Lawsuit Info Center / Car Accident Lawsuits / Car Accident Settlement Calculator

Car Accident Settlement Calculator

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Injury Settlement Calculator


The year when accident happened.
Select if you were injured or not.
Select YES if you were the reason accident happened otherwise NO.
Select YES if you already hired an attorney otherwise NO.

Injury Settlement Calculator


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Medical bills and expenses.
$
Primary used for auto injuries. Type 0 for personal injury.
$
Lost income, wages or benefits like PTO.
$
Future and ongoing medical treatments.
1
The more serious, long-lasting, and painful the injuries, the higher the multiplier.

Settlement Estimate


This is not legal advice. This tool provides a very rough estimate for informational purposes only. All personal injury settlements are different based on individual facts of each case. For an accurate idea of what your claim may be worth, please contact us for a free legal consultation. Book your free consultation now by calling the number or clicking the button below your estimate.


Enter the phone number were you can be reached at.


Car Accident Settlement

How the Car Accident Settlement Calculator Works:

Anyone who has been seriously injured in a car accident will want to get an approximate idea what their car accident settlement might be worth. It is important to negotiate a fair settlement for your car accident injuries as soon as you understand what the true medical and other costs are of your accident. When determining what this amount is, it means figuring out what sum of money you would accept in exchange for not going to court. A car accident settlement calculator can help you get a general idea of what your claim may be.

It is common for auto insurance companies and attorneys to use a variety of car accident settlement formulas to obtain a figure so that settlement negotiations can begin. As the person who is injured, it is useful to have an online car accident settlement calculator to determine what your accident injuries are worth in dollar terms. This type of calculator also can be used for other personal injury cases as well.

Please use our car accident settlement calculator below to add up a possible settlement amount for the car accident injuries you suffered. After you have filled out the form and gotten a result, it is recommended to review your case with an experience car accident personal injury attorney. The attorney can review the specifics of your case, and based upon that, you can get a more precise idea of a settlement figure.

Note: This car accident settlement calculator is not a substitute for legal advice. Only a personal injury attorney licensed in your state can provide you with a proper legal analysis of your accident case.

Under the calculator there is additional information about the various personal injury values needed to be entered to get a settlement figure.

What Are Your Car Accident Injuries?

The above car accident compensation calculator requests that you enter the information detailed below.

Medical expenses

You could be entitled to money for your medical bills that were incurred due to the car accident, if the accident was caused by the negligence of another party. If you need to have medical tests or treatments performed, of if you need any medical care from your accident injuries, the person who caused the accident must pay for them. Some of these car accident medical costs may include:

  • Hospital stays
  • Rehabilitation
  • Nursing home stays
  • Physical therapy costs
  • Co-pays

Medical costs are the most common form of damages that may be reimbursed in a car accident case. Medical expenses can quickly add up in car accident cases. This is the case in a car accident where you have suffered a permanent disability. If you require care for the rest of your life or the use of various life adaption devices to live, this can be a very high dollar amount. As you are adding up your various medical costs form the car accident, it is important to include all of the expenses you paid out of pocket as you got medical treatment for your various car accident injuries.

Keep in mind that you may have to turn over some of the funds you get in a settlement to reimburse your health insurance provider. This is the case if your health insurance provider has been handling your medical costs prior to settlement. You will need to have your attorney set up a medical lien in your case so that the insurance company is reimbursed for what it paid out prior to settlement.

Property damages

The amount of property damages in a car accident includes monetary damages to property that was involved in the accident, especially your vehicle. Property damages may include repairs to your car, or what it costs to replace it; what it cost to tow the car; rental car costs; any damage to personal property in the vehicle due to the accident; and damage to any other property in the car accident.

Lost wages or earnings

Being compensated for your lost income due to a car accident personal injury is another major part of damages that you may be entitled to. This number includes pay for work that you missed because of car accident injuries. It also includes lost pay for time you spent receiving therapy or medical treatments, including physical therapy, rehabilitation and chiropractic visits. If you had to take sick or vacation days for these visits, you should be paid for those as well in the settlement.

If you have been disabled and are unable to work due to car accident injuries, your lost earnings figure should also include what you would have earned if you had not been injured. This is also the case if you are disabled in a way that even partially prevents you from working.

Multiplier for pain and suffering

Insurance companies know that juries on car accident cases tend to give big awards for pain and suffering after a car accident. This is especially true for major accident injuries. Thus, auto insurance companies frequently settle out of court. They realize that they may end up paying less if they settle than if they go to court.

When a personal injury case settles out of court, the auto insurance company will use a ‘multiplier’ to decide what a ‘reasonable’ number is for the pain and suffering you have endured. The multiplier that the insurance company uses is multiplied by whatever your medical costs, lost wages and other damages are. The multiplier is usually from 1-5, depending upon how severe your injuries were. Once that multiplier is used, a tentative settlement figure is determined.

