How Do Insurance Companies Calculate Auto Accident Compensation?

Know Your Worth

Imagine you are living one of the worst days of your life, flashing red and blue lights, sirens and chaos everywhere, a car accident and not just a fender bender either! The vehicle damage along with injuries involved are definitely going to interfere with your job and income. Good thing you remembered to pay the auto insurance, right? What level of auto accident compensation can you expect to receive if the unthinkable were to happen? When you are laying in the hospital bed after watching your life story flash before your eyes the furthest thing from your mind should be how insurance companies calculate auto accident compensation.

Calculating Auto Accident Compensation

So how do they actually calculate auto accident compensation? Is there an actual formula? Do they have guidelines or calculations that they follow? What factors are in play for the calculation? Can you get more later after the calculation is made and you accept the settlement offer if something else were to occur or develop as a result of the accident-related injuries? Can something you do or not do in the time between the accident and settlement affect the auto accident compensation? So many questions you and I could not even possibly think of them all which is why having an experienced lawyer looking out for you is a wise move to make. There are a ton of compensation calculators on the internet that offer to help you estimate your compensation. Kind of handy to help you get an idea of what your accident may be worth but there are also many factors involved that may or may not play into your specific case.

Factors involved:

• Damage to the vehicle
• Injuries
• Pain and suffering
• Policy and policy limits

There are several different types of damages involved and valuing each type can be rather tricky for the average insured motorist which sadly results in loss of compensation more often than not. Knowing what the types are and what is needed to calculate or value each type of damage as it relates to your case is the job of a well-versed and trained authority in this area. Knowing for example that once a settlement is reached there is nothing more you can claim or be compensated for and that you should never accept the first settlement offer the insurance company makes. Tiny details that can mean a very hefty difference in the final compensation you actually deserve for your pain and suffering.

Types of Damage

Special Damage:

• Property Loss – damage to car and other property resulting from an accident.
• Medical Treatment – medical bills acquired during hospital stays, doctors’ visits, and physical therapy from accident-related injuries.
• Lost Wages – Wages lost for time lost at work while recovering or if a long-term disability requires a career change resulting in lower wages.

General Damage:

• Pain and Suffering – physical pain one was forced to endure as a result of their accident and related injuries.
• Emotional Distress – emotional harms that one suffered such as stress, sadness, depression, anger, fatigue, and anxiety as a result of their accident and related injuries.
• Loss of Enjoyment of Life – loss of good emotions that one would have experienced if not for the accident and related injuries.
• Loss of Consortium – loss of human relationships (usually physical) that one may have suffered after an accident and related injuries.

Get Legal Help

The special compensatory damages are pretty easy to calculate considering it is just determining the value of valued objects or services like car parts, doctor bills, and the difference in pay but other damages are not as easy to value; your time or happiness does not have a pre-set price tag. Busy lives, family, and recovery are your priority so it is understandable that you would not know the specifics and laws behind all the compensation you may be entitled to but do not let that be the reason you are not properly compensated! Let an experienced, educated lawyer cross all the t’s and dot the i’s. Do not be a victim; let the law fight to get everything your case is worth.