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Understanding the Value of Your Car Accident Case

By stladmin on December 28, 2020

The first few weeks after a car accident can be some of the most stressful and draining moments of your life. You may be dazed by your injuries, worried about paying medical bills, and tired of dealing with insurance companies. Insurance adjusters often start off sweet-talking accident victims with lofty promises and kind words, only to offer a lowball settlement that barely covers an emergency room visit. With your bills stacking up, you may be tempted to accept it, but you should speak to an attorney first. At Steven Titus & Associates, P.C., we can help you understand the true value of your case and demand proper compensation for your injuries.

What Insurance Companies Think Is a “Fair” Settlement

When you file a car accident claim, you assume that the other driver’s insurance company will pay you for all of your costs, especially your medical bills. That is what insurance is for. However, it is important to understand how insurance companies make their profits. When they collect premiums, that money goes into a large pool of funds that can pay for future bills if someone is in an accident. If no one is involved in an accident, then these funds will continue to build and make the insurance company more money.

But when someone is involved in an accident, the insurance company then has to pull money from that pool to pay for the victim’s bills, property damage, and pain and suffering. This ultimately decreases the insurance company’s overall profits. In order to keep profits high, insurance companies want to pay out as little as possible in a claim.

How do they do that? Well, the first step is convincing the accident victim that he should accept a small offer. They may say that this is the best that the insurance company can provide for his injuries, that the victim does not have a strong case, or that a victim is overexaggerating his injuries and does not need additional treatment.

To an insurance company, the fair value of a car accident claim is whatever amount will convince an accident victim to avoid a lawsuit. If an insurance company can get you to accept a lowball offer, they can avoid paying out more money down the line.

What Your Case Should Include

When most clients come to us, their first concern is covering their medical bills. While the costs of your injuries will typically take up the bulk of your claim, you can actually include a lot more. In the state of Wyoming, accident victims can pursue two types of damages: economic and non-economic.

Economic damages will include all of the financial costs of the accident. This will include your medical bills, including emergency room visits, tests, surgery, medical equipment, and medication, as well as the long-term costs of your injuries. For example, if you suffer a disability in an accident, then the long-term costs of care and equipment can be included in your claim. But beyond medical expenses, you can also include any damages to your career. If you have to take time off work to heal and recover, then any paychecks you lose out on can be recovered. In addition, if you had to change jobs because of a disability, the lost potential earnings can be included too.

In contrast, non-economic damages include all of the personal costs of your injuries. This is described as pain and suffering, but can include the physical pain of your injuries, mental anguish, emotional trauma, and other difficulties you have faced because of the accident.

Altogether, these costs can include:

  • Medical expenses, both past and future
  • Lost wages
  • Lost earning capacity
  • Pain and suffering
  • Mental anguish
  • Loss of enjoyment

As you can assume, insurance companies rarely factor all of these costs in a claim. At best, they may cover some of your medical expenses. But by working with a skilled attorney, you can advocate for the full value of your claim.

Speak to a Lawyer Today

Never let an insurance company decide the value of your case. They do not understand the pain you have gone through, the difficulties of your injuries, and the struggles you deal with every day. Instead, contact an attorney who will have your back. At Steven Titus & Associates, P.C., we will never dismiss any of your injuries or costs as minor. We firmly believe that everyone deserves fair compensation for their injuries after an accident, especially if they resulted in a disability. We will work with you to calculate the real costs of your injuries and advocate for full compensation from the other driver’s insurance company. To discuss your case in a free consultation, call a Gillette personal injury attorney at (307) 257-7800.

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Posted in: Car Accidents

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