Who pays compensation for a car accident depends on who caused the accident. You must identify the liable party and negotiate with their insurance company for a fair settlement to receive compensation. In car accident cases, the responsible party may be:
- The other driver
- The other driver’s employer
- An auto parts manufacturer
- A maintenance contractor
- A combination of the above
The Two Types of Car Accident Compensation
After an accident, you could qualify for economic damages, noneconomic damages, or both. It depends on what types of injuries and losses you sustained.
Economic Damages: an Overview
If you spent any money because of the accident or resulting injuries, you might ask for economic damages. Economic damages reimburse victims for financial losses caused by:
- Doctor’s visits, surgery, physical therapy, home nursing, assistive devices, prescriptions, and other medical expenses
- Temporarily diminished income that occurred when you took time off work to heal
- Diminished income caused by permanent, debilitating injuries
- The cost of repairing or replacing your vehicle, or using alternate modes of transportation
Noneconomic Damages: an Overview
“Noneconomic,” in this case, simply means physical and psychological damage. Noneconomic damages serve as compensation for the injuries themselves, rather than the monetary expense associated with these conditions:
- Physical pain and suffering due to bone fractures, concussions, scrapes, bruises, contusions, nerve damage, and other types of injuries
- Emotional anguish caused by the trauma of being in the crash or the physical pain of your injuries
- The inability to take care of yourself or your children, engage in enjoyable activities, or live free of pain
- Permanent scar tissue that causes disfigurement, physical pain, or a reduction in self-esteem
Before seeking noneconomic damages, it is vital to understand your state’s laws concerning them. For example, some states have laws limiting how much money a person may receive in noneconomic damages.
For a free legal consultation, call (800) 537-8185
Our Firm Helps Car Accident Victims
Our team can help you pursue damages like those listed above by:
- Assigning value to your injuries: It is necessary to put a “price tag” on your injuries and collect supporting evidence to prove your valuation.
- Gathering evidence from various sources: For example, police reports can help prove the liable party’s role in the accident, while medical records can speak to the severity of your injuries.
- Identifying the liable party: We can tell you who is responsible for your accident, whether it was one or multiple parties. This way, you can pursue compensation from everyone who played a role in causing the injury.
- Seeking an appropriate settlement: The insurance company’s representatives will do everything possible to avoid paying what you need. We can meet with them and vigorously defend your interests.
- Representing you in court: It is not always possible to receive a pretrial settlement. In these cases, we can speak with you about taking your case to court.
Paying for Legal Representation
If you hire a lawyer to help you with your case, this may qualify as an economic damage for which you can seek compensation. In any event, our firm charges no upfront attorney’s fees.
To make our services more accessible to the average person, we work on a contingency basis. This means you only pay attorney’s fees if we recover compensation for you.
Determining Who Will Pay Your Compensation
The National Highway Transportation Safety Administration (NHTSA) released a report showing that over 2.4 million occupants of passenger vehicles suffered traffic accident injuries in 2019. In all, 2.74 million people sustained injuries in traffic crashes that year.
If you are one of the millions of people throughout America injured in a car accident, you may be able to sue:
- Another driver, if they were speeding, distracted by a cellphone or other object, or otherwise behaving irresponsibly.
- A maintenance contractor, if one of the accident vehicles or the road was not in the condition it should have been.
- An auto parts manufacturer, if a defective auto part contributed to the accident.
You Can Recover Compensation Whether the At-Fault Driver Has Insurance or Not
Many states have mandatory insurance laws requiring anyone who owns a car to carry insurance. For example, the Alabama Department of Insurance states that the minimum coverage a driver must carry is $25,000 per person for bodily injuries.
Having insurance coverage means the liable party does not have to pay damages out of pocket. However, if the liable party in your case has no insurance, you could still recover compensation. Our firm can help you do so.
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If You Need Compensation, Morris Bart, LLC Can Help
The Morris Bart law firm has offices in four states: Alabama, Louisiana, Arkansas, and Mississippi. We can help you determine who should pay compensation for your car accident and negotiate with them to secure an appropriate settlement. Call us at (800) 537-8185. A member of our team will assess your case at no charge.
Questions?Call (800) 537-8185
to find a Morris Bart office near you.
