After you have been in a serious car accident, you are going to want to make sure you are properly compensated. When it comes to being paid, there are specific types of damages you can pursue through your car insurance company or through a personal injury lawsuit against your insurance company and/or the other driver involved in the accident.

#1 Property Damage

With a vehicle accident, the property damage is usually contained to the damage done to your vehicle.  You are usually compensated for the cost to fix up your vehicle or to purchase a new vehicle if your vehicle was totaled in the accident. Keep in mind you may also be reimbursed for having to rent a car while your car was being fixed up or while you shopped for a new vehicle.

If anything in your vehicle was damaged in the accident, you can also seek compensation for that damage as well. For example, maybe your tablet was shattered in the accident, or maybe you had a trunk full of sports supplies that was damaged. Keep in mind property damage includes damage to the items in your vehicle as well your vehicle itself.

#2 Medical Expenses

Medical expenses are one of the biggest areas of compensation following a car accident. Medical bills include everything from your first emergency room visit to all of your treatment costs. Your medical expenses also include the cost of prescriptions, over-the-counter medication, and any medical aids you had to purchase. Everything related to treating your injuries from the car accident until you are healed can be included under your medical damages.

#3 Lost Wages

If you were not able to work, you can get compensated for all the wages you lost out on. This is true even if you use sick or paid vacation days. You are having to use your sick and paid vacation days for something other than a true sickness, like the flu or a real vacation. You will need to document the number of hours you missed from work and show proof of how much you make per hour.

#4 Lost Earning Capacity

Sometimes an injury sustained in a car accident is serious enough it takes away from your ability to work at all. If you are not able to return to your previous job after a car accident, you can try to include lost earning capacity in your compensation demands. Be aware that often times an economic expert witness is needed for this type of claim.

#5 Pain & Suffering

Finally, there is pain and suffering. This is often the hardest damage to put an exact figure on. There are some ways you can put an exact figure on pain and suffering, such as showing the counseling you had to go through due to the accident. Another way is to show the activities and lifestyle you are no longer able to participate in or showing specific events you had to skip out on due to your injuries.

There are lots of things you can try to get compensation for after an accident; the key to actually winning that compensation though is proving you've earned it through documentation and evidence. An attorney can help you build a strong case so you are properly rewarded for the damages you suffered due to your accident.

To learn more, reach out to attorneys like those at the Law Offices Of Timothy L Lapointe PC.