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Damages means the amount of money that the at-fault driver must pay you to compensate for your losses caused by the car accident.

Some types of damages are obvious, like property damage or your medical expenses, but did you know you can be compensated for much more than that?

You can be sure the other driver’s insurance company is not going to tell you the types of damages that you are entitled to.

How do you know if you have a car accident claim?

Should you make a claim on the other driver’s insurance, or your own insurance? Can you file a lawsuit asking for the court to order the other side to pay your damages (medical bills, pain and suffering, and all other categories of damages you are entitled to based on the facts of your case)?

There are three factors that will determine whether you have a valid car accident claim:

• Liability – was the other driver negligent, and were you contributorily negligent?
• Damages – were you injured or was there property damage, and was it “proximately caused” by the other driver’s negligence?
• A source of recovery – is there an insurance policy that will pay, or does the other driver have personal assets that would cover any judgment you receive in your case?

Attorneys sometimes call this “the three-legged stool,” because, like a three-legged stool, if just one of these factors is not present, you do not have a valid car accident claim.