The Economic Impact of a Car Accident

You’ve had a car accident, and there may be a variety of issues arising out of the incident. The most obvious is damage to either of the vehicles or the environment around the crash. The next obvious part of an accident is potential physical harm to passengers or others in the vicinity of the accident. This is really just the beginning of sorting out the expenses relating to any car accident.

Car Accidents Are Costly

According to the Association for Safe International Road Travel, in the USA, vehicle crashes cost the country $230.6 billion every year. The cost is high in more than just money. They estimate over 37,000 yearly fatalities with an additional 2.35 million people being injured or disabled due to crashes for the US. Your insurance coverage might cover some of the expenses, depending on the type of coverage you carried, the circumstances of the accident, who is at fault and the extent of the damage you are claiming. In some circumstances, you may not have enough coverage for all of your expenses and will be expected to pay out of pocket for the remainder.

Factors Determining the Cost of Your Car Accident

There are many factors that go into the final calculating of the economic impact of your car accident. If you intend to file a claim to your insurance company or take legal action for compensation from a responsible other party, you will have to determine the full damages as required for either type of claim. These factors include:

• Crash Severity
• Damage to your vehicle – can it be repaired or totaled?
• Number of passengers injured in your vehicle including severity of their injuries
• Severity of your injuries
• Value of your vehicle
• Value of the property damaged in the crash
• Location of accident
• Future cost related to your injuries such as lost wages from missing work or loss of employment
• Your relationship to others injured in your vehicle
• Disability caused by the accident
• Miscellaneous variables

What to Do When You Have a Car Accident

It’s bad enough that you have to deal with a car accident and all the frustration and loss attached to it. You can take early steps to assure your fair treatment and compensation for the accident:

• Inform your insurance company of the accident immediately.
• Call the police to make sure the accident is documented. You’ll need a paper trail that records all the details before you forget them. If someone is ticketed, the police will file a report. Either way, make sure you try to recall your observations and write them down for posterity.
• Try to avoid talking to an insurance adjuster about your physical condition at the scene of the accident.
• Seek medical attention if you have any sign or symptoms of injury. Not every type of injury from an impact shows obvious symptoms right away. Be safe and document any pain, marks or noticeable injury.
• Take photos of everything if possible. Record the vehicles involved, the environment, note the exact location and photograph any injuries sustained as well.
• Depending on the extent of damages, you will need an experienced personal injury attorney to walk you through the process of making sure you are fully compensated by the responsible parties.

For extensive damages involving ongoing medical treatment, and complicating circumstances, it’s likely your insurance won’t be enough to keep you from being stuck with a great deal of expense. If you are not found to be negligent or at fault in the accident, you may be entitled to compensation from the insurance carried by another driver or otherwise responsible party. Tison Law Group attorneys can also help sort out the various factors that determine what you are entitled to for damages. Call us for your free consultation today.