Copyright © 2025 Gelb & Gelb, P.C. All rights reserved.
A car accident can change your life in a flash. On I-95 near Florence, in downtown Charleston, or on a quiet road in Lexington County, our South Carolina car accident lawyers are ready to help. While we as South Carolinians have relied on our cars for over a century, a crash can suddenly take away that mode of freedom. Our South Carolina car accident lawyers know how these accidents play out. A serious crash can leave you without a car, in pain, and unsure how you will pay your bills. While your vehicle sits in a shop or tow yard, the insurance company delays.
This makes it more difficult to care for you or your family. And yet, the insurance company is dragging its feet fixing it for an accident you did not cause. Maybe you have mounting medical bills. The hospital or urgent care you visited after the accident may warn you of interest on missed payments. But why should you have to pay medical bills for an accident you did not cause? This is where we come in. At Gelb & Gelb, we have successfully resolved over 10,000 car accident cases in our over 70+ years of practice.
Our representation of clients has earned us a 4.9 Google rating and countless accolades, such as being named a Top Lawyer by the Wall Street Journal, the Washington Post Magazine, and more.
The moments after a car accident can be disorienting. It is best to go into an accident with some idea of how to act. While the following steps should not always be strictly adhered to, as every car accident case and your needs may vary, this is a relevant and practical guideline you may choose to use if you are in an accident. Many of our clients are injured on major routes like I-20, I-95, or Highway 17. Wherever it happens, this guide provides actionable suggestions to preserve your case’s value before you get in touch with an attorney.
After an auto accident, you should prioritize your own safety first. Just like securing your oxygen mask first on a plane, your safety comes first after a crash. How do you prioritize safety? If you can, move your car to the side of the road. This does many things. First, it allows traffic to flow through. Not only does this benefit everyone else, but it actually benefits you because it allows emergency vehicles to better get through traffic and reach you. Also, it reduces the likelihood of a subsequent accident. Many drivers will rubberneck when they see a collision on the side of the road. Unfortunately, this can lead to yet another car joining the wreck by clipping your car, aggravating any injuries.
Once you are in a safe position, call paramedics if you deem it appropriate. Even if you do not believe you are in pain, the adrenaline from the danger of an accident can mask your pain. That adrenaline can last for hours. Many times, it takes someone else pointing out to you that you are bleeding for you to first notice it. Even if injuries seem minor, you should receive an evaluation from a medical professional.
In South Carolina, you must report any auto accident that causes at least $1,000 in property damage, injuries, or death to the authorities. The police will not always go to the accident scene just because you call. In many instances, they will ask if anyone is injured and not come if you tell them no one is hurt. Although, in our experience of talking to thousands of car accident victims, their response is inconsistent and likely depends on the availability of officers to respond.
If you did not call the police at the accident scene (or could not respond to the scene), you can report car accidents in the hours or days after the crash to the SCDMV. To file these car accident reports, it will be necessary to complete Form 309 (Traffic Collision Report Form) and mail it to the SCDMV. If you are unsure whether your vehicle suffered at least $1,000 in damages, if you can see any physical damage, you probably did. And even if you cannot see any damage, it is always best to report the accident to the authorities to avoid penalties.
Take photos or videos of the vehicles, damage, skid marks, road conditions, and anything else that might help tell the story of what happened. As the plaintiff in a car accident case, you carry the burden of proof. This means you must be able to prove it is more likely than not that the facts as you allege them are true. While your testimony and the damage to your vehicle tell a story, the story will be much more compelling if you fully document the accident scene on the day of the accident. If we take pictures weeks or months later, they will not have the same impact as moments afterward.
Insurance companies love to argue that your injuries are not as severe as you claim when you wait to get treatment. They will argue that, if you were really hurt, you would have gone straight to the hospital. We know that you would not rush to the hospital for plenty of reasons. Maybe, despite being in pain, you have to drop your kids off. Maybe you do not have health insurance and do not want to be stuck with a hefty bill, but you would rather tough it out. These reasons are understandable, but they do not serve your case. Early documentation helps prove your injuries and supports your claim for compensation. Having notes in your medical record by your doctor is compelling evidence at trial and even for negotiation purposes.
There are countless steps to take after a vehicle collision in South Carolina, and the steps you take vary depending on the accident. Thus, speaking with a car accident law firm in South Carolina is crucial to best understand your options. Gelb & Gelb offers free consultations to all car accident victims. Call our office today to speak with an attorney at (202) 331-7227.
