What Is the Average Settlement For a Texas Car Accident?

Nobody wants to be involved in a car accident. However, vehicle accidents are common in and around our area. The Texas Department of Transportation reports that approximately 250,000 total injuries were reported during the latest available year. Many of these injuries were minor, but several thousand serious car accident injuries are reported each year. In the aftermath of a car accident, many victims wonder how much compensation they can expect from an insurance settlement. While the average insurance settlement in Texas, as reported by the Rocky Mountain Insurance Information Association (RMIIA), was $15,440, this number can be misleading. It is essential to understand that the circumstances of each crash can cause settlement amounts to vary widely.

What is essential to focus on in these cases?

Rather than analyzing what an average settlement might be, it is more helpful to examine the various types of compensation available to victims in the aftermath of a car accident in Texas. This can include coverage for:

• Medical bills. Medical bills are often the most significant expense that a person incurs in the aftermath of a car accident. A settlement should cover emergency medical care, hospitalization, follow-up doctor's visits, physical therapy, and other related expenses. Other medical expenses can include the cost of prescription medications, as well as devices needed to aid recovery (such as walkers, hospital beds, and wheelchairs).

• Lost income. If a car accident victim is unable to work while they recover from their injuries, they will need compensation for any income and benefits they lose. This could include any loss of future earnings if their injuries prevent them from performing the same job they were able to before the accident.

• Property damage. Car accident victims will need compensation to repair or replace a damaged vehicle. A vehicle represents a person's ability to make a living and to live their daily lives.

• Pain and suffering. In many cases, car accident victims suffer from physical, emotional, and psychological pain and suffering due to their injuries. These damages are harder to calculate than other accident-related expenses, but they can be worth more than a person’s medical costs.

The amount of compensation a person receives in the aftermath of a car or motorcycle accident depends on various factors, including the severity of the injuries, the extent of property damage, and the level of pain and suffering experienced by the victim.

What are the Texas car insurance requirements?

Drivers must maintain the following minimum insurance coverage requirements to remain legal on the roadway in Texas:

• Bodily Injury Liability: $30,000 per person and $60,000 per accident

• Property Damage Liability: $25,000

Personal Injury Protection (PIP) and Uninsured/Underinsured Motorist coverage are not mandatory in the state of Texas. However, they must be rejected by the policyholder at the time of signing up for coverage with an insurer. Examining these minimums, you can see how quickly insurance coverage can be exhausted. Many severe injuries will have medical costs that rise well above the $30,000 bodily injury liability limit. Car accident victims need to understand that insurance carriers will do everything possible to limit the amount of money they pay in a settlement. A skilled Texas car accident attorney will assist an injured car accident victim throughout the entirety of their case to obtain maximum compensation.

Does Medicare Cover Car Accident Injuries?

Car accidents often leave passengers and drivers with injuries that require medical care. It is not uncommon to encounter car accidents in and around our area. During the latest reporting period in Texas, there were approximately 250,000 people injured and 3,639 fatalities caused by car accidents, according to the Texas Department of Transportation. One of the most common questions asked following these incidents is whether Medicare or Medicaid can be used to cover medical bills.

How does this coverage work?

In most cases, car accident settlements are handled through the auto insurance carriers of the parties involved in the accident. However, auto insurance carriers can be notoriously difficult to deal with, even if you were not at fault for the car accident. It may take some time for the insurance carrier to make a settlement offer on an insurance claim, and the initial settlement may be entirely too low to accept. Unfortunately, a delay in a car accident insurance settlement is not going to stop medical bills from coming in. Victims who have been harmed in a car accident need a way to pay for their medical treatment in the interim before a final settlement. A Medicare recipient should speak to a lawyer to handle all interactions with a Medicare Coordination of Benefits (BOC) contractor. These interactions typically include written correspondence regarding the accident, as well as all the medical care you have received related to the accident injuries. An attorney will ensure that all of this correspondence and communication is conducted appropriately to ensure you receive the compensation you are entitled to.

