Losing someone you love in a car crash is the kind of grief no family is ever ready for. The phone call, the police report, the funeral arrangements, the unfamiliar paperwork from insurance companies that started arriving before you could even process what happened. While you’re trying to keep your family together, the people responsible for the crash are already working with adjusters and attorneys to limit what they have to pay.
The Michigan fatal car accident lawyers at Fieger Law have stood with grieving families across Michigan for more than 75 years. Founded in Detroit in 1950, our firm has tried some of the largest verdicts in American legal history. We can carry the legal weight, so you don’t have to. If a Michigan car crash took your loved one, contact us for a free consultation.
What Counts as a Fatal Car Accident Claim in Michigan
A fatal car accident case is a civil claim brought by the family of someone killed in a crash caused by another driver’s negligence, recklessness, or wrongful conduct. In Michigan, most fatal crash cases actually move forward on two tracks at the same time.
The first track involves no-fault insurance benefits, which include survivor’s loss benefits and other coverages your loved one’s policy may provide, regardless of who caused the crash. The second track is a wrongful death claim against the driver, company, or party at fault, governed by the Michigan Wrongful Death Act, MCL 600.2922. These tracks have different rules, timelines, and sources of funding. Most families don’t know either one exists until an experienced attorney walks them through it.
Before you give a statement to any insurance adjuster, speak with an experienced Michigan wrongful death attorney at Fieger Law. The earliest decisions in a case often have the biggest impact on what your family can recover.
Who Can File a Fatal Car Accident Claim in Michigan
Under MCL 600.2922, only the personal representative of the deceased’s estate can file a wrongful death lawsuit in Michigan. The personal representative is appointed by the probate court and is usually a close family member, often the surviving spouse or an adult child. The lawsuit is filed in the name of one person, but any money recovered is shared among the surviving family members recognized by law.
Michigan law identifies the following people as eligible to share in a wrongful death recovery:
- Spouse: The surviving husband or wife of the person killed.
- Children: Biological and adopted children, including surviving children of any age. Minor children typically receive a structured allocation to protect their long-term interests.
- Parents: The mother and father of the person who died.
- Siblings: Brothers and sisters of the deceased.
- Grandparents: May share in recovery, depending on family circumstances.
- Other Dependents: Stepchildren, stepparents, and others who were financially dependent on the deceased at the time of death may also qualify.
After a settlement or verdict, the probate court holds a hearing to approve the division of funds. The personal representative proposes a distribution, surviving family members can appear and be heard, and the judge has the final word. When a child has lost a parent, the court takes that loss seriously. Surviving children’s rights to recover for the loss of a parent’s love, guidance, and financial support are protected throughout this process.
Families don’t have to figure this out alone. Our team has handled the probate appointment, court hearings, and distribution discussions countless times. Reach out today.
Damages Families Can Pursue After a Fatal Crash
Two different sources of compensation can apply after a fatal Michigan car crash. The first is paid through no-fault insurance, regardless of who caused the crash. The second is paid through a wrongful death claim against whoever was at fault.
Michigan No-Fault Survivor’s Loss Benefits
When someone is killed in a Michigan car crash, their no-fault policy can pay survivor’s loss benefits to the dependents who counted on them. These benefits help replace the income and household services the deceased provided to the family: a paycheck, child care, home maintenance, and the daily contributions a parent or spouse makes that often go unnoticed until they’re gone. Survivor’s loss benefits are paid for up to three years after the death.
Michigan’s no-fault system has been more complex since the 2019 reform created tiered PIP coverage. Many families don’t realize that their loved one’s policy choices affect what’s available, or that the deceased’s own insurer is supposed to be the first to pay. Adjusters know this is confusing, and they don’t have to volunteer what your family is entitled to claim.
Damages Under the Michigan Wrongful Death Act
A wrongful death claim against the at-fault driver or party may allow your family to seek damages, including:
- Medical Bills: Costs for any treatment your loved one received between the crash and their death.
- Funeral and Burial Expenses: The reasonable costs of laying your loved one to rest.
- Conscious Pain and Suffering: Compensation for the physical and emotional suffering the deceased experienced before they died.
- Lost Financial Support: The income, benefits, and economic contributions your loved one would have provided.
- Loss of Companionship and Society: The loss of love, comfort, care, guidance, and the relationship itself for surviving family members.
- Loss of Consortium: A surviving spouse’s loss of the marital relationship, including emotional and physical intimacy.
Michigan does not put a hard cap on economic damages like lost income in most wrongful death cases. No two cases are valued the same, and you may be entitled to compensation in categories you didn’t know existed. Talk with us before you accept anything from an insurance company. The free consultation costs nothing, and what we discuss is confidential. Reach out today.
