How Much is the Average Settlement for a Car Accident in California?

Car accidents can leave victims with a large amount of medical bills, property damage invoices, rental car fees, and other damages. Making matters worse, when someone is seriously injured they are unable to work so bills become extremely hard to pay. This very often leads to the question – what is the average car accident settlement in California?

Average Car Accident Settlement in California

Data from across the United States reflects that most reported cases generally settle for between $14,000 and $28,000. The average is around $21,000. So what does this mean for your case? Nothing really. Because every single case is different. We have handled injury cases that have settled for a few thousand dollars to millions. There really is no magic number.

What Should I Know About Obtaining a Car Accident Settlement?

After a car accident, an insurance company will quickly contact you and will attempt to settle the matter even before it is clear how much in damages a person has suffered. In many cases where clients were offered settlements before a lawyer was involved, the insurance company usually offers to pay the outstanding medical bills and maybe a few hundred dollars extra. The major problem with accepting an offer like this is that it can take 8 months to several years before someone is fully recovered from an accident case. Future medical bills are a major issue in a case where there are substantial injuries. If you accept the first offer from an insurance company, they will require you to sign a release so that no future medial bills will be paid.

When you hire a car accident lawyer from our office to handle your case, the first step will be to document your injuries and damages. We collect medical bills, records, property damage estimates, police reports, and employment records if there has been lost work. Using all of this information and discussing with our clients in depth their actual injuries, we can determine an approximate range of value for your case.

Factors that Effect Settlement Value

There is a large range of factors that affect settlement value, including the following:

amount of medical bills
current lost wages
future estimate for medical treatment
future lost wages
damages for pain and suffering
punitive damages depending on case circumstances
pre-existing conditions or medical issues prior to the accident
a determination of who was at fault for the accident

How to Determine the Settlement Value for a Car Accident Case

The best way to determine the value of your case is to speak to an attorney. In many cases, you might not even need an attorney to help you with your case. If you only have a bill for an ER visit or family doctor visit with small damages to your vehicle, you will most likely not need a lawyer. However, if there are significant injuries or a fatality as a result of the accident, a lawyer is absolutely necessary to examine a case. Our office offers completely free consultations, so there is no cost to discuss the matter with us.

Get Help From a California Car Accident Lawyer

To get more help with your case or for a free case review, contact us by calling (619) 377-4660. An attorney will speak to you about your case for free. Once we are hired to work on your case, you do not owe us a fee unless we obtain compensation for you.

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