Passenger In Car Accident Settlements

Guide to Passenger Settlements After a Car Accident

Most of us spend a lot of time in our cars. We drive to work, we drive to the store, we drive to visit friends and family. Some people travel more often as a passenger, rather than the driver. Unfortunately, motor vehicle accidents happen and those accidents can affect everyone in the car. There can be a sense of helplessness felt by passengers during a car crash. The responsibilities and rights after an accident differ whether you were the driver or a passenger in a car accident, and so can the settlement amount.

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This article will dive into the issue of passengers who’ve been involved in a car accident, and look at ways to ensure you get a fair car accident settlement if you’ve been injured as a passenger in a car accident.

A passenger who was injured in a car accident will likely not have a serious struggle when it comes to seeking compensation. As the passenger, you don’t have the burden of proving liability, because you weren’t in control of any of the vehicles involved in the crash. In rare cases, a passenger may be accused of acting in a negligent way that led to an accident, such as a domestic dispute where the passenger hits the driver while the car is moving causing them to swerve into oncoming traffic. However this is not a common scenario, most of the time injured passenger settlements are open and shut cases.

Injured Passenger Settlements: The Immediate Aftermath

Immediately after a car crash, make sure to get yourself, the driver of the vehicle, and any other passengers to a safe place out of the way of traffic. The next thing you or the driver should do is contact the paramedics and local police, who can attend to any serious injuries, file an accident report, take names and information, etc.

As you are waiting for police to arrive on the scene, take this time to do a few things that could really benefit you later:

1. Take Pictures: This is an important step in proving fault, showing the severity of your injuries, and the scope of the accident. While the accident scene is still fresh you should take pictures of all damage to any vehicles involved in the crash, as well as any road hazards that may have contributed to the accident. Once you’ve done that, take some pictures of any visible injuries you suffered as the passenger, which can be used to backup your medical bills later.
2. Speak to and exchange information with other people on the scene: Obviously you should exchange insurance information with any other drivers who were involved (get the info from your friend/family member who was driving too), but don’t stop there. If there were any witnesses that saw the accident – pedestrians, other drivers, etc, ask them if they got a good view of the accident and if they would be willing to issue a statement to police or insurance if neccessary.

After that, you should seek medical attention. Even if you feel fine after a serious accident, you should visit the doctor in the days following the crash. Sometimes  auto accident injuries aren’t apparent for a couple of days.

When you do get medical care, make sure you save a copy of all bills, summary of doctor’s findings/recommendations, and any other documents pertaining to the injuries you suffered in the accident. Provide receipts for any charge you have incurred due to your injuries – insurance covers all medical expenses, not just doctors bills.

In addition to your medical expenses, you can also get compensated for any loss of income that happened as a result of being injured as a passenger. You can use pay stubs to show lost wages, but sometimes it can be more complicated than that. If you’re self employed or in some sort of performance based compensation job (i.e. sales rep), it can be harder to quantify lost income. The value of a lifelong customer can be millions over the course of a career, so if you have to miss important meetings or cancel big jobs, make sure you have documentation of that because it could be a big part of your final injured passenger settlement.

Consider keeping a journal to document how the injuries have affected your life. This is because all car accident settlements can include an element of pain & suffering, which is usually represented by a multiple of 1-5. The final settlement amount is then multiplied by this number, so having a multiple of 4 instead of 2 means you’ve just doubled your settlement.

The more impact a person’s car accident injuries had on their quality of life, the higher this number will be. Because of this, keeping an accurate and detailed record of all the ways your life has changed as a result of the injuries sustained as a passenger in a car accident is a step that can’t be skipped.

How Much Can a Passenger Get After A Car Accident

In most cases, passengers are able to receive a car accident settlement payout after an accident. However, the state you live in and the circumstances of the crash will factor into how you should go about seeking compensation.

Often, the liable driver is the one who will have to foot the bill for your damages. If you live in a no-fault state, you might have to file a claim with your own insurance company to get any money. An attorney who’s familiar with the specific auto accident liability laws in your state will be able to point you in the right direction.