Paying back Medicare

After you report your accident to Medicare, they will continue to monitor your case. That is because you will still be likely to receive an insurance settlement for your claim. If you have to file a personal injury lawsuit against the at-fault party in the accident, you may receive an out-of-court settlement or a jury verdict for your injuries and other damages. Medicare will expect reimbursement for what they have already paid you for your accident injuries once you receive a settlement or jury verdict. The COB working with your case will regularly contact you or your attorney for information about the progress of your claim. When your case is settled, your lawyer will need to notify the COB contractor to let them know about the settlement and begin the process of reimbursing Medicare. Again, you should have a Texas car accident attorney assisting you with this, as dealing with the COB contractor can be challenging. The COB contractor will usually send a statement detailing all of the medical bills that Medicare has paid when they learn you have received a settlement for your case. Your personal injury lawyer will want to ensure that this information is correct, and they will negotiate with Medicare to ensure that you are not going to be reimbursed more money than you should. Medicare will place a lien on your settlement, which means that they have the right to recover the portion of the money that they spent on your medical expenses. If there is a dispute between the amount Medicare claims to have paid and what your records indicate or what you actually spent on medical costs, the settlement money could be held until the issue is resolved.

Compensate Pain And Suffering After A Minor Car Accident

Getting into a car accident of any kind is not on anyone’s list of things to do. However, we are aware that car accidents occur frequently in and around our area. According to the Texas Department of Transportation, there were around 250,000 people injured and 3,639 fatalities across the state in motor vehicle accidents during the latest reporting year. In most cases, victims of car accidents can recover compensation for their injuries and property damage in the aftermath of the incident. For severe accidents, victims are often able to recover compensation for physical, emotional, and psychological pain and suffering damages as well. However, you may wonder whether you can receive pain and suffering compensation for a minor car accident.

What is considered a minor car accident?

Determining exactly what constitutes a minor car accident can be relatively subjective. Sometimes, what many people consider a minor car accident can cause bothersome or even long-term injuries for those involved. For example, the following may occur:

• A fender bender causes the airbag to explode, leading to facial injuries.

• You are rear-ended and experience stiffness in your back or soreness in your neck.

• A loud and traumatic crash triggers headaches, anxiety, or trouble sleeping.

What is pain and suffering?

The term “pain and suffering” refers to both physical and emotional stress caused by the motor vehicle accident and injuries. There are two ways in which a person can recover compensation for their injuries and for any associated pain and suffering after a vehicle accident.

• By filing a claim with the at-fault party’s insurance carrier

• By filing a lawsuit against the at-fault driver directly through a civil court action

The amount of pain and suffering compensation that a person is awarded is generally directly tied to the severity of the injuries a person sustains. For example, a person who sustains a spinal cord injury and partial paralysis that affects their ability to enjoy their daily life activities will likely receive much more pain and suffering compensation than someone who sustains a sprained wrist and recovers within two weeks. However, many minor accidents can lead to serious injuries with long-lasting consequences for the victim. While a simple fender bender may look minor to a bystander, a passenger or victim could sustain whiplash injuries that lead to them being unable to work for a significant amount of time. Minor car accidents often lead to substantial injuries. To secure pain and suffering damages after a minor car accident, the victim will need to be able to prove that they indeed endured pain and suffering due to their injuries. With help from an attorney, a car accident victim can present evidence from doctors about the severity of their injury. They could work to show that they are unable to perform daily tasks or work activities due to their injuries. Testimony from family and friends may also be beneficial to help prove that your quality of life has changed due to the car accident injuries. If a car accident injury victim is unable to back up their claim that the injuries they sustained caused pain and suffering, they may receive little to no compensation at all. That is why it is essential to secure an attorney soon after an accident occurs to ensure you take all the appropriate steps to obtain maximum compensation for your car accident claim.

What Is The Minimum Car Insurance Required In Texas?

Getting into a car accident can be a scary and devastating experience. Not only do many car accident victims have injuries to deal with, but they also need to find a way to secure compensation for medical bills, lost income, and property damage. However, securing this compensation is not always easy. Dealing with insurance carriers can be notoriously tricky, and the insurance minimums required for Texas are relatively low.

What is the minimum required for car insurance in Texas?

In Texas, drivers are required to maintain specific insurance requirements. By law, drivers in Texas must maintain:

• Bodily Injury Liability: $30,000 per person and $60,000 per accident

• Property Damage Liability: $25,000

In Texas, Personal Injury Protection (PIP) and uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage are not required; however, drivers must decline these policies when they sign up for coverage with their insurance carrier.

Is this coverage enough for a car accident?

When we examine these minimums, it is clear that the coverage limits could be exhausted quickly. Perhaps for damage to a vehicle and other property damage, the $25,000 in property damage liability will be enough to pay for damage to one vehicle, but what happens when another car is involved? For injuries, the $30,000 per person for bodily liability injury coverage may be sufficient for minor injuries, but a serious injury will result in expenses rising far above that amount. Consider that the National Spinal Cord Injury Statistical Institute says that first-year medical costs for a spinal cord injury can range from $359,000 to more than $1.1 million.