Should the multiplier in your case be a 1 or 5? This is a very important and complex matter that is best determined with the help of your attorney. But for the purposes of this car accident settlement calculator, you will need to decide what number to use. As you think about this, consider the following factors very carefully.

  • How severe are the injuries from the car accident?
  • What is the number of medical treatments you have had and will have in the future?
  • What is the length of time you have had to undergo medical treatments, and what will be needed in the future?
  • Will you suffer long or even permanent injuries, or will you fully recover soon?
  • Does the accident affect your life each day, both at work and in your personal affairs?

It is common for plaintiffs to automatically use a 4 or 5 multiplier, but you should really think if it is warranted in your case. Do not assume that you are entitled to a higher end settlement amount. You could end up being disappointed. It is better to view the accident and injuries as objectively as possible.

Below are some typical car accident injury situations where a higher multiplier might be used:

  • The other driver is clearly at fault for the entire accident. For example, say a tractor trailer rear ended you at high speed at a stop light. This is a clear cut act of negligence by the truck driver.
  • All of your accident injuries have been observed and written down by a doctor.
  • The car accident injuries suffered are serious, obvious, painful and possibly traumatic. For example, if you suffered a compound leg fracture in a rear end car crash while sitting at a stop light, this is an example of obvious and painful injuries.
  • Your medical diagnosis has come from a hospital and/or doctor.
  • The recovery from accident injuries takes weeks, months or years, or may be permanent injury.
  • You are suffering injuries that have permanent consequences, such as paralysis, severe pain, scarring, difficulty walking or running, etc.
  • Your physician has stated that you will suffer future medical problems for a long time due to the accident.

Did your car accident injuries involve some or most of the above? You would probably be justified to use a 4 or 5 multiplier to determine your pain and suffering sum with this car accident settlement calculator.

Note that even if you think that you are entitled to a high sum for your pain and suffering, you may not receive it in the end. Insurance companies have extensive records based upon past injury cases of the pain and suffering your type of injuries cause. The adjuster may question how much pain and suffering you are really enduring.

When it comes to pain and suffering, value your experience fairly. If you think you have had a lot of pain and suffering, then use a higher multiplier. But if you exaggerate your pain and suffering, it will only draw out the settlement process.

Last, remember that some states have enacted caps on pain and suffering. You should check with a personal injury attorney to determine if such a cap is in place in your state.

Car Accident Lawsuit

Other Car Accident Injury Damages

There are other types of car accident injuries that may be part of your settlement that exceed the scope of our calculator. For example, you may have suffered loss of companionship or consortium. This refers to compensation for not being able to have sexual relations or a relationship at all with another person. This can happen in a serious car accident that led to severe injury or loss of life.

Also, punitive damage can be imposed in severe car accidents where another driver engaged in extremely dangerous and reckless behavior.

Discuss Your Case With a Car Accident Attorney

The car accident settlement calculator above is just to give you a rough idea of the settlement you could receive. For more specific information, talk to an experienced personal injury attorney today.

Car Accident Settlement

Frequently Asked Questions about car accident settlements

Settlement Calculator

Whiplash is common after car accidents, but they can be difficult to prove for compensation purposes. That is because, like most soft tissue injuries, they do not show up on X-rays and MRIs. That does not mean your whiplash injury is any less painful or legitimate than other car accident injuries. But it means if you are having discomfort, limited movement and pain in your neck, you should get immediate medical attention after the accident so your condition is documented as quickly as possible.

Remember, the insurance adjuster is not going to your word for it that you have whiplash and give you money. All losses must be as clearly documented as possible. If you can show medical records and bills that show the medical treatment you had after the accident, that will really help to show that you have whiplash or a related injury.

Value of a Whiplash Case

For the most part, damages in a whiplash case are on the smaller end of the scale. If your injury is found be a doctor to be whiplash, neck sprain or strain, it is not generally considered a serious injury. Whiplash, while painful, does not usually involve injury to the discs, which would be a more serious injury. For example, if you have medical bills totaling $5000 and $1000 in lost wages, your economic damages are $6000. That is the major category of damages to calculate. The next category is to determine is non-economic, which includes money for pain and suffering.

The auto insurance company may use a multiplier between 1.5 to 4 to value your pain and suffering for your whiplash. But there are other factors at play that can increase or decrease your damages award:

  • Whether you appear to be a reliable witness
  • Whether you are believable
  • Whether the jury understands your neck injuries
  • The nature and extent of your medical treatment

Also key is who does your medical treatments. If most of your medical treatment is done by physical therapists and chiropractors, the jury is more likely to discount your injuries. Juries and insurers think if you are really hurt, you will go to a doctor not a chiropractor.

So if you have $5000 in medical bills but $4000 was from a physical therapist, you will probably get a lot less for pain and suffering than if your doctor performed your treatments.

