Bowling Green, Kentucky is a thriving town located in Western Kentucky, that is the third-most-populous city in the state of Kentucky after Louisville and Lexington.
With a major public university and technical college, Bowling Green serves as an education hub for the South Central Kentucky region as well as a leading medical and commercial city.
It is a safe, diverse, and historic place to live, and it deals with modern issues like the rest of Kentucky, including negligent drivers and auto accidents.
Many crashes take place on the major roadways that run through Bowling Green, Kentucky, including Interstate 65 which runs North to Louisville and South to Nashville, Tennessee. Other major roadways include Interstate 66, U.S. Route 231, U.S. Route 31W and U.S. Route 68/80.
After suffering injuries in a crash in or near Gallatin, TN, you may realize you have a claim against the at-fault driver. But that begs the question, How much is your car accident worth?
Many factors influence the value of a car accident claim. Some may increase how much your injuries are worth, while others limit how much you can recover.
Flora Templeton Stuart Injury Accident Lawyers can offer an estimate regarding the value of your claim after we review the evidence, including your medical records. We’ll also discuss the elements that might increase or decrease a final settlement or court award with you.
We’ll make every effort to settle your case before litigation for the maximum amount possible.
Evaluating Bowling Green, Kentucky Personal Injury Damages
When you’re hurt in an accident, you can recover compensation for numerous injuries. These are known as compensatory damages, which include economic and non-economic damages.
Damages in Bowling Green, Kentucky
Economic damages make up for your expenses (things you’ve had to pay) and losses (money you should have received). Kentucky has no caps on damages in any type of injury case. Both economic and non-economic damages are uncapped. Economic damages can include:
Medical expenses
Were you treated at Bowling Green Medical Center or Greenview Hospital in Bowling Green? It does not matter where you received care, medical bills are often a sizable portion of how much your accident claim is worth. They include but are not limited to:
- An ambulance ride,
- Emergency room visits,
- Diagnostic and lab tests,
- Surgery,
- Anesthesia,
- Medications,
- Hospitalization,
- Follow-up visits,
- Medical equipment,
- Travel to and from doctor’s offices, and
Medical bills may also include long-term care at home or in a nursing facility.
Lost income
After you exhaust your vacation time, sick pay, and other paid time off, we will include your lost wages in the demand for compensation. If you suffered catastrophic injuries that have left you unable to work, we would also calculate your future lost income.
Kentucky PIP Benefits
PIP benefits: Kentucky law (KRS 304.39) requires vehicles to be insured with PIP coverage. As a driver or passenger of a vehicle, these benefits are there for you, regardless of fault, for medical bills, lost wages and household services. In some instances, these benefits can be paid out to you directly. The minimum amount of PIP required in Kentucky is $10,000 but can be increased up to $50,000.
Property damage
Your vehicle likely needs to be repaired or replaced after a crash. We will pursue compensation for all your property damage and related expenses, including any costs of a rental vehicle that you paid out of pocket. Flora Templeton Stuart Injury Accident Lawyers do not charge to recover property damage for clients.
Necessary services
If you need to hire someone to help with necessary services, like grocery shopping, lawn care, cleaning, laundry, child care, and other tasks, we will include these costs in your demand for compensation. Kentucky Personal Injury Protection benefits will pay many of these costs while you are recovering from your injuries.
Home renovations
Catastrophic injuries bring on big changes, and your home might not be up to the task. You may need to pay for modifications, like installing a wheelchair ramp. We will demand the other party reimburse you for these necessary renovations.
Non-Economic Damages
You may be entitled to compensation for non-monetary injuries. But how much is pain, stress, grief, and fear worth? We can answer that question based on our years of experience, previous case results, and expert opinions.
Several factors impact how much you might receive for non-economic injuries, including the nature and severity of your injury and the likelihood that you’ll make a full recovery.
Pain and suffering
Pain and suffering damages are what most people think of when discussing the value of car accident compensation claims. These damages are meant to make amends for the physical pain and discomfort you’ve endured because of your physical injuries.
Emotional distress
You may cycle through many emotions during your recovery and experience depression, anxiety, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), sleep disturbances, and other mental health issues. We will demand compensation for your emotional distress, mental anguish, and mental health care expenses.