The settlement amounts received by passengers in car accidents are at least as large as those of a victim who was driving – and sometimes a lot larger. Because of their perceived helplessness and lack of fault in the accident, insurance companies are often more sympathetic to passengers injured in car accidents than they are to drivers. 

What Are My Rights as a Passenger in a Car Accident?

As a passenger who is injured in a car accident, you have the right to pursue compensation for any and all damages you incurred from the accident. You have the ability to file a third-party claim against the at-fault driver, assuming they have insurance coverage. If both drivers share responsibility, you can file for an injured passenger settlement against both.

However, your state’s fault based laws will come into play. In no-fault states, you cannot place blame on either driver. If the driver of the vehicle you were traveling in carried a Personal Injury Protection (PIP) policy, you should be able to get a payout that way. Otherwise, you will need to file a separate car accident claim with your own insurance company.

When you are ready to file a car accident claim, it is important to have an understanding of your injuries. If you are not completely healed from the accident, it might not be wise to file a claim. You may have additional healthcare costs and if you settle too early, you cannot seek these additional damages from the at-fault party.

If negotiations with the insurance company fails, you may have to consider taking your case to auto accident arbitration. You also have the right to file a lawsuit for the injuries you suffered in the car accident. Some states have laws that dictate what sort of legal action passengers can take against the driver of the car they were riding in.

There are other circumstances under which you may be able to file a claim with a separate entity. These include filing a suit against a manufacturer if a faulty vehicle part or system played a part in the accident.

If you are a passenger in a car that is being driven by someone who doesn’t own the car, you may be able to file a claim against the vehicle owner. For example, as a passenger in a commercial vehicle accident, you may be able to seek an injured passenger settlement from the company that owns the vehicle.

What Could Complicate an Injured Passenger Settlement?

Typically, receiving a settlement as a passenger is easier than battling with another driver over fault. However, there are things that can slow down the process of getting a payout.

For example, if the two drivers involved in the accident do fight over liability, you may not be sure who to file your claim against. You might need to wait until fault is determined before you file your claim. Or, you may have grounds to file against both drivers if fault is found to be shared.

Filing against both drivers might also be necessary if policy limits don’t allow you to get your full compensation amount from one party. If fault is shared for the accident, the settlement payout might be split between the two responsible parties, with each paying a percentage of the injured passengers settlement that corresponds with the amount of fault they are found to be at.

Also, what happens if multiple passengers are injured in a crash? If more than one person files a claim against a single driver, the total value of all of the claims may exceed the policy limits in place.

This may force all of the injured passengers to settle for less money. If an agreement cannot be reached as to who gets how much of the total settlement, filing a car accident lawsuit may be necessary to recover the full amount for any one passenger.

Filing a Claim Against Friends & Family

Filing an insurance claim or taking legal steps to collect an injured passenger settlement from a friend or family member may feel wrong to many people. But, the at-fault person being someone you are close to doesn’t change the fact that you have injuries to heal from and costs to recover. Receiving an injured passenger settlement shouldn’t reflect badly on your relationship with the driver.

If the person responsible for the accident is someone that you live with, you may not be able to file a claim against them. This is generally not allowed by many insurance policies. The possibility of false claims being made in order to collect a profit is why these rules are in place. However, it is still a good idea to reach out to the insurance company and discuss the details of the accident and how you were affected.

If the person driving was a friend or family member that you don’t live with, those same rules do not apply. You may feel bad about filing a claim against this person, but it is the insurance who will pay out, not the friend or family member. That said, if the responsible person does not have insurance or their limits don’t cover your total settlement, you do have the option to take legal action. This decision is one that should probably be discussed with an auto accident attorney, as it can get a little complicated.

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Average Injured Passenger Settlement

You may be wondering, “what is the average injured passenger settlement?” As with any car accident settlement, there is not a true average that you can bank on. This is because every accident has different circumstances, and what held true for one injured passenger may not hold true for another. .

