What Are Economic Damages?

In most cases, property damage is often paid for upfront by an insurance company in an automobile accident case. Often, the only property damage occurs to the car itself. However, other property damage may include items being transported in a car and even clothing which is often cut off by paramedics. It is not unusual these days to have a laptop computer, radar detector, or other high-tech device included as part of property damage. Usually, insurance carriers will pay for a rental car under the property damage coverage.

One aspect of property damage that is often overlooked is the decreased value of your vehicle once it has been repaired. Obviously, this is not a concern for a totaled car. However, because of Carfax, your repairs will likely be public knowledge. You will most certainly get less money for a “repaired” car than you would have the car never been in a collision. This loss in market value is recoverable by you, even after your car was repaired.

Although property damage to a car is one of the first things people want help with, the most significant economic claim is often medical bills. It is not unusual for bills following an automobile crash to exceed $2,000.00 from the ambulance and emergency room alone. In more serious car accident cases, bills are often in the tens of thousands or hundreds of thousands by the time treatment is complete.

Some attorneys advertise that they will get you "as much as they can, as fast as they can" or that their "strong-arm" will get you a quick and easy settlement. At Western States Law, P.C., our Colorado personal injury lawyers understand that clients often need money quickly because of injuries sustained due to another's negligence whether it be from an automobile accident, semi-truck collision, slip-and-fall, or other negligence. However, it may not be in your best interest to settle quickly. Sometimes, settling quickly means settling for less. Future medical expenses are often much greater than past medical bills. As such, we recommend that, before settling a personal injury claim, clients know their future care needs and add those costs to their settlement requests.

When the victim of a negligent driver sustains injuries in a car crash, it is not uncommon for the injured party to need time off work. If you use up sick pay, vacation time, or personal days to offset possible wage loss, you are still entitled to wage reimbursement from the negligent driver or his insurance company - - it just may be that you will have to wait until the case is resolved. Other possible sources of reimbursement for car accident victims in Colorado include criminal restitution, victim's compensation, and, possibly, even loans on a personal injury claim (although injury loans are discouraged due to the extremely high-interest rates).

If you need assistance with property damage, wage loss, or medical bills, call or text the personal injury lawyers at Western States Law, P.C. You are welcome to call for free advice about how to recover money for the damage to your car, even if you are not injured or pursuing a personal injury claim. As always at our firm, there are no attorney’s fees until we recover for you.