In every single car accident, you will want to fix your car. It is never seamless, as it involves insurance companies, repair shops, and possibly waiting for parts to arrive overseas. Our job at Gelb & Gelb is to make sure you do not needlessly pay out of pocket and are fully compensated for any cost you incur due to another driver’s negligence. To get your car repaired, you have two options.
Not sure which insurance route to take? We will walk you through it. Call today to speak with an attorney directly.
At Gelb & Gelb, we have second and third-generation car accident lawyers. We’re proud to have second- and third-generation attorneys who have grown up in this work. From a young age, our lawyers listened as their parents and grandparents discussed the nuances of car accident claims, courtroom strategy, and client care. Not only does Gelb & Gelb have a lifetime of experience talking about car accidents and understanding every angle of the legal cases entrenching them, but we understand exactly what you are going through and how best to serve your needs in these scenarios that we have handled thousands of times.
This sets us apart from the other firms, where you may be connected on your intake with a paralegal or “intake specialist”. You may never get to even speak with your attorney handling your case. And if you do, it is highly improbable that they have had the same immersion or experience that the attorneys at Gelb & Gelb bring to every case.
Below, we discuss the most common car accident cases for which you may require legal assistance.
A rear-end collision is not necessarily the cause of your accident, but it is the most common car accident we handle. These collisions happen at stoplights, in traffic, or during sudden highway slowdowns. They are frequently caused by inattention, tailgating, or failure to maintain a safe following distance. Even at low speeds, rear-end accidents can cause serious injuries like whiplash, herniated discs, or concussions. In South Carolina, liability typically rests with the following vehicle, but every case is different. For example, perhaps the defense counsel with the insurance company will argue that you merged in front of their insured at the last moment, and no driver practicing ordinary care could have stopped in time ot avoid your negligent merge.
On the other hand, more often than not, the adverse insurer will accept liability for a rear-end collision. Regarding proving liability, it is the easiest to meet the burden of proof because the property damage to the vehicles should correspond and tell the story. Those images are more convincing than most testimony. Thus, the question becomes what your case is worth. We will discuss this with you in detail to maximize the compensation you receive. We will provide you with actionable steps to protect your case and improve your chances of success in your recovery.
This is undoubtedly the most common cause of car accident cases in South Carolina. Unfortunately, it is often made worse by combining with other common causes like speeding or drunk driving. Distraction may be texting, adjusting the radio, using GPS, eating, or even talking to passengers. Anything that takes your eyes or attention away from the road qualifies as distracted driving. But distracted driving is different in South Carolina in that it may qualify the plaintiff to punitive damages, particularly if the form of distracted driving is egregious. For example, we have had cases where the defendant rode his motorcycle on FaceTime with earbuds while carrying flowers and a teddy bear.
Not only is this easier to prove as photos can be taken immediately following the accident, but it was particularly egregious because no reasonable motorcycle driver can prudently control their vehicle and stay safe while making such a reckless decision.
Speeding is a cause of SC car collisions and exacerbates the consequences of any accident it causes. Speed limits protect drivers, pedestrians, and everyone else on the road. When drivers do not comply with speed limits, deadly consequences may occur. From a physics standpoint, the force of a crash increases with the square of the vehicle’s speed. In simple terms: Force = Mass × Speed². That means the energy involved in a crash quadruples if a car’s speed doubles. As an example, a car going 60 miles per hour carries four times more crash energy than a car going 30 mph, even though the speed has only doubled. That additional energy translates directly into more serious injuries and greater property damage.
Not only does that mean devastating consequences in real life, but it is powerful expert testimony at trial. These dynamics make speeding cases especially dangerous, often leading to high-value claims due to the serious injuries we see. But speed is never the only factor in a car wreck. There may also be a failure to yield, running a red light, or tailgating, leading to a rear-end accident.
Indubitably, driving under the influence leads to more car accidents. And unfortunately, South Carolina averages about 7,000 drunken collisions per year. Moreover, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) estimates that about 32% of all traffic collision fatalities in the United States involved a drunk driver.
In South Carolina, driving under the influence can land a driver in deep trouble. Not only are there criminal, social, and professional penalties, but a plaintiff’s case could be worth more. In South Carolina, per S.C. Code Ann. §§ 15-32-510 to 15-32-540 (2012), punitive damages may be available for a drunk driving car accident. Typically, punitive damages are capped under S.C. Code Ann. § 15-32-530(A) at the greater of three times the compensatory damages or $500,000.
