.

Other kinds of personal injuries that could require the attention of a personal injury attorney include:

• Assault
• Battery
• Intentional torts
• Boating/outdoor activity accidents
• Medical malpractice

Filing a Personal Injury Claim in Arizona

Hesitating to contact a vacation accident lawyer could be detrimental to your case. This is because it may appear to a judge that your injury was not serious but that you only decided to file a lawsuit later in order to receive compensation. If you have suffered any kind of personal injury due to the negligence of another individual or entity while vacationing in Arizona, see a doctor immediately and then contact Friedl Richardson to discuss your case.

The majority of vacation accident personal injury claims are settled out of court simply because out of court settlements are typically smaller than settlements reached by the court. Whether your attorney decides to accept an out of court settlement depends heavily on whether the compensation amount offered by the defendant is adequate enough to cover your expenses.

Although you may not have to go to court to obtain compensation for a personal injury while vacationing in Arizona, hiring a personal injury lawyer is still necessary for filing, organizing and reaching a satisfactory conclusion to your claim. Personal injury claims mostly involve the defendant's insurance company and your attorney arguing about the amount of compensation you deserve. Since liability issues are frequently questioned by the defendant's insurance company lawyers, an experienced Arizona accident lawyer can expeditiously perform the tremendous amount of paperwork and investigative procedures necessary to prove your case,