Georgia Car Accident Lawyers

A car accident can upend your life in seconds: medical bills, missed paychecks, a damaged vehicle, and an insurance adjuster who is already working to pay as little as possible. Roden Law’s Georgia car accident lawyers take that fight off your plate. We gather the evidence, deal with the insurers and pursue the full value of your claim, serving injured drivers and passengers across Georgia from our offices in Savannah and Darien. We work on a contingency fee, so you pay nothing unless we win.

Who pays after a car accident in Georgia?

The at-fault driver and that driver’s insurer pay, because Georgia is an at-fault (tort) state. You generally bring your injury claim against the liability coverage of the driver who caused the crash. Georgia requires personal auto policies to carry at least $25,000 per person and $50,000 per accident for bodily injury, plus $25,000 for property damage, and insurers must offer uninsured motorist coverage (O.C.G.A. § 33-7-11). Our Georgia uninsured motorist coverage guide explains how that coverage works. Optional MedPay on your own policy can help with early medical bills. When the at-fault driver’s limits run short, a lawyer looks for every other policy and party that may owe you, a process our guide to Georgia car accident settlement value walks through.

How long do I have to file a car accident lawsuit in Georgia?

You generally have two years from the date of injury to file a personal injury lawsuit in Georgia, under O.C.G.A. § 9-3-33. A claim for damage to your vehicle has a separate four-year period (O.C.G.A. § 9-3-32). If a government vehicle or a road defect played a part, written ante litem notice comes due much sooner: six months for a claim against a Georgia city (O.C.G.A. § 36-33-5), and twelve months for a county (O.C.G.A. § 36-11-1) or the State (O.C.G.A. § 50-21-26). Evidence fades faster than any of these deadlines, so the sooner a lawyer starts, the better. The Georgia statute of limitations guide covers the exceptions.

What if I was partly at fault for the crash in Georgia?

You can still recover in Georgia as long as you were less than 50% at fault, and your award is reduced by your share of the blame (O.C.G.A. § 51-12-33). At 50% or more, you recover nothing, which is why insurers work hard to push your percentage up. The same statute makes each defendant pay only its own share, because Georgia abolished joint and several liability in 2005. A separate rule, O.C.G.A. § 51-11-7, bars recovery entirely where you could have avoided the consequences of the other driver’s negligence by ordinary care. Photos, witness statements and vehicle data are how we answer both arguments.

Can a missing seat belt reduce my Georgia car accident claim?

It can, in lawsuits commenced on or after April 21, 2025. For those cases, O.C.G.A. § 40-8-76.1(d), as revised by SB 68, allows seat belt non-use to be admitted on negligence, comparative negligence, causation, assumption of risk and apportionment, and it may diminish your recovery. The statute sets no fixed limit on how large that reduction can be. That makes medical proof of what actually caused each injury more important, and it is one more reason to speak with a lawyer before giving the other driver’s insurer a recorded statement.

What if the other driver fled the scene or was on the phone?

You still have a claim, and your own uninsured motorist coverage may pay if the driver who fled stays unidentified. Georgia requires a driver involved in a crash to stop, give identifying information and render reasonable assistance (O.C.G.A. § 40-6-270), and leaving the scene of a crash involving serious injury or death is a felony punishable by one to five years. If the other driver was using a phone, Georgia’s hands-free law, O.C.G.A. § 40-6-241, becomes part of the liability case, and phone records can help prove it.

What compensation can I recover after a Georgia car accident?

A Georgia car accident claim can recover your medical bills, past and future; lost wages and lost earning capacity; the cost to repair or replace your vehicle; and pain and suffering. What a claim is worth depends on the injuries, the treatment, the coverage available and how fault is divided. We document each loss so the insurer has to answer for all of it, and we explain the numbers before you decide on any offer.

Talk to a Georgia car accident lawyer for free

Roden Law represents car accident victims throughout Georgia from our Savannah office and our Darien office. A car accident attorney will review your case at no cost, tell you which deadline applies, and start protecting your evidence right away. There are no fees unless we win. If your crash happened near Savannah, see our Savannah car accident lawyers page, or explore our car accident practice. Hurt by a commercial vehicle or on a motorcycle? Our truck accident practice and motorcycle accident practice pages explain how those claims differ.