How Compensation is Awarded for Car Accident Injuries

After a car accident, you may  have a personal injury case. After all, you should not bear the expense caused by another person’s negligence or harm to your body or vehicle. While exploring your legal options, you may wonder how car crash victims receive compensation. To help ease some of your fears and prepare for a meeting with a legal professional, learn how compensation works for motor vehicle accident victims.

Bodily Injuries and Property Damage

In 2019, roughly 6,756,000 police-reported car crashes occurred in the U.S. 1,916,000 of those crashes caused injury, while 33,244 involved fatalities. Car crash injury compensation comes in two types: property damage and bodily injury. Common examples of bodily injury resulting from a car accident include broken bones, whiplash, concussion and spinal cord injuries.These injuries are sometimes disabling or fatal. Not only does property damage compensation include car damage, but also belongings inside the car that sustained damage during the accident.

The damages that are caused by physical injury in a serious motor vehicle accident will far exceed the property damage.

Legal Damages

Personal injury claims involve legal damages such as medical expenses, lost wages, compensation for scarring, loss of a body part, disability, pain and suffering and loss of companionship. You may also qualify for pain and suffering damages.

Bodily injury and resulting medical expenses vary in car accidents, ranging from a few cuts and bruises to permanent disability and spinal cord injuries. Even then, some injuries take several days or weeks to develop, making it essential for collision victims to have a doctor examine them, even when they feel fine. Examples of common car accident medical expenses include ambulance fees, in-home medical services, cognitive and physical therapy, medical care professional consultations and medical accessories.

And of course car accidents often cause the death of one or more occupants.

You may need to take time off work to recover from your injuries. If so, you qualify for lost wages damages. You could miss work for physical therapy sessions, hospital stays, mobility issues, doctor’s appointments or because you don’t have reliable transportation. No matter the reason, to get all the damages you deserve, you and your legal advocate must show how your motor vehicle accident injuries keep you from earning a living.

Depending on the injury, you could lose your ability to show your spouse affection. You may qualify for loss of companionship or loss of affection damages. The inability to engage in affectionate activities is not only a loss you can claim, but one that your spouse can also claim. These are called loss of consortium claims.

Other than physical injuries, you may experience mental or physical distress because of the car accident. For instance, you could experience anxiety or stress while thinking about the accident. Your mental health struggles may also stem from the car collision injuries themselves. Consider talking with a therapist after the accident to determine whether the collision harmed your mental health.

Schedule a Consultation Today

Glenn, Mills, Fisher & Mahoney, P.A. is a Durham law firm dedicated to protecting the rights of North Carolinians since 1980. If you were hurt in an accident and think you deserve compensation, trust the team at GMFM Law. 

Tell us about your case via our online case review form or call us directly at (919) 683-2135 today!