A motor vehicle accident can disrupt your life in an instant, even if no injuries are involved. However, when an auto wreck results in a personal injury, the consequences can be severe and long-lasting, impacting both your physical well-being and financial stability. Seeking immediate medical attention is essential, but it’s equally important to consult with an experienced attorney as soon as possible.
With over 85 years of combined legal expertise, our New Orleans car accident attorneys are here to guide you through the process of filing a personal injury claim in Louisiana. We take the time to evaluate your unique situation and help you understand your options. You don’t have to accept the first offer from the insurance company. We’ll work to establish the true value of your case and fight tirelessly to recover the compensation you deserve for your medical expenses, financial losses, and emotional hardships.
At Frischhertz & Impastato, we provide aggressive representation for serious traffic accidents in New Orleans and throughout Louisiana. Our auto accident injury lawyers are ready and have proven results backed by decades of experience.
We handle all types of accident cases, including but not limited to:
Whether it’s a rear-end collision, T-bone, head-on crash, multi-vehicle pileup, hit-and-run, rideshare accident, or any other type of motor vehicle crash, if negligence caused your injury, we’ll fight tirelessly to hold the responsible parties accountable.
Seeking the Compensation You Need to Fully Recover
Insurance companies can make it difficult to obtain the compensation you need to recover the costs of medical care, damage to property, lost wages, rehabilitation, and/or long-term care. Your insurance company will usually try to settle your case for as little as possible. Why should you pay the price for something that was not your fault?
The knowledgeable and resourceful attorneys at Frischhertz & Impastato can handle all the legal aspects of your case and work to help you organize the other issues resulting from the accident so that you can get your life back to normal. Our experienced New Orleans car accident lawyers are here to defend your rights, strengthen your case, and challenge insurance companies that try to undervalue your claim.
Common Causes of Car Crashes in New Orleans
New Orleans has its own mix of conditions behind local crash rates. This includes things like heavy tourist and event traffic around popular areas, such as the French Quarter, Bourbon Street, and the Central Business District, regular congestion on I-10, the Pontchartrain Expressway, and Claiborne Avenue, pothole-damaged roads after heavy rain, poor drainage during storms, and a steady stream of rideshare and delivery traffic through dense neighborhoods. These factors can end up playing a role in liability, particularly in cases involving road hazards or municipal responsibility.
After a crash, a few steps help protect both your future health and your legal options:
Call 911 and get checked out even if injuries seem minor at first
Photograph the vehicles, road conditions, and any visible injuries
Exchange information with the other driver and get contact details from witnesses
Avoid discussing fault at the scene or with adjusters
Follow up with medical care and keep records of treatment
Talk with a car accident lawyer before signing off on any settlement offer
If you were involved in a recent accident, or if someone you love suffered catastrophic injuries or tragically passed away due to a crash, reach out to Frischhertz & Impastato right away. Our compassionate and experienced New Orleans car accident lawyers are here to answer your questions and help guide you on the road to recovery.
When to Hire a Car Accident Lawyer
Not every fender-bender requires legal representation, but certain circumstances indicate it’s time to talk to a lawyer: an injury of any kind, a dispute over who caused the crash, or an insurance adjuster already asking questions. Adjusters tend to reach out fast after a crash, and early statements can end up being used to reduce or deny a claim down the road.
In general, a case exists when another driver's negligence, whether that's distracted driving, speeding, running a red light, or driving under the influence, caused an accident that led to injury or financial loss. Louisiana also allows for shared fault, so being partially responsible for a crash doesn't automatically rule out compensation.
Liability, Shared Fault & What Compensation Can Cover
Under a new rule that began on January 1, 2026, Louisiana follows a modified comparative fault system. When more than one party contributed to an accident, a court or insurance company assigns each person a percentage of fault, and recovery is reduced by that percentage rather than eliminated. In Louisiana, you cannot recover compensation if you are more than 50% at fault. This is known as the “51% bar,” meaning you are barred from recovery if you are 51% or more at fault.
A driver found 20% at fault, for example, can still recover the remaining 80% of damages, but a driver who is found to be 55% at fault cannot recover anything. Insurance companies are well aware of this rule and often try to shift as much blame as possible onto the injured party to shrink or eliminate their payout, which is one of the more common ways claims get undervalued.
Depending on the details of a crash, compensation may include:
Medical expenses (both current and anticipated future care)
How much a claim is worth typically comes down to the severity of the injuries, whether maximum medical improvement has been reached, how the accident affected the ability to work, and how much insurance coverage is actually available to draw from.
The Deadline for Filing a Claim
Louisiana's statute of limitations for personal injury claims, also known as a “prescriptive period,” changed in 2024. For accidents occurring on or after July 1, 2024, injured people generally have two years from the date of the crash to file a lawsuit. For accidents that happened before that date, the older one-year deadline still applies. Missing the applicable deadline can end any chance of recovering compensation, regardless of how strong the case might otherwise have been, and certain circumstances can affect the timeline in either direction, which is part of why speaking with an attorney early tends to matter more than it might seem right after a crash.
Why New Orleans Car Accident Victims Choose Frischhertz & Impastato
Our attorneys have taken on large insurance companies, corporations, and employers on behalf of injured clients throughout New Orleans, and every case is prepared as though it may go to trial. That preparation tends to matter during settlement negotiations, since insurance companies generally take claims more seriously when a firm is ready to go to court if needed.
What’s more, we work as a team. When you choose our firm, you don’t just get one attorney working on your case; you get the collaborative efforts of our New Orleans car accident lawyers, all working together to bring unique insights, diverse backgrounds, and decades of experience to your case. In every instance, we are committed to securing the full compensation you deserve so that you can begin to heal and move forward with your life.
A compilation of the Frischhertz & Impastato attorneys and staff at work and interacting with clients.
Before You Sign AnythingThat Settlement Offer Isn't Their Final OneIt's Their First One
Adjusters open low on purpose, betting you won't push back. We push back for a living. Let us look at the offer before you accept it — it costs nothing, and it might be the most valuable five minutes you spend on this case.
