After a serious car accident, you may find yourself overwhelmed by medical bills, lost income, vehicle damage, and a long road to recovery. That can be a lot to handle, especially when the accident was not your fault. A car accident attorney can help you understand your legal rights and work to secure the compensation you need to move forward.
Recoverable damages after a Nashville car accident can include both financial and personal losses. Whether it involves negotiating with insurance companies or building a court case, having someone local who knows the law and has a proven history of advocating for their clients can make all the difference. At Ponce Law, our team is committed to pursuing justice with an ethical approach.
People often think about car damage or hospital bills after a crash, but personal injury law recognizes a much broader set of losses. If you sustained injuries in a motor vehicle crash in Nashville, you may be able to recover both economic and non-economic damages. Economic damages include medical expenses, rehabilitation costs, lost wages, and property damage. These are straightforward to calculate because they relate to specific bills and receipts.
Non-economic damages are more personal. They include pain and suffering, emotional distress, and the loss of enjoyment in daily life, things that cannot be measured by receipts but still have a major impact. Tennessee Code Annotated § 29-39-102 caps non-economic damages in most civil actions at $750,000, although exceptions apply in cases involving catastrophic injuries.
The state follows a modified comparative fault system. That means if the court finds you partially responsible for the accident, they may reduce your compensation. A person found 20 percent at fault could only recover 80 percent of their total damages. If someone is 50 percent or more at fault, they may not recover anything.
Insurance companies often attempt to apply this rule to lower payouts, which is why working with a lawyer who handles Nashville car wreck cases can be crucial. Your attorney can challenge unfair fault claims, present expert testimony, and collect evidence, such as RoadProof footage from TDOT, to support your case. These tools give Ponce Law a unique advantage in proving what happened.
While most cases focus on compensating the injured person, there are rare cases where the court may award punitive damages. These are meant to punish especially reckless or malicious behavior, like drunk driving or road rage. Under Tenn. Code Ann. § 29-39-104, the law limits punitive damages to two times the amount of compensatory damages or $500,000, whichever is greater.
Other unique considerations may apply depending on the case. For example, if you are a pedestrian, cyclist, or passenger, the types of evidence and the sources of compensation in a Nashville car crash may differ. This is where having an attorney with a deep understanding of local law becomes so important.
Recovering after a car accident can feel overwhelming, especially when you are trying to understand your rights and what kind of compensation may be available. A local car accident lawyer can evaluate your case, guide you through the legal process, and help make sure nothing gets left on the table. Understanding recoverable damages after a Nashville car accident is critical.
You do not have to face the aftermath of a crash alone. Call Ponce Law today to speak with an attorney who lives and works in the community and is ready to fight for you.
