From hospital bills to unpaid leave from work, recovering from car accident injuries can wreak havoc on your finances. If the accident was somebody else’s fault, then you probably have the right under Indiana car accident law to recover compensation to help cover your costs.
What is the Average Personal Injury Settlement for a Car Accident in Indiana?
Indiana car accident victims often ask us how much money they can expect to receive in a settlement for their car accident injuries. Unfortunately, that question does not lend itself to a simple answer.
Every Indiana car accident has its own unique facts and circumstances that affect the amount of money an injured crash victim might receive. To estimate the settlement payment a client should seek in legal action, an experienced Indiana car accident attorney will evaluate:
The Extent of the Injuries Caused by the Accident
Car accidents cause a broad range of injuries, from minor bumps and bruises to life-altering trauma like brain injuries and spinal cord damage.
As you might expect, the severity of the injuries caused by an accident affects the size of the settlement the accident victim should demand as compensation. The greater the harm caused by the injury – in terms of the pain and suffering it inflicts, the probability of making a recovery, and the injury’s impact on the victim’s life – the larger the dollar value of the potential settlement.
The Financial Costs Incurred as a Result of the Accident
Broadly speaking, the purpose of an Indiana motor vehicle accident settlement is to compensate the injured victim for the harm the accident caused. Some of those harms come with price tags attached. The direct expenses the victim incurred because of the accident and injury often include present and (estimated) future medical bills, the cost of physical and emotional therapy, and the value of wages lost while taking time off from work to recover.
The Financial Resources of the “At Fault” Party
Defendants in Indiana car accident lawsuits rarely have the financial means to pay for personal injury settlements out of their own pockets. Instead, insurance companies that sold liability policies to those parties pay the settlement. Often, the limits of those insurance policies effectively cap the amount of a potential car accident settlements. The higher the limit, the larger the potential settlement, and vice-versa.
There are times, however, when insurance policy limits play a less significant role. Sometimes the defendant in an Indiana car accident case does have personal financial resources with which to pay a settlement over-and-above the limit of any insurance policy. In other cases, multiple parties have a legal liability to the car accident victim; more defendants means (potentially) more insurance company involvement and more money. Experienced Indiana car accident lawyers know the importance of conducting a thorough review of the facts of a crash to identify all parties who may have liability to an injured client.
Damages You May Receive Compensation for After an Indiana Car Accident
The specific items that an Indiana car crash settlement seeks to compensate vary from accident-to-accident. Typically, however, a lawyer for the injured accident victim will attempt to negotiate for an amount sufficient to cover:
- Hospital bills
- Ongoing medical care
- Lost wages
- Loss of future earnings
- Pain and suffering
- Mental anguish
- Vehicle repair costs
No two car accident lawsuits are ever alike. For an accurate estimate of the size of the settlement, you should demand your injuries, speak with a knowledgeable lawyer.
Indiana Car Accident Lawyers You Can Trust
For years, the lawyers of Doehrman Buba Ring have fought on behalf of Indiana residents and visitors seeking fair and just compensation for devastating car accident injuries. If an Indiana car crash has upended your life and inflicted expenses you never planned-for, give us a call and schedule a free consultation with a member of our team. The sooner we meet, the sooner we can get started working to get you the settlement you deserve.