If you were hurt in a wreck in Gray, attorney Robert Bates can help. Robert is a Kingsport trial lawyer who handles injury cases and nothing else, and he is known as the I-26 Lawyer. Call or text him at (423) 765-1215.
Where Gray wrecks happen
Interstate 26 runs straight through Gray, just south of the I-26 and I-81 interchange. Exit 13 at Bobby Hicks Highway, State Route 75, is the exit for the Gray Fossil Site, the Appalachian Fairgrounds, Tri-Cities Airport and Northeast State, so the ramps carry gas station, restaurant, school and airport traffic all day. Add the merge traffic from I-81 and you get a stretch of I-26 where rear-end and lane-change wrecks are common. For more on this part of the interstate, see I-26 wrecks in Gray and Boones Creek.
Where your case is filed
Gray is in Washington County, part of Tennessee’s First Judicial District. A Washington County wreck case is usually filed in Washington County Circuit Court.
T-boned on Old Stage Road. $440,000.
Robert’s client was driving west on Old Stage Road in Gray when another driver T-boned her car. She suffered a compression fracture in her back and later needed spine surgery. The other driver carried only $25,000 in coverage.
Robert hired a toxicologist to look at the prescription painkiller the other driver had taken that day, then fought the client’s own insurance company over her underinsured motorist coverage. It paid $410,000 on top of the other driver’s $25,000 limit. With a $5,000 medical payments waiver, the total value came to $440,000.
Every case is different. A past result does not guarantee the same outcome in your case.
After the wreck
Most people hurt in Gray wrecks are treated in Johnson City, at Johnson City Medical Center or Franklin Woods Community Hospital. Keep every bill, photo and insurance letter. Tennessee generally gives you only one year from the date of the wreck to file a personal injury lawsuit.
From Daniel Boone High School to the Gray Fossil Site and the Appalachian Fairgrounds, Gray is busier than it has ever been, and so is I-26. If your child got sick after the 2023 fairgrounds animal exhibit, see our E. coli outbreak page.
You never have to come to Robert’s office. 99 out of 100 of his clients hire him without leaving home. You call or text, you talk with Robert, and you sign the paperwork on your phone, even from a hospital bed.
Common questions after a Gray wreck
The other driver says I was partly at fault. Can I still recover?
Yes, in most cases. Tennessee uses modified comparative fault. You can recover as long as you are less than 50 percent at fault, and your award is cut by your share of the blame. Insurance companies push that percentage as high as they can, so do not agree with their version of the wreck.
Who pays my medical bills while my case is open?
While the case is open, your own health insurance and any medical payments coverage on your car policy usually pay first. The at-fault driver’s insurance company does not pay as you go. It pays once at the end. Your health insurer may then want to be paid back, and Robert negotiates that number down so more of the money stays with you.
The other driver only had the minimum insurance. Is that all I can get?
Not always. Tennessee’s minimum is only $25,000 per person, and a hospital stay can use that up fast. Your own policy may include uninsured or underinsured motorist coverage that pays after the other driver’s limit runs out. In Tennessee that coverage comes with your policy unless you turned it down in writing, so Robert checks for it in every case.
How long do I have to file?
Most Tennessee injury claims must be filed within one year of the wreck. If the at-fault driver was criminally charged, the deadline may stretch to two years, but that exception is read strictly. Call Robert early so the evidence can be saved.
Hurt in a wreck? Don’t wait. Call Bates.
Call or text Robert directly at (423) 765-1215. Free consultation. You pay no attorney fee unless we recover money for you.