Reduced quality of life
If your injuries have permanently impacted your abilities such that you can’t live the life you’re accustomed to or fully participate at work, home, and your favorite hobbies, then we will demand compensation for your lower quality of life.
Scarring and disfigurement
Some injuries may leave significant scarring or a visible disfigurement that could impact your interactions with others, romantic pursuits, and career. The more substantial and visible the disfigurement, the more likely you’re able to receive compensation for it.
Loss of consortium
Under KRS 411.145 your spouse may have the right to recover compensation for loss of consortium through a separate legal action. A spouse can demand payment for the loss of services, assistance, aid, society, companionship and conjugal relationship from a negligent or wrongful act of a third person.
Punitive Damages
In some circumstances you can demand punitive damages under KRS 411.184. These damages are meant to punish the at-fault party to discourage them and others from similar conduct in the future. For example, a case may qualify for punitive damages if the defendant was driving under the influence of drugs and alcohol.
Factors That Impact Settlement Amounts
Though there are some factors that increase your claim’s value, others may limit how much you can receive.
Insurance Limits
Auto insurance policies have limits, and insurers rarely pay more than the limit on the policy. Kentucky requires drivers to carry liability insurance of at least $25,000 for each bodily injury or death, $50,000 for all bodily injuries or deaths, and $25,000 for property damage as well as $10,000 in Personal Injury Protection (PIP) benefits. Drivers can choose to carry more, but many purchase the minimum amount, which significantly limits your potential settlement.
Because of the low insurance limit for personal injuries, it is important to work with a lawyer in Bowling Green, Kentucky. At Flora Templeton Stuart, we look for additional liable parties and insurance policies to help you recover more compensation. We also demand to know policy limits as soon as possible.
For example, if the at-fault driver was working for Uber or Lyft at the time of the crash, we can pursue compensation under the rideshare company’s insurance policy. Or if the driver was an on-duty employee at the time, we may demand compensation from their employer. Businesses usually have higher liability insurance policy limits.
No Damage Caps in Kentucky
While other states limit caps on certain types of damages, Kentucky does not.
Comparative Negligence
Kentucky is a “pure comparative fault” state as defined in KRS 411.182. This means that the amount of damages you can recover in a Bowling Green car accident is reduced by the same percentage as your level of fault in causing the crash. For example, if you are determined to be 50% at fault, your damages will be reduced by 50%. In contrast, some states follow a “modified comparative negligence” rule which means you may be unable to collect damages at all if you are determined to be 50% or more at fault.
How Much Is My Bowling Green Kentucky Car Accident Claim Worth?
The best way to find out how much your auto accident claim may be worth is consulting a Bowling Green Kentucky attorney. No two car accident cases are alike.
You also should not take the insurance company’s word for it. An insurer may try to pressure you to accept a settlement offer less than your claim is worth.
Flora Templeton Stuart will carefully review your circumstances, offer an initial estimate of what your claim may be worth, and evaluate any offer you have received from an insurance company.
How Our Firm Maximizes Your Compensation
Getting the most for your claim has a lot to do with hiring the right lawyer. At Flora Templeton Stuart, we have over 44 years of experience offering personalized representation. We are different from other Bowling Green, Kentucky law firms. We travel to you and support your treatment and recovery by helping you find the right doctors and specialists. We are passionate about helping each of our clients get back to a happy, healthy life after a crash.
We carefully document each of your physical, psychological, and financial injuries, taking care to overlook nothing. We research outcomes in similar Bowling Green, Kentucky car accident cases, which gives us an idea of what we could pursue if you choose to take your case to court. We also take steps to mitigate any factors that could potentially limit your final recovery, such as allegations of comparative negligence.
We accept cases on a contingency fee basis, which means we handle the initial costs and get paid only after we recover compensation. We have won favorable outcomes in over 90% of our cases and recovered tens of millions of dollars for our clients.
Get a Free Case Review
Flora Templeton Stuart is a nationally recognized personal injury law firm with an office in Bowling Green, Kentucky.
Call us at 270-782-9090 or contact us online to schedule your free case evaluation.