If you are driving along and minding your business and are in an accident caused by someone else, you will be entitled to compensation for your injuries and property damages. Who will provide the compensation depends upon the state and insurance regulations. How much can you expect to get in your auto accident settlement?

Despite what you might have heard, there is no one master formula to calculate car accident settlements. But some insurance companies do use a computer system known as Colossus. The adjuster will enter information and the program will provide a settlement number. As a consumer, you cannot access this computer system, but it helps to understand how the figure is calculated.

The first factor considered is the damage to your vehicle. Possible compensation for damage to your car will be the cost of repairs and replacement parts, unless the cost is worth more than the car is worth. The insurance company could declare the car a total loss, but this does not mean the company will just pay for a new car. It will usually pay you the current value of the vehicle before the accident, including depreciation. This may not give you enough to purchase a new vehicle without you having to pay extra.

Personal injury compensation is more complex. It is based upon your medical bills and any lost wages you may have incurred because of your inability to work.

Next is pain and suffering; it is usually added to the cost of the medical bills and lost earnings. Most insurance companies will use a multiplier to arrive at a compensation number for your pain and suffering. That number could range between 1.5 and 5.

There is no one exact way that an insurance company will calculate your pain and suffering. Your personal injury attorney was probably trained in one of two ways to calculate your pain and suffering. The first way is to multiply your actual damages (medical costs and lost wages) by a certain multiplier ranging from 1 to 5. If you have relatively minor injuries, you might use a 1-2 multiplier. For serious, life changing injuries, a 4 or 5 may be used. For instance, if you have $3000 in medical bills from your broken arm, the multiplier could be 3, so you would possibly be entitled to $9000 for your pain and suffering.

Other attorneys may use a per diem approach to calculate pain and suffering. In this method, a certain amount, perhaps $100, is assigned to each day from the day of your accident until you have gotten to maximum recovery.

Insurance companies are not obligated to use either of these methods to calculate your pain and suffering. Many insurance companies use computer programs to determine what their settlement offer will be and what should be allowed for pain and suffering. These programs will generally take into account not only the type of injury but also the type of medical treatment you had.

For instance, insurance companies will usually consider medical treatment by doctors to indicate a more serious type of injury than treatment by a chiropractor. Insurance companies also will take into account how long you had treatment. If the treatment appears to be excessive for the injury you had, the insurance company will not allow all of that treatment cost for its calculation of your pain and suffering.

The amount that you get for pain and suffering will probably rise if you have more evidence of your injuries and suffering. The extent of injury and pain and suffering can be proven with photographs and personal journals. Documentation from your friends and family also can provide evidence of how the injuries have affected your life. Proof of necessary treatments from medical professionals also will help your cause.

If you are making a claim after a car accident, you will wonder how much you will get. Insurance companies use many methods to calculate the value of your personal injury claim. The claim will generally include compensation for your medical costs and lost wages, plus some amount for your pain and suffering.

The most often-used method to value pain and suffering is to multiply your actual damages – medical bills and lost wages – by a certain multiplier. Most personal injury attorneys are trained to multiply actual damages by three to reach a fair and reasonable damages number. So, if you had $5000 in medical bills and lost wages of $1000, a tentative total with pain and suffering included would be $18,000.

However, in recent years insurance companies are becoming more aggressive in fighting the multiple of three figure as a way to quantify pain and suffering.

The approach that is often used now is to take your actual damages and multiply the number by a figure that is calculated with a software program. The result will frequently undervalue your claim. The multiplier depends up on the seriousness of injuries, aggravating circumstances and how long your recovery is. For example, if you have a broken leg and must have several operations, your pain and suffering is going to be worse than if you just injured your wrist in a fender bender.

In a more serious accident, the multiplier could be 3 or 4, and in a fender bender, the number could be 1 or 2. The multiplier can be higher if the at fault driver was drunk. But if your own actions were partially responsible for the accident, a lower multiplier could be appropriate.

The first step to negotiate a settlement for your car accident is to calculate a reasonable cash amount you would accept to give up legal action. Most insurance companies rely on a formula to arrive at a starting point for settlement talks to begin.

The most common formula involves a multiplier times your medical expenses to arrive at an estimate of non-economic damages, which is money for your pain and suffering. The figure is added to economic losses, such as medical bills, property damages and lost income. At that point, you have a dollar amount that you can use to negotiate with the insurance company.

One of the most contentious parts of the negotiations is what multiplier to use. To arrive at a dollar figure that could represent the value of your general damages, the insurance adjuster will add up your special medical damages and multiply them by the multiplier that is between 1.5 and 5. The multiplier can be higher or lower, depending upon the severity of your injuries. Also, how much medical treatment did you receive? Will you make a full recovery? Will you have long lasting disabilities? How have your injuries affected your daily life?

It is likely the insurance company will argue for a lower multiplier and your attorney will argue for a higher one. To have the best chance in this type of negotiation, hire a personal injury attorney in your area using the attorney finder tools on our website.

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