Finding yourself driving down the road only to see another vehicle heading in your direction is a terrifying experience. For those who do not manage to get out of the way fast enough, this can lead to an accident that can potentially cause injuries. Being injured in a car accident is an experience that nobody wants, but it is unfortunately one that happens quite often. Learning whether or not settling the issue with car insurance or a personal injury lawsuit is best can help ensure you get compensated for your injuries quickly.
Are Car Insurance and Personal Injury the Same?
Once an accident occurs on the road, there are generally two paths to follow: car insurance or a personal injury lawsuit. There is a common misconception that these items are actually related despite the fact that they are very different. Car insurance is mandatory and stands in place to protect drivers in the event there is some type of accident, though its primary purpose is to allow for the repair of your vehicle.
On the other hand, personal injury lawsuits involve redressing a wrongdoing performed against one party by another party via negligence. The point of a personal injury lawsuit is to sue another individual or group to receive compensation for personal injuries. Insurance claims go through insurance companies whereas personal injury cases go through the courtroom and are legally binding.
The Main Types of Car Insurance
Starting with car insurance, there are actually a few different types of insurance available to drivers and not all of them are mandatory to have. The most common four types of auto insurance include:
Auto Liability Auto Insurance
This first form of auto insurance is also the type that is mandatory in the majority of states in the country. Auto liability auto insurance policies cover a driver from a financial perspective if they are found to be at-fault for an accident that caused property damage to another individual. The level of responsibility that the driver has after insurance contributes their portion depends on the specific plan they have.
Comprehensive Auto Insurance
This second type of auto insurance isn’t always mandatory, but the majority of drivers have it. Comprehensive auto insurance covers incidents not stemming from a traditional accident, but rather from unknown situations. For example, incidents related to theft, weather damage, or other similar items can all fall under comprehensive auto insurance.
Uninsured or Underinsured Motorist Insurance
In the event a driver is involved in an accident which another person is at fault for, yet that person doesn’t have auto insurance, this is the type of insurance that would come into play. Uninsured or underinsured motorist insurance provides a driver with financial protection when the other driver involved has no insurance to offer funds for repairs.
Collision Coverage
Finally, collision coverage is a specialty type of insurance policy which offers coverage in the event of single-car accidents or collisions with objects on the road. It can pay to repair damages on your vehicle, but also for general property damage as well.
The Foundations of Personal Injury
On the other side of things, personal injury is distinctly different from car insurance. As mentioned, one party needs to have been injured due to the negligent actions of another party in order to qualify for a case. Proving this negligence existed involves the following:
1. Duty of Care
First and foremost, it must be shown that the defendant had a duty of care to the plaintiff to act reasonably and in a way which would not have caused the injury. All drivers, as an example, have a duty of care to others on the road around them.
2. Breach of Duty of Care
Second, it must be shown that there was a breach of the duty of care that resulted from the defendants’ negligence. A startling 40% of U.S. car accidents happen at crossroads, and if one of those occurred because the driver was texting then it may qualify for a personal injury lawsuit.
3. Proximate Causation
Finally, it must then be shown that the defendants’ breach of duty of care directly led to the incident which caused the injuries for the plaintiff, as a person cannot be sued for something out of their control.
How Much Can a Person Win From a Personal Injury Case?
Before a person chooses to pursue a personal injury lawsuit, they likely want to know what might be in it for them. Personal injury lawsuits have an average award amount of around $30,000, but that doesn’t include costs such as legal fees or other expenses that may arise during the process.
Deciding Whether Insurance or Personal Injury is the Right Choice
Generally, deciding between car insurance or personal injury for a given accident depends entirely on what occurred. If the other driver involved in the crash simply made an error on the road that resulted in the car accident and there were no serious injuries, car insurance is likely the simpler and easy way to go. However, if there were serious bodily injuries that insurance doesn’t cover and you are certain the other driver was acting with negligence, then filing a personal injury lawsuit against them may be in your best interest. To determine this, it’s always recommended that a person reach out to an accredited personal injury attorney to go over the details of the case in order to see if there is credible evidence.
The Bottom Line
Naturally, nobody wants to be involved in a car accident that leaves them with lasting injuries for years to come. This isn’t always in a person’s control, though, and an accident can happen out of nowhere regardless of how good a driver may be. To that end, learning the best strategy for receiving compensation for the injuries you have suffered can help reduce the long-lasting impacts of that accident. Based on your case and after speaking with a personal injury attorney, determine whether or not leaving things with insurance is the right path for you.
