Wrongful Death Claims for Families After a Fatal Wake County Crash

A wrongful death claim in North Carolina is brought by the personal representative of the person who died. It covers what the family lost and what the person who died went through before death. I represent families of people killed in crashes in Raleigh and across Wake County.

My office is in Graham, and my first meeting with a Wake County family is by phone or video. Nothing on this page asks you to decide anything today.

Who brings a wrongful death claim in North Carolina?

G.S. 28A-18-2(a) gives the claim to the personal representative or collector of the decedent. A spouse or child does not file it in their own name. The executor named in a will or the administrator the clerk appoints brings it on behalf of the family.

The statute keeps the recovery away from the estate's debts and the gifts in a will. It makes narrow exceptions for burial expenses and for hospital and medical expenses tied to the fatal injury. Those medical expenses are capped at $4,500 and at 50 percent of the damages left after attorneys' fees.

What remains is disposed of under the Intestate Succession Act. A family is often surprised that the will does not decide who receives it.

What damages does G.S. 28A-18-2 list?

Subsection (b) names six categories.

1. Expenses for care, treatment and hospitalization incident to the injury resulting in death
2. Compensation for the pain and suffering of the decedent
3. The reasonable funeral expenses of the decedent
4. The present monetary value of the decedent to the people entitled to the recovery, including the reasonably expected net income, services, protection, care and assistance, and the society, companionship, comfort, guidance, kindly offices and advice of the decedent
5. Punitive damages the decedent could have recovered under Chapter 1D, and punitive damages for causing the death through malice or willful or wanton conduct
6. Nominal damages when the jury so finds

We document each category with records and with the family's own account of who this person was to them. I do not put a number on a family's loss, and I do not predict what an insurer or a jury would do.

How long does a family have to file?

Two years from the date of death, under G.S. 1-53(4). The statute says the cause of action does not accrue until the date of death. The period runs from the death and not from the crash.

The statute carries one exception that matters when months have passed between the crash and the death. If the time limits in G.S. 1-15(c) or 1-52(16) would have barred the person who died from bringing an injury claim had they lived, no wrongful death action can be brought. The filing periods for injury claims are on the page about how long you have to file an injury claim.

What is the estate step in Wake County?

The clerk of superior court serves as judge of probate in North Carolina. The clerk handles the probate of wills and the administration of estates. An executor is appointed under a will, and an administrator is appointed when a person dies without one. The estate of a North Carolina resident may be administered in the county where that person was domiciled at death.

For someone who lived in Wake County, that means the Estates division of the Wake County Clerk of Superior Court. Wake County lists its Estates and Wills office on the 12th floor of the Wake County Courthouse at 316 Fayetteville St. in Raleigh, and the phone number is 919-792-4450.

The county where the crash happened does not decide where the estate opens. A Johnston County resident killed on a Wake County road usually has the estate opened in Johnston County. The clerk also approves the burial and medical expense claims paid from any recovery.

What records matter in a Wake County death claim?

NCDMV's 2024 Traffic Crash Facts lists 94 fatalities in Wake County that year. NCDOT's crash profile for the county counts 87 fatal crashes behind that figure. The same profile records 21 fatal injuries in pedestrian crashes and 24 in alcohol-related crashes. Behind each of those deaths is a family facing the questions on this page.

The crash report is the first record we request. Under G.S. 20-166.1 the investigating officer writes the original report within 24 hours of the crash, and a local agency forwards it to NCDMV within 10 days. When an injured person dies within 12 months and the death was not in the original report, G.S. 20-166.1 requires the investigating officer to file a supplemental report that includes the death. We ask for both.

A wrongful death claim exists only where the person who died could have brought a claim had they lived. Contributory negligence applies to these cases the same way it applies to an injury claim. We review the crash evidence on that question before the insurer raises it.

How do I handle these cases with a family?

We look at every policy that could apply, including the UM and UIM coverage on the policy of the person who died and on household policies. Coverage is often the first real question in a death case.

I give the family opinions based on my experience and let them make the decision, including whether to file and whether to accept an offer.

You can read about my background first, or reach the office through the contact page at 336-221-8900 on weekdays from 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.