Surprise Ways a Car Accident Can Cost You

In 2014, the National Highway Traffic Safety Association assigned an estimated monetary value of over 800 billion USD to motor vehicle crashes over the course of a single year alone in the United States. This estimation was calculated by including both the fiscal and the emotional injury levied by accidents to people, as well as personal and private property. In 2013, the average auto collision claim was over $3,000.

Though most drivers prepare for the costs associated with auto insurance and regular maintenance to maintain the safety of your vehicle, there are a variety of unexpected ways that even minor motor vehicle accidents can cost you money. Hindsight is twenty-twenty, but mental and economic preparation is the best way to save yourself some cash should you ever suffer an accident. 

Your Insurance Won’t Pay for a Rental Car

In some cases, there is no telling what degree of structural damage your car has actually suffered in a collision until the mechanic has taken a thorough look to assess what needs to be done. Unfortunately, the entirety of the assessment and repairs process could be a lengthy one. If you are in a no-fault area or currently are in a tug-of-war over accident liability wherein you can’t rely on the other person’s insurance to foot the bill, you could be on the hook for the entirety of the rental car bill. An easy preventative measure is to opt in to an auto insurance plan which covers rental costs. 

Liability Isn’t Clear

In accident cases involving several parties, be they other motor vehicles or pedestrians, there are likely to be a bevy of insurance companies and lawyers to contend with after the fact. Liability may be contentious in such cases. Sometimes it can be hard to tell when to hire a lawyer, but a good rule of thumb is to consult with an attorney when the complexity of the case outpaces your ability to keep up with it. An experienced attorney can help sort out whether or not they can be of real use to you in your accident case, and, best of all, a lot of initial consultations with lawyers are free.

The Other Motorist is Uninsured

If any of the other parties involved in the car accident are uninsured, you’re in for a world of headache when it comes to compensation for personal injury or property damage you’ve sustained. You need to take extra care during the evidence gathering process and communicate directly and immediately with your insurance company—or better yet, your lawyer. Consulting with a lawyer may be the best option in cases involving uninsured motorists even if you only have the faintest inkling that you may be entitled to compensation. Click here for more information regarding accidents with uninsured motorists.

Your Vehicle’s Long Term Value

Aside from your home, your car is one of the most valuable things you own. You take it to work, you use it to drive your kids around—it’s an investment, and it is one you should take care to preserve. But even repaired damage wrought by accidents can have a negative effect on your car’s long-term value. There are entire websites dedicated to sniffing out whether used cars have any collisions in their history. Despite the pristine condition of your car as it stands today, its history can have a detrimental effect on its appeal to future buyers should you ever consider selling. This is, unfortunately, just a fact of life: cars devalue over time, and it’s a fiscal inevitability you ought to prepare for. 

Loss of Services

Loss of services is legally known as a loss of consortium. This refers to the legal deprivation of non-economic resources, be they emotional resources or those related to domestic work within the home that is not compensated. For instance, someone might claim loss of consortium if their spouse died in an car accident. In accidents even of the non-fatal variety, if you, your spouse, or other members of your household are injured, you might suffer a loss of services due to a deprivation of those household contributions. There are a ton of hidden costs in even minor injuries suffered by heads of households or contributing adults in families. You might not notice how much your spouse or adult child contributes to the day to day functioning of your home—such as mowing the lawn or providing childcare—until they are too injured to fulfill these obligations. In addition to meeting the cost of healthcare and those associated with property damage, you may find yourself shelling out to provide childcare and other meet other domestic duties.