However, S.C. Code Ann. § 15-32-530(C)(3) states that there is no cap on punitive damages if: “…the defendant acted or failed to act while under the influence of alcohol, drugs, other than lawfully prescribed drugs administered in accordance with a prescription, or any intentionally consumed glue, aerosol, or other toxic vapor to the degree that the defendant’s judgment is substantially impaired.” Other methods of recovering punitive damages beyond the cap discussed above are when the defendant has pled guilty to or been convicted of a felony arising out of the same act or course of conduct, or at the time of injury, the defendant had an intent to harm.
A failure to yield is an unfortunately common cause of car accidents in South Carolina. But this type of motor vehicle collision is particularly unfortunate for reasons that may surprise you. Like others in this section, a failure to yield can result in gruesome injuries that change your life forever. But what sets a failure to yield case apart from other case types is the ability for a law firm to prove that the other driver is at fault. Failure to yield case types include intersection accidents, merging lane collisions, left-hand turns without waiting for oncoming traffic, running red lights, and ignoring yield signs. While some of these are relatively simple to establish liability, such as when a defendant ignores a yield sign, others, like running a red light, are more challenging to establish liability than you might expect.
In these cases, it helps to take the time to gather witness information. An unbiased, independent witness or even dashboard camera footage can clinch liability that might otherwise be marginal. We review traffic signals, dashcam footage, and right-of-way rules to establish fault in these cases. If you have pictures of relevant street signs dictating traffic, that is useful in building your case.
The standard for operating a vehicle in South Carolina is to use ordinary care. This standard sounds vague and subjective. As a result, much of what goes into a car accident case helps set the scene but does not always tell the whole story. Below, we outline the key South Carolina laws that do. These statutes and legal principles can ultimately make or break your case.
States differ on their standards for negligence. In South Carolina, you may recover compensation for a negligence cause of action if you are less than 51% at fault for the accident under the State’s modified comparative negligence rule (SC Code § 15-38-15 (2024)). In South Carolina, if you are 25% at fault, you may only recover 75% of the damages we establish. Meanwhile, if a jury or judge in a bench trial finds you over 51% to blame, you recover nothing. This is a relatively fair standard, as many jurisdictions in the United States bar recovery if you are even 1% responsible.
Under Title 15, Chapter 3, Article 5, the statute of limitations is 3 years for personal injury claims not based on contract. This includes auto accidents, negligence claims, and wrongful death. Under Section 15-3-535, the discovery rule exists. This rule states that the three-year run-off only begins once the victim knows or should know of the accident. Thus, this discovery rule will not apply in the vast majority of car accident cases in South Carolina. However, if the accident victim is in a coma for six months, the statute of limitations may be three years from the date you wake up, a date recorded in your medical record as evidence. Moreover, the time the defendant is out of state does not count against the three-year statute of limitations applicable in most car accident cases.
If you are under 18 years of age or insane when the injury occurs:
Personal injury protection, or PIP, is an optional form of no-fault coverage. It acts similarly to medical payment coverage, or Med-Pay, in states like North Carolina and Virginia. If you pay for PIP on your insurance policy, you can use it in advance of settlement to cover your bills and lost wages. Currently, South Carolina law has removed statutes pertaining to PIP. Thus, it is prudent ot hire a personal injury lawyer in South Carolina to review your PIP coverage before using it to make a PIP claim. The most common amount of PIP to have on your policy is $2,500. Even if you are at fault in the car accident, you can use PIP to cover your bills. If you paid for PIP on your policy, using it does not cost anything. Moreover, using PIP by itself should not increase your rates.
Of course, if you notify your insurance company that you were in a car accident, use your PIP, and they investigate the accident and determine you were at fault, then they may raise your rates. However, using PIP coverage in a vacuum does not. Moreover, if you are not at fault for the car accident, your rates certainly should not increase, regardless of whether you use PIP coverage.
Per Section 38-77-140, every insurance policy issued in South Carolina must cover the insured for damages arising out of the ownership, maintenance, or use of these motor vehicles within the United States or Canada, subject to limits exclusive of interest and costs, concerning each motor vehicle. The mandatory minimum limits for a South Carolina insurance policy include:
Nothing in § 38-77-140 prohibits an insurer from issuing a policy providing liability coverage over these requirements. These same minimums that apply to bodily injury coverage also apply to uninsured motorist, or UM, coverage. You may make an uninsured motorist claim in a car accident case if the at-fault driver flees the scene or the vehicle is uninsured. The vehicle may be uninsured for several reasons, including that it has been stolen, you are a pedestrian, or a cyclist.
