Rear End Collision Settlement Examples:
The Washington Post estimates that every year, rear-end collisions total about 1.7 million. A number of factors go into determining who is at fault in these situations. More often than not, the fault goes to the driver of the vehicle that rear-ended the other. When faced with a car crash of this type, many people look at rear end collision settlement examples. What they really want to understand is the fair compensation value for the injuries and damages caused.
What Determines the Final Rear End Collision Settlement Amount?
There are several different factors that contribute to the final rear end collision settlement amount you are awarded. This payout can range anywhere from just a few thousand to several million dollars, depending on the severity of the accident and injuries, amount of property damage.
Here are some of the factors that go into calculating compensation amounts in rear end collision settlements:
- Vehicles: If the vehicle rear-ended is much smaller than the following vehicle, this can cause more severe damages. Semi-trucks rear-ending smaller cars is an extreme example of high costs associated with this.
- Negligence: If the at fault drivers negligence led to serious injuries, courts tend to be more likely to award higher non economic damages.
- Parties: When a company is liable, judges often tend to mete out harsher punishments. These cases most often involve gross negligence.
- Speed: Even small vehicles can cause serious damages to larger ones if the driver is speeding. Speeding is also often tied to negligence, which may increase payouts.
- Injuries: The more severe the injuries, the higher their medical bills, therefore the higher the likelihood of obtaining bigger payouts. This is especially true when the result is death or long term disability.
- Lost Wages: How much work did the victim miss as a result of their injuries or subsequent medical treatment? If the victim was a high earner and missed a significant amount of work, that will generally result in a bigger settlement amount.
- Pain and Suffering: Economic damages are often multiplied by a number between 1 and 5, depending on the amount of pain and suffering involved. If the injuries were minor, like soft tissue injuries that don’t have much impact on the day to day life of the victim, the pain and suffering multiple will usually be low. However, in serious accidents that long term life alterations, the pain and suffering multiple can play a large role in the final settlement amount for the accident.
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Rear End Collision Settlement Examples
Now that we’ve examined what factors determine the total amount of your car accident settlement, let’s take a closer look at some actual rear end accident settlement examples. They come from law firms all across the country.
- Large Rear End Car Accident Settlement Example – $150 Million: In this case, a pickup truck struck an SUV. The SUV burst into flames on impact, and a young boy was burned alive inside. The jury found Chrysler guilty of gross negligence regarding the design, manufacture and selling of the 2012 Jeep Grand Cherokee. The pickup driver was found 1% responsible for the accident, while Chrysler was held responsible for the remaining 99%.
- Rear End Collision Settlement Example Involving Famous Comedian – $90 Million: A truck driver was allegedly speeding 20 MPH over the legal limit and had been awake for more than 24 hours when he crashed into the back of a limousine. The limousine had slowed due to congestion. The impact killed one man and injured several others. One of the victims was a famous stand up comedian who suffered traumatic brain injuries, broken ribs and a broken leg. The entertainer reportedly received an estimated $90 million dollars from Walmart, the driver’s employer.
- $75,000 Rear End Collision Settlement Example: According to one law firm, a vehicle failed to stop in time at the intersection of a major highway and rear-ended a woman waiting at the stoplight. The woman suffered neck injuries and back pain and went to the emergency room. While there, she also learned she was pregnant and had developed complications. She underwent surgery to fix herniated disks. The woman filed a lawsuit, but he did not respond to it. She then sued her insurance company based on uninsured motorist coverage.
- $13,586 Rear End Collision Settlement Example: Another woman was rear-ended at a stoplight, but the accident was allegedly minor. Despite this fact, she woman decided sued the other driver. She alleged pain from a cervical sprain and a herniated disc. However, it was possible that this was caused by previous, unrelated surgeries. The law firm represented the defendant (the driver who was at fault for the accident) in this case, and he paid only economic damages for medical expenses.
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Why Look At Rear End Collision Settlement Examples:
Studying rear end collision settlement examples is a great way to get a feel for what outcomes to expect based on your situation. Many rear end crashes are similar in nature, type of injury, etc, so learning how insurance company payouts went on similar
There are also a number of car accident settlement calculators available online, including on this website. These online calculators are a good starting point to help understand how to calculate your rear end car accident settlement. However, these tools are only as good as the numbers you plug into them.
Online car accident settlement calculators are definitely not meant to take the place of an attorney looking at the details and facts of your claim.
In the end, only an attorney can make a realistic estimate regarding the potential payment of your rear end car accident settlement. A free consultation with a personal injury attorney can give you a good idea what your auto accident settlement may be.