Compensation a Car Accident Victim Can Get
Wondering what compensation you might be entitled to as a car accident victim? Here’s what you need to know.
If you have been in a car accident, compensation isn’t your first priority. Nevertheless, you will want to think about it, especially since you have been put out of pocket by the accident. If the accident wasn’t your fault, there’s no reason that you should be left paying for it. Here are five distinct types of compensation you can get if you’re a car accident victim. We suggest you claim it and help your recovery along.
5 Different Types of Compensation A Car Accident Victim Can Claim
We consulted with Gjel, an expert law firm with offices in Oakland, California, to find out what the different types of compensation a car accident victim could claim were. Here’s what they had to say.
1 – Medical Expenses
When you have been involved in a car accident, you can claim back your medical expenses. It doesn’t matter how expensive your stay in hospital is or how much work you have to put into recovery through various different therapies. The other party will be forced to pay for your medical bills if it was not your fault.
2 – Pain and suffering
In the USA, you can sue the person responsible for your accident for your pain and suffering. Pain and suffering are difficult to quantify, but your lawyer will attempt to do so. It is hard to decide how much of an award pain should receive. If you are injured and are likely to be in pain for the rest of your life, you will receive more than if the pain is temporary.
3 – Damages
You can sue the offending party for any damages they have caused to you or your property. For example, if you are a car accident victim and your vehicle is damaged, but you are not at fault for the accident, then the other party will be forced to pay you this money. They may also be forced to pay for damages to road furniture. Likewise, if they have damaged any buildings, they will be forced to pay for that, too.
4 – Loss of Income
When you are injured in an accident, you are unable to go to work. This means that now you are injured, in pain, and you have medical bills to pay for, but you are not earning a wage or salary. The other party is responsible for providing your income if you have lost out. Loss of income means from your day job and from any other jobs that you do. If one of the other members of your family can’t work because they are taking care of you, then they may also be able to claim for loss of income.
5 – Consortium Losses
Consortium losses are losses of important moments and memorable times. Say for instance you were due to go to your daughter’s wedding and you never made it because you participated in an accident. This would be a loss of consortium. You have lost out on those valuable moments because you’re having to recover from a car accident that was not your fault. The other person owes you for that, even though it’s difficult to put a monetary price on it.
