Yes! Key steps are required to ensure your settlement will not count as income to affect your entitlement to governmental benefits. Steps such as a special needs trust, negotiations with governmental entities, repayment of conditional payments and specific language in settlement documents is often essential to ensure your governmental benefits are not interrupted.
What are the categories of damages I can recover for as part of a settlement for injuries from someone else's negligence?
Lost income and earning power, past and future, and even if your time off was covered by PTO or sick leave; the full charges for all medical care received and not just what insurance paid; pain; mental anguish; inconvenience; permanent disability; a spouse or parent's loss of consortium. If death has resulted, the damages are calculated differently.
If my car is totaled in a collision, will I get treated fairly on the property damage claim?
Unfortunately, often the answer is no. When another driver wrecks your car beyond repair, his or her insurance company should pay you the actual cash value of your car before it was totaled. The industry standard definition of actual cash value is "replacement cost" minus "depreciation." Replacement cost is the amount of money it would take to replace your vehicle with a similar one. Depreciation is the amount of money your car has devalued over time. The insurer also should pay for the sales tax on the new vehicle that you purchase with the insurance money.