You can also purchase Underinsured Motorist (UIM) coverage, which is optional and helps when the at-fault driver has insurance, but not enough to cover your full losses.
A common question we hear in South Carolina pertains to the seat belt defense. In short, no seatbelt defense is allowed in South Carolina injury litigation. Under SC Code § 56-5-6540 (2024), the law explicitly bars using seatbelt noncompliance to prove negligence or reduce damages in civil court. While it is illegal not to wear a seatbelt, a violation of that law is not negligent per se or contributory negligence, and it is inadmissible as evidence to be used against you at trial.
If you get into a car accident with a state vehicle, you may encounter a few barriers.
First, in our experience, police reports tend to display bias when an officer is involved in the accident. That is not the rule; results may vary, but it happens. While police reports are generally inadmissible as evidence, insurance companies rely on them when deciding whether to settle a case or the size of their settlement offer.
In common law, you could not sue the government for a personal injury. By virtue of the Federal Tort Claims Act, Title 28 U.S.C., the United States has waived immunity for tortious acts. South Carolina has done the same. Under the South Carolina Tort Claims Act, Section 15-78-10, you can sue the state of South Carolina. However, as you can see, there are barriers to suing government entities. We highlight two of the big ones next.
Under the South Carolina Tort Claims Act, you must file a verified claim or lawsuit against a government entity within 2 years of the injury. This is an easier hurdle to get through than in other jurisdictions with a six-month notice requirement, despite an otherwise three-year statute of limitations. If you first file a verified claim with the appropriate agency, the deadline to file suit extends to 3 years from the date of the incident.
The South Carolina Tort Claims Act limits the total damages you can recover to $300,000 per person. Then, like an insurance policy, the coverage widens if there is more than one person, to $600,000 per occurrence. You may think of this as the policy limits on an auto policy.
The legal fees are capped at one-third of the recovery. This is true even if we litigate your case. This is significant because it is a slight disincentive for attorneys to go to trial, as attorneys generally charge 40% of the recovery to litigate your case.
No two car accident cases in South Carolina are the same. When clients ask us what their case is worth when we have not had a chance to read their medical records, we tell them it is impossible to know. The exact same accident may be judged differently in one South Carolina County than the next. Every judge is different, and every jury is different. While parts of your accident case should be valued the same, other parts are subjective and impossible to judge with precision. Below, we provide an overview of what to consider when evaluating the value of your car accident case in South Carolina. Note that these factors may not apply in other jurisdictions and are specific to South Carolina.
Past and future medical expenses are generally compensable if they are causally related to the car accident. Your medical records should specifically mention the accident to count as evidence.
If you miss time from work because of the accident, you may be entitled to compensation. You may need a disability slip from your doctor, a treatment appointment to correspond with missed work time, and a signature from your employer. If you require your car to work, like working for Uber or Lyft, we can discuss how to value that claim.
Physical pain, emotional trauma, or reduced quality of life are harder to quantify, but often make up a significant portion of your claim.
Any scarring can increase your case’s value. A scar on your face is generally valued higher than a scar on a less visible body part.
Under South Carolina’s modified comparative negligence rule, your compensation is reduced by your percentage of fault. If you’re 25% at fault, you can recover 75% of your damages. If you’re 51% or more at fault, you recover nothing.
We can only recover from the defendant what is available to collect. Although, if you have underinsured coverage on your policy or can point to a second defendant, this may affect what we recover.
If the liability in your case is clear, we can more aggressively pursue a settlement because we have a stronger threat of litigation.
In a recent year, Progressive spent $1.73 billion on advertising. Geico spent about $1.28 billion on advertising. State Farm spent $1.01 billion on advertising. Allstate spent $950 million on advertising. They spend this money to convince you that they are on your side. They spend this money to convince you that you are in good hands. If these things were true, reality would speak for itself. They are businesses. And their primary goal is to protect their bottom line. There are instances when that does coincide with your goals. However, that is the exception and not the rule.
From the moment you file your claim, insurance company employees pounce because they know there is a higher chance you have not yet retained legal counsel. Immediately, they will ask you for a recorded statement. Sometimes these are required, and sometimes they are not. Of course, they will not clarify whether you can deny their request. At Gelb & Gelb, we have seen every tactic in their playbook.
