Every day, you drive along Miami’s congested roadways to get to work, take the kids to school, run errands, and more. You don’t think about the dangers of distracted drivers as you go about your day until one of them crashes into you.
When that happens, you will likely sustain more than physical impacts. It will affect your financial situation as well. According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, the financial costs of car accidents on American families totalled $340 billion in 2019.
The consequences of a car crash caused by a careless person go much further than you may think. For some that had a comfortable life, their finances may be spread thin. For those that were already struggling, it could mean a dire financial situation.
How Car Crashes Impose Financial Hardships on Families
According to Nuñez Law, P.L., devastating injuries in a car accident aren’t the only reasons why a victim’s family will suffer financial hardship. Car accidents are costly and can eat away at a family’s savings if they had any money put away. Take a closer look at some of the costs that car accident victims must deal with in the aftermath.
Medical Bills
If you’ve sustained a serious injury, you will have a mountain of medical bills. You may need several surgeries before you can begin healing and require physical therapy.
Lost Wages
After a car accident, you may be unable to work in the short-term or long term. You lose precious income that goes toward paying your bills and other household expenses, which may now incur late fees because you can’t pay them.
Travel Expenses
Now that a careless driver has upended your life, you need to spend your days going to and from the hospital, doctor’s appointments, and physical therapy. You have to pay for gas plus any parking fees.
Food Expenses
You may be unable to shop for food for your family or prepare meals. Perhaps some friends and family have brought food as a kind gesture. Still, often, car accident victims and their families are left strapped for cash as they grab whatever is available to them from anywhere they can.
Home Modifications
You may be disabled after your injuries, making it difficult or impossible to get around your home. Modifications may be necessary to accommodate a wheelchair or other accessibility features, all of which are extremely costly.
This is just a small slice of the financial hardships Miami car accident victims must endure. You’ll also have property damage and other medical expenses, such as prescriptions to manage your pain. You and your family may need additional support to cope with the emotional trauma after your crash.
How Accident Victims and Their Families Can Recover Financially
Car accidents cause physical, psychological, and financial suffering for the victims and their families. You won’t fully know the expenses you will incur until you are thrust into this situation. Insurance companies won’t cover everything or will offer a settlement much lower than what you need to get your finances back to what they were before the accident.
The financial hurdles that many car accident victims encounter can make daily life hard for the entire family. You may now be unable to pay your bills because of unexpected expenses. You might not have any income coming in because you’re the primary breadwinner for your family. If you are living paycheck to paycheck like the majority of Americans today, the financial impacts that a negligent driver caused are going to affect how you’ll pay your rent, electric bill, phone bill, and other household expenses.
For these reasons, it is imperative that you speak with a car accident attorney. You should know your rights and have someone to help you recover your financial losses. It’s not fair that your life has been turned upside down by a careless driver, and even more unfair that your whole family is suffering too.
Most personal injury attorneys work on a contingency fee basis, meaning there are no upfront costs. Quite often, they can get you much more compensation than you could by trying to handle things on your own.
