No, Indiana is a fault state, which means you can file a personal injury claim against the person who caused the accident and your injuries. You’ll be able to recover compensation in certain situations where you are under the required percentage of fault.
Read on to learn about the required percentage of fault and how our team of personal injury lawyers in Indiana at Vaughan & Vaughan can help you.
What Type of Fault does Indiana Use, and What Does it Mean?
Indiana is a modified comparative fault state. Being a comparative fault state means you can still recover compensation for the accident if you are less than 50% at fault. For example, if you are injured in a car accident where you are found to be only 30% at fault while the other party is 70% at fault, you can still recover compensation.
In cases where you are less than 50% at fault, you can file a claim against the liable party to recover any losses you’ve suffered. By filing a claim against the liable party, you can hold them accountable for their share of the responsibility and seek the compensation you deserve.
It’s important to note that the amount of compensation you may receive can be reduced in proportion to your assigned level of fault, according to Indiana Code § 34-51-2-5 For example, if your total damages amount to $100,000, your recoverable compensation would be adjusted to $70,000 to account for your 30% share of fault.
What Damages Can You Recover in Indiana After a Car Accident?
In Indiana, you can recover several damages to help compensate for the losses you’ve endured. Our team of Indiana personal injury lawyers can help you recover damages such as:
- Medical expenses: This includes costs related to hospitalization, doctor visits, surgeries, medications, rehabilitation, and any other necessary medical treatments.
- Property damage: Compensation for repairs or replacement of your vehicle or other damaged property, such as personal belongings.
- Lost wages: If your injuries from the accident cause you to take time off work, our team will fight for you to recover the money you would’ve made.
- Loss of earning capacity: If your injuries result in long-term or permanent impairment that affects your living ability, you may be eligible for compensation for the loss of future earning capacity.
- Pain and suffering: We can help you recover this non-economic damage to account for the mental health struggles as well as the physical suffering you’ve experienced.
- Loss of consortium: In cases where the accident causes a loss of companionship or intimacy with a spouse or partner, you could recover damages.
- Funeral and wrongful death expenses: If the accident leads to a fatality, the surviving family members may be eligible to seek compensation for funeral costs, medical expenses, and the loss of financial support and companionship.
Should You File a Claim With Your Own Insurance Company?
Even though you’re filing a claim against the liable party’s insurance company, you can also file a claim with your insurance company. One benefit of filing a claim with your insurance company is that it could cover specific damages, such as medical expenses and property damages.
If it provides coverage, you can access the money almost immediately. This can help you pay the emerging costs after the accident before the money from your settlement is finalized. Another benefit of filing a claim with your insurance is that if the liable party doesn’t have enough money to cover your damages, your insurance company could help.
Our Indiana car accident lawyers team can help you understand the process in a free case evaluation. Together, we’ll determine the most efficient way to help you get the compensation you need.
Benefits of Hiring an Indiana Car Accident Lawyer After a Car Accident
At Vaughan & Vaughan, we are dedicated to helping our clients after they’ve suffered injuries in a car crash. We’re ready to advocate for you whether the other party is solely at fault or you share some fault in the accident. Here are a few ways we can help you after you’ve been in a car accident:
Negotiate With Insurance Companies
Our team can help you face your and the opposing party’s insurance company. Even though your insurance company covers you, that doesn’t mean they’ll do all they can to benefit you; they’re still likely to try to reduce the coverage they can give you to make money.
Our team can step in and make sure that you’re getting all the coverage you qualify for. As for the liable party’s insurance company, we’re ready to negotiate a proper settlement for you until it equals your losses and determines that the liable party is at fault as much as possible. We see through insurance adjusters’ tactics and combat them to win you compensation.
We have over 100 years of experience negotiating with insurance companies and have much to show for it. Here are some of the top settlements our team has recovered for our clients:
- Car and semi-truck accident: We secured a substantial $4.4 million settlement in a car-semi truck accident case, providing just compensation for the injured party.
- Wrongful death via car accident: We obtained a compassionate $2.5 million compensation award in a wrongful death case caused by a car accident, supporting the surviving family members during their difficult time.
- Car and semi-truck accident: We obtained a favorable outcome with a $1.3 million settlement in a car-semi truck accident case, securing substantial compensation for the injured party’s damages and recovery.
- Semi-truck accident settlement: Our team successfully negotiated a favorable $1.5 million settlement in a semi-truck accident case, ensuring fair compensation for the injured party’s damages and recovery.
- Car and semi-truck accident: We achieved a significant $1.4 million resolution in a car-semi truck accident case, addressing the injuries sustained and associated losses.
Evaluate Your Damages in a Free Case Review
We provide a free case review to our new clients so you can see what we can do for you. One of the most important things we’ll do in a free case review is to evaluate your damages and give you an estimate of how much your case is worth.
We’ll use the evidence you have to determine how much of which damage you qualify to recover. We’re here to help you and give you peace of mind regarding your financial situation.
Contact Us to Learn More About Indiana’s Fault Laws in Accidents
At Vaughan & Vaughan, our Indiana personal injury lawyers are here to help you understand how the state’s fault laws could apply to your accident. Contact us to learn how much compensation you could recover and how we can help.
