What is My Car Accident Case Worth?

By David Tapalian October 27^th 2015

Many people want to know the value of their case when they are in a car accident in Rhode Island and Massachusetts. A good injury lawyer in Rhode Island and Massachusetts should be able to give you a range of approximated values. There are so many factors that go into this answer; here are a few of them:

• Liability: For your case to have maximum value the other party must have been mostly at fault for the accident. If liability is less than 100% the other driver’s fault you may still have a case, but it will affect value.
• Injuries: Are they soft tissue or hard injuries? Soft tissue injuries involve the muscles and connective tissues such as ligaments. Examples of soft tissue injuries are a sprained ankle, whiplash and a sore back. Soft tissue injuries in a car accident in Rhode Island and Massachusetts are harder to prove than hard injuries and often can only be proven through the statements and treatment of the injured person. Hard injuries are valued at 3-5 times soft tissue injuries. Hard injuries are broken bones and lacerations to name two types. These are injuries that can be independently proven to exist through X-Ray, MRI exams or visible injuries. Cartilage tears, ligament tears, disc protrusions are additional examples of hard injuries.
• Treatment: Treatment is a big factor in the value of one’s car accident case in Rhode Island and Massachusetts. Did you begin treatment right away? Did you wait a few weeks and then treat? Once you began therapy or rehab did you make all of your appointments and treat consistently? If you didn’t treat shortly after (within days) the car accident then your case will be valued lower than if you treated immediately. The simple logic is that the other party will argue that you were not really hurt or you would have treated sooner. We can argue these points away and explain why you didn’t treat; such as you didn’t have insurance and you thought you would heal on your own. However, the bottom line is treating immediately and consistently is always better for your body and your case.

Accident cases in Rhode Island and Massachusetts can be very complicated. Hire an experienced injury attorney today to help you with your case.