How much should I ask for in car accident settlement?

Question

My SUV was rear-ended by a tractor trailer on an interstate off ramp 3 months ago. I'm 34 & this was my 1st accident ever. My bumper only had $800 worth of damage. My 10-yr old daughter, 5-yr old son, and I went to the emergency room the next day because we had severe neck & back pain. We were diagnosed with muscle spasm. Two weeks later, my daughter & I started chiropractic care because our pain had not subsided. We went to the chiropractor for 2 months. My daughter has completely recovered and I only have mild pain in my neck when I turn it. How much should I ask for in my insurance settlement with the trucker's company? (I live in N.Carolina)

Answer 1

I'd add in $1,000 for each of you, for pain and suffering. But I'd let the INSURANCE COMPANY make the first offer.

Answer 2

First, Did you open a claim with the truck's insurance company? If so, did they pay the damages to your vehicle? Were you insured, and if so, did your insurance company pay your damages? If your company paid, they will subrogate for the amount and include your deductible if applicable. You'll need to mitigate your injury claims to the adverse company. It's usually the normal to ask for 3 times the medical bills. Being that you only had 800.00 worth of damage, you might have a fight on your hands. They may tell you that you over treated with the doctor. It all depends on the adjuster, and their supervisor. There's so much fraud out there most insurance companies are suspicious. I'm not saying you're case is fraud, but be careful. If you were to get an attorney, they would take 1/3 off your settlement and a little less for the kids. Good Luck.

Answer 3

I was in a minor accident about a year ago....rear ended by a girl not paying attention. I had $300 worth of damage, and on top of med costs for my sore back, I got $1000 bucks.

Answer 4

For your son - $200
For your daughter - $500
For you - $700

Plus meds of course. You get more than your daughter because you still had to take care of house and family in pain.

Take what you can get as with such minor damage there would be questionable causation. What that means is they could question if such small impact could cause injury

Answer 5

Bumper $800
Chiropractor $300
Emergency Room $1000
My Child's Life.... Priceless

TAKE IT ALL!!!

No I'm joking...I'd ask for whatever the medical bills were, the bumper damage, and 3/4 of my travel costs.

Answer 6

It DOES matter who's at fault, actually, but it sounds like your brother is at fault, if his company is paying for the injuries. Mental issues don't get covered. With no medical bills or bodily injuries, you'll be darned lucky to get $1,000. My guess is, if you ask for more than that, they'll make you hire a lawyer.

Answer 7

You should be ashamed of yourself for even considering a lawsuit against the trucking company as a get rich quick scheme! Now you said it was a tractor and trailer. It was probably loaded, so were talking maybe 60,000 pounds. If a 60,000 pound vehicle hits the back of your SUV and only causes bumper damage then it barely even nudged you. I'd say 2 mph at the point of impact. Severe back and neck pain my butt! With that being said, I'm going to speculate a little bit and say that you probably caused the accident. Most tractor accidents are caused by impatient idiots that can't respect truck drivers. I myself am not a truck driver. I am the guy that gets to fix them. I'm not fooled one bit by your claim. Keep working, BUM!

Answer 8

this is a minor impact soft tissue claim and you're not gonna get much

Answer 9

Ask your lawyer.