How to Recover Lost Wages After a Car Accident

If you are in a car accident, it might be very distressing for you. You might sustain injuries and have to spend time recovering from them. You may have to miss some work if you’re not feeling 100% as well.

You might want to consider talking to a car accident lawyer if you feel that is the best way to recover from economic losses suffered following a collision. Before you go that route, though, there are some other measures that are worth thinking about. We’ll talk about them right now.

Take a Look at Your Car Insurance Policy

First, you should realize that there are all kinds of car insurance policies, and they are not all created equal. There are some policies that are very bare bones. They cover the driver for the minimum amount that their state requires and no more.

Others are more expansive. These ones may cover lost wages to some extent. If you have a more expensive blanket policy, that often means lost wages will be a part of what your insurance company will cover, assuming your accident meets the qualifications to receive that money.

However, there are also plenty of car insurance policies that will not cover your lost wages following an accident. If you look at the details of your policy and it’s obvious that’s not something that’s covered, move on to the next option.

Look at the Other Driver’s Insurance

The next logical place to look will be the other driver’s insurance policy. It is a lot more likely that the other driver’s policy will cover your lost wages following an accident if the other driver caused the wreck and you were in an at-fault state when it occurred.

If you’re in an at-fault state, that means you’re in a tort state. The at-fault driver is generally considered to be responsible for providing the other party with compensation for their losses. Lost wages would certainly qualify.

If you’re in a no-fault state, that means your insurance is more likely to cover your lost wages. Once again, though, if you bought a bare minimum policy, there might be nothing in it that stipulates the policy must cover your lost wages while you’re recovering after an accident.

Think About Filing a Lawsuit

Regardless of whether you’re in a fault or no-fault car accident state, if neither your insurance policy or the other driver’s will cover your lost wages, not to mention medical bills and non-economic losses following a crash, you can sue the other driver to try to get back that money. You have a good chance of winning such a lawsuit if there is abundant physical evidence that establishes the other driver caused the wreck.

It makes sense to try and find a highly skilled and experienced car wreck lawyer if you’re going to pursue a lawsuit against the other driver. You will want your attorney’s help to gather as much evidence as you can that conclusively establishes the other driver caused the wreck.