People who have been in a car accident are often hard-pressed to come up with the funds to pay for medical costs, vehicle repair, and so on. This naturally begs the question, “How much will my auto accident claim be worth?” Will filing a claim and accepting a settlement really get you enough money to cover all of your expenses?
Unfortunately, there is no formula to calculate the absolute value of a car accident claim with guaranteed accuracy. There can be a variety of factors that change the final total, so any calculation you do complete will only be a rough estimate that could be undervalued or overvalued by a considerable margin by the end of your case. There is, however, a generalized “settlement calculation” that you can use if your curiosity is getting the better of you, or if you have already been offered a settlement and you aren’t sure if it is even close to fair.
Here’s how the basic car accident claim calculator works:
What is a pain and suffering index, though? This is where calculating the value of your car accident claim becomes difficult. If you were not liable for your accident, then you can most likely pursue damages to pay the emotional and physical trauma you have experienced. These “pain and suffering” costs are usually equal to your total actual damages multiplied by any number between 1.5 and 5, or even up to 10. The more you have suffered, the higher the multiplication.
For example: A motorist is blindsided by a drunk driver and suffers injuries that lead to total paralysis of his legs. Due to the trauma of losing the ability to walk and the excruciating pain of the injuries, his actual damages are multiplied by 5 when pursuing compensation. In another case, a woman slips and falls on a puddle in a grocery store – the same general calculation works for all personal injury claims – and suffers a concussion. She is hospitalized and misses two weeks of work to ensure she recovers fully. Her actual damages are only multiplied by 1.5 due to the comparative lack of trauma from her fall.
Several key factors determine how much a Virginia car accident injury case is worth. Understanding these elements can help you set realistic expectations and strengthen your position when negotiating with insurance companies or preparing for trial.
The first major factor is liability. Liability is basically who was at fault for the car accident or for the injury. Since Virginia has contributory negligence, most insurance companies will not quickly concede liability. In fact, it is not often conceded until days before trial.
The following are two examples:
Example 1
If you are a passenger in a vehicle that is sitting at a stop sign and are rear ended, then liability will likely not be an issue.
Example 2
The accident occurred at a stop light and you were and another driver claimed you both had a green light. If there were no independent witnesses, then establishing liability will be more difficult.
If liability is difficult to establish then the value of the case is diminished. If you lose on liability then you make no recovery. If a Virginia insurance company believes that they have a chance to show you were partly at fault for the collision, even if their insured was negligent, they will be more likely to want to try your case to a jury. Since they believe they have a certain chance to prevail at trial their offer will be less because they have a chance to pay you nothing if the case is tried and you are found partly or totally at fault.
The next major factor is damages, or your injuries and what affect have they had on your life. If a car accident causes you to sustain a neck sprain or back sprain that hurts for a few days or weeks but does not have much effect on your life or work, then you will likely only make a modest recovery; a fair outcome given that you had only modest injuries. Obviously, if a car accident leads to a herniated disc in your neck that requires a cervical fusion surgery and permanent injuries, then your damages are much more significant.
It is important to understand that just because you have an injury that requires surgery does not mean that the injury is completely related to the accident. In many cases, the treating physician relates the injury that the plaintiff is claiming to the collision. Many times the insurance company will hire a doctor to give an opinion that the injury was either not related to the car accident or was only partially due to the collision.
Likewise if you make a claim that you are no longer capable of doing your job and claim future lost wages, the defense can argue that you could go back to work and that they are not responsible for the future wages. Regardless of what the dispute is as to damages, how strong the evidence is for each element will affect the value of the case.
Venue is where the case may be permissibly filed. While in the eyes of the law it does not matter where the case is filed, from a practical standpoint it can make a difference. While most attorneys would probably agree that most venues in Virginia are conservative, there are some that are less conservative than others and a very few that could be considered favorable to personal injury victims.
The plaintiff is the injured party and while it may not seem fair that the personality of the plaintiff matter, it does. It does not matter from a legal standpoint but from a common sense standpoint. If the injured party is a hardworking individual that is sincere to the jury, he or she will make a better recovery then one who is seen by the jury as making a “mountain out of a mole hill” or trying to get something for nothing. You can be sure the insurance company understands this and the offers to settle the case will reflect whether the plaintiff is credible and will make a good impression with a jury.
The attorney can absolutely make a difference in the value of the case. If injured party is represented by an attorney does not regularly try personal injury cases and has a reputation for settling cases, the insurance company will likely take this into consideration when making offers. If, however, the attorney regularly handles these types of cases and he understands how to try a case and is willing to try a Virginia car accident case to a jury, then the insurance company is more likely to be concerned which may be reflected in their evaluation of the case.
Keep in mind that the general “formula” for estimating your auto accident claim’s value is not guaranteed to be accurate. Insurance caps must also be considered when thinking about settling a claim. In many cases, no matter how extensive the actual damages and emotional trauma caused by an accident, the petitioner can only collect an amount that does not exceed the insurance cap set by the liable party’s insurance provider.
This is where retaining a car accident lawyer becomes even more important. At The Warren Firm, PLLC, our Charlottesville personal injury attorneys can back your claim with more than 15 years of legal experience and a history of successful case results to pursue a maximum compensation amount, and not a penny less. We can also help you estimate what your claim’s value should be if you have been presented a settlement offer from the liable party – you should not agree to any amount without first letting a lawyer examine the claim.
Want to know more about our services? Call or email us today.
