How Much to Expect from a Car Accident Settlement

When involved in a California car accident, one of the most pressing questions many people have is about the potential settlement they might receive.

It’s important to understand that California car accident settlements can vary greatly depending on a multitude of factors.

Only by having a thorough review of your specific case by a skilled car accident lawyer will you truly get an accurate assessment of the potential compensation that you may recover from your car accident claim.

Factors Influencing Settlement Amounts

Several key factors influence the amount of a car accident settlement:

• The severity and long-term impact of any injuries sustained are major determinants.
• The cost of medical treatment, both immediate and ongoing medical care.
• The extent of property damage also plays a significant role.
• Lost wages due to time taken off from work, and in some cases, loss of future earnings capacity, are factored into settlements.
• The amount of insurance coverage or assets available to pay the claim.
• The limits of liability insurance coverage for the at-fault driver.

Pain and Suffering Damages

In California, the concept of pain and suffering, including emotional distress, is also considered.

Pain and suffering damages in California refer to a type of non-economic damage that a plaintiff can recover in a personal injury lawsuit. Unlike economic damages, which cover quantifiable losses like medical bills and lost wages, pain and suffering damages are intended to compensate the injured party for the physical pain and emotional distress they have endured as a result of their injury.

In California, pain and suffering damages can include compensation for:

Physical Pain: This encompasses the actual physical discomfort and pain experienced both immediately after the injury and any ongoing pain.

Mental Suffering: This includes emotional distress, anxiety, depression, loss of enjoyment of life, humiliation, or psychological trauma resulting from the injury.

Inconvenience: The disruption to one’s normal life and activities due to the injury and its aftermath.

Grief, Emotional Distress, and Loss of Society and Companionship: Particularly in cases of wrongful death or severe injuries affecting relationships with loved ones.

Physical Impairment and Disfigurement: If the injury leads to any long-term or permanent physical changes that affect the victim’s quality of life.

Determining the value of pain and suffering is more subjective than calculating economic damages, as it doesn’t have a fixed monetary value. In California, juries or judges consider factors like the severity and permanence of the injuries, the impact on the individual’s daily life, and the pain and suffering typically associated with such injuries. A skilled car accident lawyer can guide you as to the value of your pain and suffering damages.

Determining Liability in A Car Accident

When liability (fault) is clear in a collision, this can result in a larger settlement. The insurer representing the driver who is at fault for the crash will usually accept responsibility and they must make a reasonable settlement offer to avoid a lawsuit.

Furthermore, California’s comparative fault system means that the settlement will be adjusted based on each party’s degree of fault in causing the accident. If fault for the accident is shared, your compensation will be reduced by the percentage of your fault for the accident.

Understanding Insurance Policies

The settlement amount you receive is often constrained by the at-fault party’s insurance policy limits. In cases where the at-fault driver is uninsured or underinsured, the victim’s insurance policy can offer additional compensation, depending on whether uninsured motorist coverage is included in their policy.

The Settlement Process

Initially, a claim is filed with the insurance company, followed by a negotiation process. If a satisfactory settlement cannot be reached, the case will often go to litigation. The involvement of a skilled car accident lawyer can be crucial in navigating these steps and maximizing the settlement amount.

Settlement Surveys and Averages

While it’s challenging to state an average settlement amount due to the wide variability of cases, a recent Forbes article indicates:

• According to surveys, average settlements in 2020 were between $20,000 and $25,000.
• A Survey from the Insurance Information Institute found an average injury settlement amount of $20,235 and an average property damage amount of $4,711.
• A Martindale-Nolo survey found an average settlement of $23,900.

An insurance industry study indicated that clients who were represented by an attorney overall received on average three (3) times more compensation than those individuals who were self-represented. We recommend that anyone who has been seriously injured in a car accident seek representation by a skilled car accident lawyer to obtain the best possible outcome for your case.

Importantly, it should be noted that the value of your case depends heavily on the amount of time you put into it. Any Settlement amount paid will be heavily dependent upon how much medical treatment you received, and how much your claimable expenses are (medical bills, wage loss, out of pocket expenses). It will also depend on how soon you received medical treatment after the accident, what your injuries and diagnoses are, and how consistent you were with any follow up medical treatment.

Conclusion

Each car accident case is unique, making it essential to consult with a skilled car accident lawyer who can provide personalized advice and guidance. An attorney can help in accurately assessing your case and ensuring that you receive a fair settlement for your injuries and property damage.

We offer California Car Accident Victims a Free Consultation, and there are No Attorney’s Fees Unless We Recover Compensation For You

At The Hassell Law Group, our legal team are experts in car accident law and personal injury law with over 100 years of combined legal experience, and experience matters. We stand up to aggressive insurance companies and have a history of obtaining award-winning results for our clients. We fight every step of the way to achieve the best possible outcome for our car accident clients. We work on a contingency fee basis, which means there is no risk in hiring our law firm.

Contact us today to schedule a free consultation and case evaluation. We welcome your questions, and our legal team looks forward to helping you obtain just and proper compensation for your personal injury claim.

Read Next: 11 Important Steps To Take After A California Car Accident

The general information provided on this website should not be considered legal advice and does not constitute legal advice. For legal advice, you should consult directly with an attorney. If you contact us by telephone, email, letter, or by contact form submission through this website, please note that such communication does not create or constitute an attorney-client relationship. We cannot act as your attorney until we are hired as your attorney by a formal written agreement.