Before you can seek compensation for any type of injury, whether through a claim or lawsuit, you need to know how much money is at stake. Your claim will need to include proof of your damages. The average person would not know how to calculate the value of their damages appropriately, especially because their claim can include many subjective elements. You need the help of an experienced personal injury attorney to come up with the total value of your damages because this is a calculation you cannot get wrong. Every dollar that you are seeking represents the actual harm that you have suffered.
When you hire an Altoona car accident attorney for your case, they will handle all of the details of your claim, including letting you know how much to ask for in a settlement. There is no reason why you should try to handle your legal case on your own because it will only cost you money.
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The amount of money you seek should reflect the dollar value that you have suffered in injuries. No two people suffer the same exact car accident damages, so you should not rely on any figure that is represented as an “average car accident settlement.” You should put that type of thinking out of your mind because focusing on what someone else may have gotten can lead you to accept a lower settlement offer when you deserve more money for your injuries.
Not only can your physical injuries differ from another car accident victim’s, but the way that the damage has affected you may also be dissimilar. For example, two car accident victims may have suffered whiplash, but one may be younger, with a more physical job and an active lifestyle. Their damages can be higher than those suffered by an older car accident victim who may not have as long of a time to work and not be as active.
You have suffered losses in many ways when you have suffered an injury in a car accident, and you are entitled to be paid for all of them. You could have lost actual money, while your quality of life may have also suffered dramatically and may continue to do so in the future. Accordingly, your car accident settlement would pay you both the more tangible economic losses you have suffered, as well as the subjective and intangible non-economic losses.
The first major category of damages is the economic losses you have suffered in your car accident. When you have suffered an injury, you need to seek medical treatment. Both you and your insurance company have footed the bill for the care that you required, and you can both be paid back for the money you have spent. After your settlement, you will be the one who is responsible for paying the costs of your medical care.
Your economic losses will also include the lost income that you missed out on from your job. You may have been out of work for an extended amount of time, or you may have had to miss other time from work to go to medical appointments. Your lost earnings can also compensate you for the reduction in your earnings capacity because this part of your case includes both the past and the future.
You should not limit the amount of money you ask for to the amount available in insurance coverage. The reason is that the driver may be responsible to pay you for any amount of damages that is over and above their insurance coverage if you have to take your case to a trial and you win. You always want to have the opportunity to pursue the driver in court if necessary, even though personal injury cases do not often go to trial. Present your claim or lawsuit for the full amount of damages and then allow the insurance company to negotiate the amount of the settlement down to the policy limit.
Pain and suffering will likely be the largest part of your non-economic damages. This aspect of your compensation represents both the physical pain and mental health harm associated with your injuries. Non-economic losses are entirely subjective in nature. You should be paid based on your own unique pain and suffering damages. The insurance company may have their own way of calculating your pain and suffering damages that takes your experience out of the equation. It is vital that you ask for the full amount of your damages. You should have your own documentation and testimony that can detail the exact impact that your car accident injuries had on you.
Your car accident may have also caused you emotional distress, either from the time of the crash or the immediate aftermath. You can also be compensated for emotional distress, but you will need to make sure to have it documented with notes from your treatment provider.
You cannot calculate the amount of your damages right after your car accident. You will not know what the future may hold for you at an early stage after you have suffered an injury in a crash. It may take some time for the extent of your injuries to become apparent and to know how they will affect you in the long run. For example, you may have suffered whiplash injuries in a rear-end car accident, and you do not yet know if there will be permanent damage to your neck and back.
Before you know how much your case is worth, you need to reach the point of maximum medical improvement. Medically speaking, this is a term for the point where further treatment will not result in a material change to your condition. Only then you can calculate the true amount of your damages and the real harm that the other driver caused you.
Knowing the amount of money you should ask for in a car accident settlement is not something that happens automatically. In fact, there is quite a bit of work going into this calculation. Chances are that you will not be able to calculate the full amount of damages from your accident. There are many concepts in personal injury law that you may be unable to understand on your own.
You can be certain that the insurance company has a very deep understanding of your case, which they gained not long after you filed your claim. They have their own troop of adjusters and advanced technology that helps them assess your case on an up-to-the-minute basis. Not only do they know the value of your case overall, but they also understand how much cases are worth in your area based on the local costs. It would simply not be a fair fight against the insurance company if it is just you versus them.
There are many factors that are a part of your car accident damages. Even the things you think may be self-explanatory may be open to different interpretations when it means that the insurance company may be able to get away with paying less money. Then, you also have categories of your damages that are more subjective, and they are certainly up for debate in a car accident claim. You may not be in the best position to know the valuation of your claim. Not knowing what your case is worth, you may end up accepting what the insurance company offers you, which is usually an amount far lower than the true value of your case.
A car accident attorney also has the knowledge and means to calculate the value of your case before you file your claim. They are familiar with the individual aspects of your damages, having previously worked with many injured clients. Even though personal injury damages are different across cases, the principles are the same everywhere.
A car accident lawyer can study your case and come up with the number that you should seek when you file your claim or lawsuit. If there are more complex elements in your case, your car accident lawyer will work with expert witnesses as necessary and get their input and opinion about your damages.
Both you and the insurance company may present initial figures about how much money should be involved in your case. There is a very strong chance that neither of these figures will be the final amount of settlement in your case. You and your attorney will come up with your number and present it to the insurance company in a claim or seek in a lawsuit. The insurance company will likely counter your demand with a number that is far lower. They know that your exchange of figures will just be the start in the negotiation process.
You will need to be prepared to reject the insurance company’s initial settlement offer, as well as possibly several offers after that. The first offer is far from the best, and the insurance company has a significant amount of room to raise their own figures. You may need to place legal pressure on the insurance company, and your car accident attorney may even prepare to file a lawsuit. The insurance company often fears that outcome and the prospect of a lawsuit may force them to become more reasonable in settlement negotiations. Having an experienced car accident attorney on your side with a track record of success in personal injury cases may be enough to persuade the insurance company to pay out the amount that you are seeking in compensation.
The main reason why you should always hire a car accident attorney is that you want to get as much money as you deserve for your car accident injuries. That is by no means guaranteed in a car accident case. When you are dealing with an insurance company, they will do everything they can to keep their payment to you as low as possible, if they even offer you any money.
Your car accident lawyer’s role is to fight to secure you every dollar that you deserve in compensation. Their presence alone will tell the insurance company that they need to treat you differently because they can very well end up in court if they push too hard to save money at your expense.
Whether it is their role in estimating your damages before you file a claim or the job that a car accident lawyer does when negotiating with the insurance company, you cannot afford to go without legal help in your case. Do not make the mistake of thinking you will end up with more money when you do not have to pay a car accident lawyer from your settlement. Statistics have shown that things unfold in the exact opposite manner – those who hire lawyers get more money, even after giving a percentage of their settlement to a car accident attorney.
At the same time, you do not have to spend any money out of your own pocket to retain a car accident lawyer. Personal injury attorneys work for you on a contingency basis, and they do not receive any money until you are paid a settlement or jury award. You do not have to write them any checks, either to hire them initially or in response to bills (because they do not send any). A car accident attorney will receive their portion of your settlement when you are paid by the insurance company and before you get your money.
If you’ve suffered an injury in a car accident, you may be wondering what options you have for seeking legal guidance. A trusted personal injury lawyer is standing by. They have the knowledge and experience to gain a more successful outcome for your claim or lawsuit.
Marcus & Mack