The severity of the crash and injuries suffered will likely increase the settlement value. If you are in a minor fender bender, you should not expect to be paid a very large amount of money.

The factors that will determine how much you get as a passenger in a car accident are:

• Medical and healthcare costs (these may be ongoing)
• Property damage to your personal items
• Lost income (past and/or future)
• Pain and suffering
• Mental anguish

Because injuries, cost of recovery, and the way that an accident affects you can vary, there is no easy way to determine the average settlement for a passenger in a car accident. 

A small accident may get you a couple thousand dollars. A more serious car accident may settle for hundreds of thousands of dollars. The average likely falls somewhere in between – data indicates that the average car accident settlement is in the range of $15,000-$20,000, so the average passenger settlement is probably similar.  

Discussing your case with an attorney can be helpful. They may be able to tell you the verdicts and settlements they have seen for cases that are similar to yours.

Actual Passenger In Car Accident Settlement Example:

On October 5, 2021 I was riding in my friend David’s 2020 Honda Civic in Richmond Virginia. It was a cool winter morning, and it rained the night before so the roadway was slick from oil. We were heading to lunch and traveling near the intersection of Richmond & 5th Avenue when suddenly and without notice a large Jeep SUV struck the rear of his vehicle after we cleared the intersection. The intensity of the impact caused his car to do a 360 before coming to rest in the roadway. The front airbags deployed, and the car was later deemed a total loss.

Case Details: Passenger In Car Accident

Insurance Company:                           Progressive

Bodily Injury Policy Limits:                  $25,000 Per Person/ $50,000 Per Accident

Cause of Crash:                                  Running Red Light

Passenger’s Injuries

1. Medical Treatment- David (Front Passenger)

Immediately after the crash I made sure to check on my friend who was driving. No one else was in the vehicle at the time of the accident. Since the vehicle was hit on the rear passenger side, I absorbed the brunt of the impact. We exited the vehicle together and got to the side of the road where it was safe. There was a witness on scene who advised that she already called the police, and paramedics were on the way. We checked on the other driver who appeared to be okay. David exchanged insurance information while I was being treated by paramedics on scene. Eventually, I was transported to the emergency room for treatment of my injuries. David declined emergency treatment on scene since he was not having substantial pain after the crash.

 

Upon arrival to the emergency room, I had significant neck, low back, and shoulder pain. I was also experiencing pain in my right arm that was radiating down my leg. I was examined by emergency room physicians who ordered a CT scan of my neck, low back, and head. All CT’s were negative for fracture. I was discharged home later that evening with instructions to rest and ice my injuries. The doctors also recommended that I follow up with my primary care physician the next day if my pain and symptoms worsened.

 

The next morning, I woke up with progressively worsening pain and discomfort in my neck, low back, and shoulders. I called my primary care physician and made an appointment for that afternoon. I was examined by my PCP and he recommended that I begin chiropractic treatment 2-3 times a week for 4-6 weeks. He provided me with a prescription and told me that I could find a Chiropractors office close to my home.

 

I called my friend the next day to check on him. He told me that the other drivers insurance company had accepted 100% responsibility for the accident and would cover my incurred medical expenses. My friend advised that the other driver carried bodily injury policy limits of $25,000 per person and $50,000 per accident. My friend let me know that he began suffering from pain and discomfort in his neck and was probably suffering from delayed whiplash after the crash and was going to pursue a claim against the at-fault driver as well.

 

Two days later, I went to Rockland Chiropractic in Richmond Virginia for treatment of my injuries. At this time, I had ongoing pain in my neck, low back, shoulders, and right arm. I was sore, stiff, and achy. Additionally, I was having trouble completing my activities of daily living such as cooking, cleaning, and exercising. I had anxiety and it was difficult for me to find a comfortable position to sleep at night due to pain. I had palpable muscle spasms in my neck, low back and shoulders along with a reduced range of motion in my cervical and lumbar spine due to pain and stiffness. My pain was constant throughout the day and even simple tasks such as sitting at my desk for prolonged periods of time caused significant pain. The chiropractor recommended that I return 2-3 times a week for 6 weeks. I continued treatment with the Chiropractor and my pain and symptoms failed to subside. At this time, the Chiropractor prescribed an MRI of my lumbar and cervical spine. He instructed me to return for a follow up after the imaging studies were complete.

