Life is unpredictable because you never know when you’re going to be put in harm’s way. You could be casually driving down the block or stopping at a traffic light when you witness your entire life flashing before your eyes. Of course, it won’t always be as intense as what’s shown in movies, but it could certainly feel that way even for a split second.
When you experience being in a road accident, it can leave you with trauma that hinders you from ever getting behind the wheel again. It can give you debilitating injuries that won’t allow you to live alone anymore or work to earn a living. That accident can totally change your life and not in a good way.
But even if the impacts of the accident aren’t as devastating as the ones mentioned above, you are still entitled to file a claim so that you can be compensated for your suffering. In this situation, you are an innocent victim, and you have the right to seek compensation for the mental, emotional, or physical trauma you’ve experienced.
If you don’t know where to begin seeking the justice you deserve, you can start by getting yourself the right legal representation. An experienced car accident attorney will be able to represent and guide you through this complicated legal process while putting your best interests at heart.
Given their expertise in the field, your lawyer will be able to help you gather enough evidence, substantially value your claim, and negotiate a settlement with the insurance firm in charge. To give you an idea about what claims you can file, here are three of the most common claims for car accidents:
Personal Injury
If you’ve sustained any mental or physical injuries during the accident, you can likely file a personal injury claim to help you manage the costs of your medical bills. This is especially important if the accident gave you debilitating injuries that hinder you from returning to work, which means you have no source of income.
The value of your personal injury claim will highly depend on the injuries and financial losses you got from the accident. This can include your current and future medical bills, physical therapy and rehabilitation, or the medical equipment and home alterations you need to function with a disability.
However, for you to actually be compensated for the damages you sustained, you would have to prove that the person at fault was negligent, and therefore, can be held liable for their actions. But don’t worry, this won’t be too difficult to prove because negligence, whether intentional or not, is among the most common causes of car accidents.
Property Damage
If you had auto insurance when you were involved in an accident, your insurance company should compensate you for the costs of repairing your vehicle. However, if they are hesitant about covering the damage costs, you can file a property damage claim against your insurance company.
Being in a car accident is not only damaging to your emotional stability, but it can also hinder you from enjoying the convenience of your vehicle because you would have to make repairs. Or worse, you might need a total car replacement depending on the gravity of the road accident.
When your vehicle is under maintenance, you might need to get a rental car or resort to public transportation to get to where you need to go. All these inconveniences, no matter how minor, can disrupt your day-to-day routines. That’s why you should be amply compensated for it.
Bad Faith Insurance
In some situations, insurance companies are known to pursue profit instead of staying true to the promises they give to their policyholders. This could mean that they might not agree to compensate you at all by disproving the validity of your claims for insurance coverage.
The legal term for this is “bad faith,” and it refers to when insurance companies attempt to back out of their obligations to their policyholders. Bad faith can be done in several ways, such as failing to properly investigate your claim, denying your valid claim, or offering you a low settlement amount.
You may be able to file a claim against your insurer due to bad faith, which can help you receive the right amount of compensation that you deserve. Through this, there’s a possibility that you can recover the damages you suffered during this bad faith transaction, like your economic losses or emotional distress.
So even if you feel helpless after the accident simply because you were at the wrong place at the wrong time, there are legal actions that you can take to recover your losses. Of course, the monetary compensation won’t be able to erase your trauma and emotional distress, but it’s the next best solution rather than none at all.
