Usually, after a car accident, people think that their insurance company and the attorney will take care of everything that needs to be done. In short, most people think that automobile accidents come with no financial impact on their lives.

Obviously, it would be wrong to assume such things. Even if you have to hire a DUI attorney, the list of expenses doesn’t stop there. Let’s take a look at how a simple car crash may affect your finances and savings as well!

Accident Day

On the day of the accident, you may have to pay for medical expenses, doctor appointments, and medicine. If you are not seriously injured, then you will have to return home/go to work using public transportation or a cab. The location of the accident is also important.

If you have an accident in another state, you may even be forced to book a flight back home. While the insurance company may eventually cover such expenses, poor accident documentation may not reimburse you a single cent.

Means of Transportation

Depending on how serious the car crash is, you may have to either buy a new car or rely on public transportation. This means increased daily expenses until you purchase a vehicle.

Moreover, you may also have to pay for repairs on your crashed vehicle. They may be reimbursed or not, but you’ll most likely have to use your own money to pay them. 

Serious Financial Impact

Now, let’s move on to the serious things that could and most likely will happen once you are involved in a car accident:

• Usually, insurance companies will increase your insurance rate after an accident. It doesn’t matter if you caused the accident or not. 
• Depending on the type and amount of damage done to each vehicle, property damages may come into play. Once again, a settlement may absolve you of paying such damages, but it’s not guaranteed.
• Last but not least, automobile accidents can affect the wage of one or both drivers. If the injuries are significant, one or both drivers will have to skip work and dive into their finances/savings to ensure their lifestyle. Ultimately, when the guilty person is found, they’ll have to pay the other driver damages for their lost wages. This is where hiring a local attorney such as this Lakeland car accident lawyer comes in useful, as it can help you to increase the chance of receiving compensation.

How financially impactful can automobile crashes be? Well, a study shows that accidents cost roughly $300 billion a year, from court/lawyer fees to damages, in total. 

The Bottom Line

In short, the day-to-day life of a person can completely change after a car accident – even if they were one of the drivers or the pedestrian that happened to be in the wrong place, at the wrong time.

Now, given that such cases can take years to conclude (court proceedings, settlements, trials, and so on), one may not see any money for a very long time. This means that they’ll have to rely on their salary or savings to get through the day with an injury or medical expenses caused by accident. 

Automobile accidents can come with as little as $500 repairs bill or as much as a loan to buy a new car, debt payment, and so on.