It’s estimated that motor vehicle crashes cost Americans roughly $340 billion each year. When you consider the expensive medical bills and destroyed vehicles, it’s easy to see how costs can add up.
If you were hurt recently or experienced car accident property damage, you likely need money to pay for your expenses. Now, in a perfect world, your insurance company would simply pay you for everything related to the accident.
Sadly, that’s rarely the case. The reality is that a variety of factors can influence the amount of damages you receive from your insurance company or a personal injury lawsuit.
In this guide, we’ll be going over them so you can get a better idea of how much money you can expect from your accident.
The Type of Injuries and Medical Expenses
Certain types of injuries are less expensive than others. For example, things like whiplash, concussion, and broken or fractured bones will require some initial diagnosis and treatment.
However, once they’re healed they typically don’t have any additional medical expenses. The same can’t be said about more serious injuries. Head trauma, internal damage, and broken spines can all result in permanent disabilities.
These injuries can require extended hospital stays which can rack up hundreds of thousands of dollars. And that’s not even considering the long-term medical expenses.
Things like at-home medical equipment, wheelchairs, nurses, physical therapy, and more create tons of additional costs. So the more extensive your injuries, the more damages you should seek to help cover them.
Lost Income and Wages
In many cases, your auto injury might prevent you from doing your job for an extended period. For example, if you break your arm and you need to type every day you won’t be able to work for months.
The same goes for broken legs or hurt backs if you need to be on your feet all day. In these cases, calculating lost wages is fairly straightforward since your healing path is fairly linear.
However, this isn’t always the case. In some auto injury cases, the recovery period can go on indefinitely. Or, if you were paralyzed by your injury, you may never be able to work your job again.
These factors can make recovering lost wages a long process. For injuries that require extended periods away from your work, you’re going to want to consult with an attorney.
They’ll help you properly calculate both past wages lost as well as future wages lost if you can’t return to work.
Car Accident Property Damage
You shouldn’t just focus on the injuries from a car accident. If your vehicle was ruined in the accident, you also need to consider the property damage costs of a damaged car.
Sometimes this will be covered by your insurance. However, if it’s not you need to make sure that the cost of repairs or replacement is adequately included in your car accident settlement.
Your Insurance Plan
Many states in the U.S. operate on an at-fault policy for car accident insurance claims. That means that if a party is found responsible for the accident, then their insurance company will need to pay for it. Florida doesn’t operate this way.
Florida has a no-fault law. That means that in the event of an accident, both parties turn to their respective insurance companies regardless of who’s responsible.
And, in the event of an injury, Florida residents are required to have Personal Injury Protection (aka PIP) insurance on their auto policy. The benefit of this is that it makes it easier to get medical treatment as soon as possible following the accident.
The drawback is that all PIP plans have a limit on the amount they’ll cover when it comes to medical expenses. That means depending on your specific insurance plan, you’ll likely be expected to cover a good portion of the expenses.
As such, if you have injuries you will likely need to find a way outside of insurance to recover your damages.
Circumstances of Your Accident
If the other party is responsible for the accident and you have evidence to back this up, you’ll likely find it easier to get damages. This is true whether you go with your insurance company or a lawsuit.
However, many accidents aren’t as black or white as this. If you bear some responsibility for the accident, any party you’re trying to get money from will likely focus on this fact.
They’ll try to use it as a reason to give you less car accident compensation for the damages.
Your Legal Representation
Any legal representation you hire can also help you get more out of auto injury damages. If you’re dealing with an insurance company they can negotiate on your behalf.
Or if you’re pursuing a lawsuit they can fight for you in court. Just make sure that you choose an experienced attorney to represent you.
When Should You Consider a Lawsuit?
As we mentioned, Florida is a no-fault lawsuit. That means that you’ll rely on your own Personal Injury Protection insurance to deal with your damages from an insurance perspective.
Unfortunately, there is a limit on the amount of money that can go toward your medical expenses. If your medical injuries or property damage exceed your policy limits, you should consider a lawsuit against the negligent parties.
The same goes if you pursue a liability claim that offers you an unfair settlement. For either of these cases, don’t delay when contacting.
The sooner you can find a good Tampa auto injury lawyer, the sooner you can get on track to getting the compensation that you deserve because of your accident.
Need Help With Your Auto Injury Cases? Contact RHINO Lawyers
We hope this guide helped you learn more about car accident property damage. When it comes to representation in auto cases, you need a legal team that communicates quickly.
After all, what happens when an insurance adjuster contacts you and you have questions? Here at RHINO Lawyers, we’ve geared our services toward this fast-paced world.
We use a variety of communication channels, from social media to Facetime, to get you the help you need without waiting hours. So if you’re ready for the technological savviness you need from a law firm, schedule your consultation with us today.
CONTACT A TAMPA AUTO ACCIDENT ATTORNEY
In short, after a car accident, you may not know your rights. Above all, don’t struggle through the process alone. Actually, our personal injury team is here to help you with any legal needs you might have regarding your accident.
Lastly, let RHINO Lawyers answer your questions and review the facts of your case with a Free Consultation. So, get started by completing the “Free Instant Case Evaluation” or by calling us any time, day or night, at 844.RHINO.77.