 

Four days later, I went to Richmond MRI for an MRI of my cervical and lumbar spine. The impressions revealed the following:

 

Cervical MRI:

 

•             C2-3: 2 mm protrusion with mild-to-moderate spinal canal stenosis.
•             C3-4: 3 mm protrusion indenting the thecal sac. Bilateral nerve root impingement seen.
•             C4-5: 3-4 mm disc protrusion with moderate spinal stenosis indenting thecae sac.
•             C5-6: 1 mm protrusion with associated bilateral neural foramina narrowing.
•             C6-7: 4-5 mm disc protrusion with annular fissure (tear) seen at this level.
•             C7-T1: 2 mm protrusion without stenosis.

 

Lumbar MRI:

 

•             L2-3: 3 mm disc protrusion with bilateral neural foraminal narrowing
•             L3-3: 4-5 mm disc protrusion with associated annular fissure (tear).
•             L3-4: Mild disc height loss seen. Associated annular tear and 3.5 mm protrusion.
•             L4-5: 2.5 mm protrusion indenting the thecal sac with bilateral nerve root compression.
•             L5-S1: 6 mm protrusion indenting on bilateral exiting nerve root with annular tear.

 

The following day I returned to the Chiropractor for treatment. Luckily, the MRI facility sent the results of my MRIs to the chiropractor. He advised that there were positive findings on both my cervical and lumbar MRI. As a result of the positive findings along with my ongoing and persistent pain, the Chiropractor referred me to see a pain management specialist who would be able to review my MRIs with me and provide additional treatment recommendations.

 

Three days later, I presented to Dr. Greenwall, M.D. for a pain management consultation. At this time, I had a reduced range of motion by approximately 50% in my cervical and lumbar spine along with my right and left shoulders. Chiropractic treatment provided me with minor pain relief, however I felt that I needed additional intervention to manage my pain. Dr. Greenwall reviewed the results of my MRIs with me and advised that the source of my neck and low back pain was due to small tears in the discs in my neck and low back. There was also nerve root impingement found on the MRI which causes constant sharp pain and discomfort. He diagnosed me with cervical and lumbar radiculopathy (radiating pain) and recommended that I undergo a lumbar epidural injection at a cost of $10,000-$12,000 to treat my low back pain. If the first injection provides substantial pain relief, a second injection will be recommended. We discussed the risks and benefits of the procedure, and I decided to move forward with the recommended injection.

 

The following week, I presented to Dr. Greenwall, M.D.’s surgery center in Downtown Richmond Virginia for a lumbar epidural injection at the L5-S1 level. The procedure went well and provided me with some much-needed temporary pain relief. Dr. Greenwall asked me to return for a follow up visit next week.

 

One week later, I presented to Dr. Greenwall, M.D. for a post-injection follow up. The injection provided me with 75% pain relief for approximately 1 week. Unfortunately, my pain and symptoms were still present. As a result of my ongoing and persistent pain, Dr. Greenwall, M.D. recommended that I undergo a 2nd lumbar epidural and complete a course of physical therapy.

 

Negotiation & Injured Passenger Settlement    

After completing medical care and treatment, it was time to collect our medical records and bills from all treating providers. My medical treatment was more extensive than his, however we decided to send a settlement demand to the insurance company for both of us. David had just under $5000 worth of medical expenses, and I had medical bills of just over $17,500. I submitted my demand for the full $25,000 policy limits and made sure to include the cost of the 2nd lumbar epidural injection recommended by Dr. Greenwall, M.D. David provided a demand for $7,500 since he only went to the chiropractor for one month and did not sustain significant injuries. We gave the insurance company 10 days to respond to the settlement demand. The day before the demand was going to expire, the insurance adjuster called David and me. The adjuster from Progressive advised that they were accepting my demand for the full $25,000 policy limits. The adjuster made an initial offer to David in the amount of $4,000. He felt like his claim was worth more, so he called the adjuster the next day and provided a counter for $6,000 in exchange for settlement and a full and final release. The adjuster accepted the counteroffer and we got both cases settled in a timely fashion.