Below are direct reasons why insurance companies are not on your side:
They profit by paying you less.
They train adjusters to reduce payouts.
They may offer lowball settlements.
They delay payments to pressure you into settling because they know you have bills to pay.
They may dispute or deny liability.
They scrutinize your medical treatment to argue it was unnecessary or unrelated.
They use anything you say against you, especially in recorded statements.
They often fight diminished value claims.
They prioritize shareholders.
We represent clients in small towns and large cities across South Carolina. We understand how big insurance companies approach cases in rural versus urban areas. They like to prey on the little guy, sometimes voiding coverage altogether. We fight to ensure that does not happen.
Since 1954, our firm has handled thousands of cases, not through paid advertising, but through word-of-mouth, referrals, and returning clients. This is because clients trust us. Clients trust our prompt communication, relying on same-day and often instantaneous responses to questions. This is a stark distinction between us and many other firms in South Carolina, who may first introduce you to an intake specialist and push you through a maze of paralegals before ever meeting your attorney. At Gelb & Gelb, we know your case matters, and we will not make you wait to get in touch with an attorney. As one former client noted, “He worked diligently and was extremely communicative throughout the entire process.”
Clients also trust us for our results. We have recovered over $400 million for car accident victims, including individual settlements in auto accident cases alone of $2 million, $1.4 million, and $1 million policy limits. Talk to a lawyer who knows your case and picks up the phone.
After over 70 years of handling car accident claims, we are acutely aware of the most common questions in an accident case. Below, we touch on a few of the main ones.
The average case value is limited by mandatory minimum limits in South Carolina, which are $25,000 for bodily injury to one person per accident. Your recovery depends largely on the severity of your injuries, clarity of liability, and available insurance coverage:
Your ability to recover full value is always contingent on how much coverage is available from the at-fault party or your own policy.
An effective South Carolina car accident lawyer will wait until you are done with your medical treatment before settling your case. How long it takes for you to complete your medical treatment depends on the nature of your injuries. Once treatment concludes, we request your bills and medical records from all remaining providers and prepare a detailed demand package for the appropriate insurance company. It takes them about four to six weeks to evaluate our demand, your records, and make an initial offer. Then, negotiation takes a couple of weeks in most cases, while more complex cases will take longer.
In short, your case will take however long it takes to finish treatment, plus approximately 8 to 10 weeks for the resolution phase.
If you are in an accident with an uninsured driver in South Carolina, you may choose to make an uninsured motorist claim under your own policy. You may even do so as a passenger in a car you do not own. Importantly, filing a UM claim should not affect your premiums, as you were not at fault. Your insurer has no legal basis to raise your rates for exercising coverage you’ve already paid for.
If you are in a car accident in South Carolina while driving a rental car, the law behaves much as it does if you are in your own car at the time of the accident. If the other driver is at fault, you make your claim through the adverse driver’s insurance. Of course, you should also inform the rental car company so they understand what is going on. But what if the adverse driver does not have insurance? Your personal liability coverage should extend to your rental car, allowing you to make a UM claim.
You pay for car insurance coverage. The insurance company cannot retaliate against you solely for exercising your contractual right. In fact, it is against the law to do so. If they do, you should file a complaint with the insurance commissioner.
You may be able to get a rental car after a car accident in South Carolina, but proceed cautiously. Instances when you may be able to get a rental car without paying out of pocket include:
If you are in a car accident while visiting or driving through South Carolina, you should retain local South Carolina counsel. If we cannot settle your case for what you deserve, we can sue the adverse driver where the accident occurred or where the defendant resides, whichever offers you a bigger advantage.
Yes, you can still recover compensation in a South Carolina crash if you are less than 51% at fault, but your recovery is reduced by your percentage of fault.
Yes, South Carolina law requires you to file a police report if there is an injury, death, or property damage of $1,000 or more. Obtaining a police report is also beneficial for settling your accident claim prelitigation.
Still have questions? We’re happy to answer them in a free consultation.
At Gelb & Gelb, we bring generations of legal experience and a track record of results to every case we handle. We know how insurance companies operate. We also know that the value of your case diminishes if you wait. You may miss important deadlines. If you delay in getting medical treatment, a judge or jury may not believe your injuries are as severe as you claim.
We offer free consultations, and you pay nothing unless we win. We serve injured clients in all South Carolina counties, with most of our cases occurring in Richland County, Spartanburg County, and Lexington County. Call us today or fill out our short contact form to get started.
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