How Michigan No-Fault Insurance Affects a Fatal Crash Claim
Michigan is a no-fault state, which makes our auto insurance system one of the most complicated in the country. After a fatal crash, the deceased’s own auto insurance policy pays first: survivor’s loss benefits, allowable medical expenses, and certain replacement services flow from that policy. This happens whether or not the deceased was at fault. If the deceased didn’t have a policy, the Michigan Assigned Claims Plan may step in.
Then there’s the lawsuit against the at-fault driver. Michigan generally limits the time in which an injured person can sue another driver for pain and suffering or other non-economic damages. Under MCL 500.3135, the injury has to meet a serious-impairment threshold. A fatal crash automatically clears that threshold. Death is, by definition, the most serious outcome a crash can have.
What this means practically is that an at-fault driver’s liability insurance (and, in many cases, your loved one’s own underinsured-motorist policy if the at-fault driver didn’t carry enough coverage) can also pay your family. The interaction of these policies is technical, and the adjusters who handle these claims do this work every day. Most families do not. That imbalance is exactly why our team is here.
Call Fieger Law before you sign anything. There’s no charge for the conversation, and there’s no obligation to hire us afterward.
Common Causes of Fatal Car Crashes in Michigan
In 2024, 1,099 people died in 1,012 fatal crashes on Michigan roads, according to the Michigan Traffic Crash Facts report published by the Michigan State Police. Nearly a third of those fatal crashes happened at intersections. Sunday was the deadliest day of the week. Behind every number is a family who suddenly had to plan a funeral instead of a future.
The most common causes of fatal Michigan car crashes our team sees include:
- Impaired Driving: Alcohol-involved crashes accounted for 307 Michigan traffic fatalities in 2024, and drug-involved fatalities accounted for another 272.
- Speeding: Driving over the posted limit or too fast for the road conditions reduces reaction time and dramatically increases the force of impact.
- Distracted Driving: Distracted-driving fatalities rose 10 percent in Michigan in 2024 to 65 deaths. Common causes of distracted driving accidents often involve phones, infotainment systems, or eating behind the wheel.
- Drowsy Driving: Fatigued drivers can have reaction times comparable to drunk drivers, especially on overnight highway routes.
- Aggressive and Reckless Driving: Driving recklessly, such as tailgating, weaving, road rage, and ignoring traffic control devices put everyone on the road at risk.
- Commercial Truck Crashes: Tractor-trailer crashes on Michigan freeways carry enormous force, and they involve trucking companies, insurers, and federal regulations that families can’t navigate alone.
Metro Detroit’s freeway corridors carry the heaviest crash burden in the state. I-75 through Wayne County, I-94 across the south side of Detroit, I-696 past our Southfield office, I-96, US-10 (the Lodge), and M-1 (Woodward Avenue) all see significant fatal crash activity year after year. If your loved one was killed on any of these roads, or anywhere else in Michigan, we can help. Reach out today to discuss your options.
Proving Liability in a Fatal Michigan Car Accident
Proving fault in a fatal car crash is not the same as proving fault in a fender-bender. The stakes are higher, the insurance companies push back harder, and the evidence has to be gathered before it disappears.
When our team investigates a fatal Michigan crash, we typically pursue:
- Police Crash Reports: The Michigan UD-10 crash report includes the responding officer’s findings, diagrams, and any citations issued.
- 911 Audio and Dispatch Records: Recorded calls often capture admissions, witness descriptions, and the timing of events.
- Vehicle Data and Dash Cameras: Modern vehicles store speed, braking, and steering data in event data recorders that can be downloaded if preserved promptly.
- Traffic and Surveillance Footage: Cameras at intersections, gas stations, and nearby businesses can disappear within days if no one preserves them.
- Accident Reconstruction: Engineers can analyze skid marks, debris patterns, and vehicle damage to recreate exactly how the crash happened.
- Witness Statements: Memories fade fast. Locking in what witnesses saw early can make the difference between a settlement and a denied claim.
- Toxicology and Medical Records: When impairment is suspected, toxicology results and the at-fault driver’s medical and prescription history can support the claim.
Multi-vehicle fatal crashes add another layer. When two, three, or four drivers may share blame, Michigan’s modified comparative fault rules determine how recovery is divided. A driver who is 50 percent or less at fault can still recover damages, with the amount reduced by their percentage of fault. Sorting that out takes a firm that knows how to work with reconstruction experts and challenge the at-fault side’s version of events. Fieger Law has the resources to do that. Call us.
Settlement vs. Trial in a Fatal Car Accident Case
Most fatal car accident cases settle without going to trial. That’s true across the country, and it’s true in Michigan. The firms that consistently get the largest settlements are the ones insurance companies know will go to trial if a fair offer isn’t on the table. Settlement leverage and trial readiness are the same thing.
