Is car insurance enough to replace an accident victim’s lost wages?

It is often hard to think about the long-term consequences of a crash while a victim is still standing at the scene of the wreck. People have to worry about getting their cars out of the road and then arrange to tow them somewhere else for repairs. They may need to contact employers and others because they have to seek medical treatment after the crash instead of continuing to their original destination.

It is often only after someone knows the full extent of their injuries and has had time to process the trauma of the collision that they may begin to truly worry about the long-term repercussions of the wreck itself. For example, can someone injured in a Massachusetts collision expect insurance to help them cover their lost wages if they require time off of work to recover or can no longer work at all because of their injuries?

Insurance can help but may fall short

Someone’s age, the extent of their injuries and the insurance policy of the person at fault for the crash will all strongly influence the likelihood that when car insurance will be sufficient to cover Collision expenses. Drivers in Massachusetts may have as little as $20,000 in bodily injury liability coverage if they cause a crash where one person gets hurt.

The person not at fault for the wreck can also make use of their personal injury protection pip coverage. That will generally provide at least $8,000 of reimbursement toward medical expenses and injury-related costs. That coverage may not be enough to pay for the trauma care someone requires after the crash, which may mean that they have no option of asking insurance to reimburse them for lost wages.

Their only choice may be to take the other driver to court. A personal injury lawsuit can potentially result in full compensation for the people affected, unlike an insurance claim. There are no arbitrary policy limits imposed on personal injury lawsuits the way there are on insurance claims. Instead, it will ultimately be the financial impact of the crash that determines how much compensation the courts award a plaintiff.

If someone has to change professions or requires an extended leave of absence from their job because of accident-related injuries, then a civil lawsuit may be the only means of fully recovering their financial losses. Recognizing the limitations of car insurance coverage – and seeking legal guidance accordingly – can help people to better respond to the financial consequences of a recent car wreck.