The insurance carrier will only pay up to the limits

You need to understand that the insurance carriers involved will only pay up to the limits of the policyholder’s policy. If you are injured due to another person’s negligent actions and file a claim with their insurer, you will be at the mercy of their policy limits. For example, suppose you incur $40,000 in medical bills, but the person who caused your car accident only carries the minimum coverage required in Texas. In that case, you will only be awarded $30,000 in a settlement. Any amount exceeding that will need to be recovered through a personal injury lawsuit against the at-fault driver, which could result in a drawn-out court battle.

What are the most common injuries in Texas car accidents?

Most injuries that result from car accidents in Texas are relatively minor. However, that does not mean that they should not be taken seriously. Even a minor injury can result in significant medical bills. When you factor in the cost of an emergency medical transport and a few X-rays, medical costs can easily rise into the thousands of dollars. Now consider the following more serious injuries that commonly occur in a Texas car collision:

• Spinal cord injuries

• Whiplash injuries

• Traumatic brain injuries

• Concussions

• Broken and dislocated bones

• Severe lacerations

• Internal organ damage

• Internal bleeding

Each of these injuries requires not only emergency medical care but also often long-term recovery efforts such as surgery, physical therapy, and medications. These costs can quickly rise above the insurance minimums.

Should there be higher minimums for car insurance in Texas?

It can be argued that there should be higher car insurance minimums in Texas. Many states do have higher limits. Other states also often require uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage. In general, motorists should consider higher limits to ensure they are protected in the event a car accident occurs on the roadway.

The Law On Cell Phone Use While Driving In Texas

texas cell phone law

Distracted driving is hazardous for everybody on the roadway. As long as there have been vehicles, distracted driving has been a problem. However, as cell phones become increasingly a part of our lives, they also pose a growing danger on the roadway. One of the most commonly asked questions is – Is it illegal to talk on a cell phone while driving in Texas?

What Texas law says about talking on the phone while driving

According to state government statistics, one out of every five crashes involves driver distraction. Due to the increase in distracted driving caused by phones, in 2017, the Texas legislature passed a statewide ban on using any wireless communication device for electronic messaging while operating a motor vehicle. However, the law does not prohibit talking on a cell phone while driving in Texas. While the state legislature has debated mandating the use of hands-free devices when talking on the phone while driving in the state, it has not yet passed any laws regarding this issue. The only groups of people that are prohibited entirely from using wireless communication devices while driving are:

• drivers with learner’s permits

• drivers under the age of 18

• school bus operators, if children are present

• any driver operating in school zones

The 2017 law passed in Texas focused on prohibiting drivers from sending or receiving text messages, as well as reading or writing emails, while driving their vehicles. This is obviously a good step to take to curb distracted driving in the state, but does this law go far enough?

Texas distracted driving statistics.

According to the Texas Department of Transportation, there were approximately 250,000 people injured and 3,639 fatalities due to traffic accidents during the latest reporting year in the state. However, the Texas DOT also breaks down known crashes involving distracted drivers. During the same reporting year, there were 96,151 total distraction-related car crashes. Out of these incidents, there were:

• 398 fatalities

• 2,360 suspected serious injuries

• 12,954 non-incapacitating injuries

• 29,253 possible injuries

Injuries caused by distracted driving crashes are often severe. It is not uncommon for the following to occur due to a distracted driving incident:

• Traumatic brain injuries/head injuries

• Spinal cord injuries/paralysis

• Internal organ damage/internal bleeding

• Broken or dislocated bones

• Severe lacerations or amputations

Curbing distracted driving

According to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), approximately nine people are killed and more than 1,000 are injured each day due to distracted driving incidents. The CDC defines distracted driving is anything that takes a person's attention away from operating the vehicle. According to the CDC, sending or receiving a text message regularly causes the person to take their eyes off the road for five seconds. When driving at 55 mph, that is enough time for the driver to cover the length of a football field. How many other vehicles, bicyclists, and pedestrians are put into danger during those five seconds the driver is not watching the roadway? Worse, with hundreds of cars on the roadway, how many other drivers are operating while distracted? Distracted driving laws are continually changing as state and local governments work to determine the best way to prevent unnecessary deaths on the roadway.