Fieger Law has secured some of the largest verdicts in Michigan and American legal history, including a $144.5 million birth-trauma verdict upheld on appeal, a $135 million malpractice verdict against Detroit Medical Center, and a $40 million verdict in a Detroit hospital death case. Insurance defense lawyers know who we are. That changes the math at the negotiating table.
Whether your family’s case resolves in mediation or in front of a jury, our approach is the same: prepare every case as if it will be tried. The decision to settle, and on what terms, ultimately belongs to your family. Our job is to make sure the offer in front of you reflects the full value of what was lost. Get in touch to talk about your case.
How to Choose a Michigan Fatal Car Accident Lawyer
Not every personal injury firm handles fatal cases. Even fewer try them. When you’re choosing the firm that will represent your family, look for these things:
- Trial Experience: Ask whether the firm actually tries cases, and ask for examples. Settlement-only firms have less leverage with insurance carriers.
- Michigan No-Fault Depth: Michigan’s no-fault system is uniquely complex. A firm that handles a few Michigan cases a year is not the same as a firm built around them.
- Track Record in Catastrophic and Fatal Cases: Fatal crashes involve different evidence, different damages, and different probate procedures than typical injury cases.
- Resources to Investigate Quickly: Reconstruction, expert witnesses, and evidence preservation cost real money up front. Smaller firms sometimes can’t fund them.
- Communication: You should know who is handling your case, how to reach them, and what’s happening at every stage.
When you call us for a free consultation, bring whatever you have: the police report, any insurance information, your loved one’s policies if you can find them, and any photos or correspondence from the crash. If you don’t have any of that yet, call anyway. We can help you track it down.
Frequently Asked Questions
What Are the Legal Rights of Surviving Children After a Parent Dies in a Michigan Car Crash?
Surviving children are recognized beneficiaries under Michigan’s Wrongful Death Act (MCL 600.2922) and can recover for the loss of their parents’ love, guidance, financial support, and companionship. The estate’s personal representative files the claim on the children’s behalf, and the probate court reviews the proposed distribution to protect the children’s share. Minor children often receive structured settlements designed to provide for them through adulthood.
What Damages Can My Family Recover in a Michigan Fatal Car Accident Lawsuit?
Michigan families may be entitled to recover medical and funeral expenses, the conscious pain and suffering of the deceased before death, lost financial support, loss of companionship and society for surviving family members, and loss of consortium for a surviving spouse. No-fault survivor’s loss benefits are also available separately. The total varies widely from case to case, and we don’t promise specific outcomes, but we can help you understand the categories of damages that may apply.
Will My Fatal Car Accident Case Settle, or Will It Go to Trial?
Most fatal car accident cases settle before trial, but the firms that get the largest settlements are the ones insurance companies believe will go to trial if needed. Fieger Law prepares every case as if it will be tried. That preparation strengthens the settlement position even when the case never sees a courtroom. The final decision on whether to settle belongs to your family.
How Is Liability Proven When More Than One Driver Caused the Fatal Crash?
Multi-vehicle fatal crashes are investigated using police reports, vehicle data, traffic footage, witness statements, and accident reconstruction experts. Michigan follows a modified comparative fault rule, which means an at-fault party who is 50 percent or less responsible can still recover, with damages reduced by their percentage of fault. Sorting out fault allocation in a multi-vehicle case takes a firm with the investigative resources to challenge the other side’s narrative.
How Do I Choose the Right Lawyer for a Fatal Car Crash Case in Michigan?
Look for trial experience, Michigan no-fault experience, a documented track record in catastrophic and fatal cases, the resources to investigate quickly, and clear communication. Ask the firm whether they have actually tried fatal cases and ask for examples. Settlement-only firms typically have less leverage with insurance carriers than firms known for trial work.
What Questions Should I Ask a Wrongful Death Lawyer During a Free Consultation?
Ask who will personally handle your case, how many fatal crash cases the firm has tried in Michigan, what the firm’s largest verdicts and settlements have been, how they will investigate the crash, how the fee structure works, and what next steps they recommend for your family. A good firm will give you straight answers without pressuring you to sign that day.
Talk to a Michigan Fatal Car Accident Lawyer Today
Nothing brings back the person you lost. We know that. What we can do is take the legal weight off your family’s shoulders while you grieve, while you plan the service, while you try to figure out how to keep going. For more than 75 years, Fieger Law has stood with Michigan families in the worst moments of their lives.
Contact our car accident lawyers for a free consultation. You don’t pay us anything unless we get money for your family. Whatever you decide afterward, the conversation costs nothing. We’re based in Southfield, and we represent families across Michigan.