 

The next day, the adjuster sent us the settlement releases to sign. We signed the releases electronically and sent them back to the insurance company. The following week, we both received our settlement checks in the mail and the case was closed.

More Passenger In Car Accident Settlement Examples

If you are wondering what other injured passenger settlements have looked like, there are many examples available. However, it is important to remember that each accident is different and the verdict in one lawsuit may be different than the settlement agreed on for a similar accident.

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• How Much Is My Car Accident Settlement Worth?

$28,000 Injured Passenger Settlement:

$40,000 Injured Passenger Settlement:

$800,000 Injured Passenger Settlement:

$300,000 Injured Passenger Settlement:

Rideshare Passengers Injured In Car Accidents

If you are injured in an accident while riding in an Uber or Lyft car, you may not know what your rights are. In most cases, the rideshare company will cover your settlement. The amount that you can receive will likely vary based on the circumstances of the crash and who was found to be liable. Companies such as Uber hold high coverage limits, so receiving a payout is more certain than if you had to file a claim against an individual driver.

Are You Liable For Passengers In Your Car?

As a driver, you have a duty of care to ensure the safety of your passengers. This means that you should not engage in any unlawful or risky behavior that could result in harm to the other people in your vehicle. This even means that you should make sure that seatbelt laws are being followed and that children are sitting in proper seats for their height and weight.

If you, the driver, are found to be responsible for a car crash, it is also your responsibility to pay for any damages resulting from the accident. This includes paying for your passengers injuries, pain and suffering, etc.

Are Injured Passenger Settlements Higher When Children are Involved?

A car accident can result in many injuries, both physical and emotional. Sadly, this is not limited to adults, often child passengers are the victims of car accident injuries too. When this happens, parents may seek damages for children who have been injured in a car accident that are not limited to medical bills paid on the child’s behalf, but also include pain and suffering, permanent injury, emotional distress, and disability.

Children injured in a car accident often require psychological therapy, which can be included in a car accident settlement. The trauma of being injured in a crash can leave long lasting scars on a young mind.

When seeking damages for injuries sustained by children, the trauma inflicted upon them must be taken into consideration. The child may need ongoing therapy to cope with their emotions following the accident, and that can be included in a settlement. It may even be necessary to hire a specialist in order to get the child back on track, depending on the severity of the injuries and trauma inflicted. PTSD is included in car accident settlements for adults, and children are not immune – in fact, studies show PTSD can have an even larger impact on the lives of children. 

Settlements for children injured in car accidents can also be larger for another reason – they have a lot more life ahead of them. Because of this, any ongoing medical bills or pain and suffering payouts can be increased drastically if injuries and/or treatments are expected to be lifelong or very long term.

Because trying to settle a car accident claim involving a child can be complicated, it’s usually a good idea to speak with an attorney about your situation. They will let you know when it’s wise to bring in specialists to try and gauge ongoing costs associated with helping your child recover from the accident on both a physical and an emotional level. 

Passenger Car Accident Settlement Calculator

As previously stated, the best way to get an accurate idea of what your injured passenger settlement may look like is to speak with an attorney. They will review the facts of your case and tell you if you are being offered a fair settlement. But, if you are interested in a rough estimate to move forward with, you can use our car accident settlement calculator.

Get Help With Your Injured Passenger Settlement

If you are seeking a payout after an accident, you should consider speaking with an attorney. They will be able to help you get the highest compensation and make sure that the insurance companies are not trying to take advantage of you. Most offer free initial consultations, so you have nothing to lose by speaking to an attorney to get informed about your rights and potential compensation. 

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