Icy Car Accident (Body Damage and more)

[maestrodork]

What is the name of your state? Georgia

I recently got into a car accident. I was completely not at fault. The other driver hit a patch of ice and hit the side of my car. She was given a citation for driving to fast under bad conditions.

My car was damaged, tearing up the front side panel, the two passenger doors, and the front passengers window was busted out. My wife was also taken to the emergency room for examination. She was in the passengers seat.

My questions:

1. The book value of my car is quite low (approx: $900) it was a '94 escort, however it had another 5-10 years of good driving left, without any major investments. It is my understanding that the insurance company will only give me the book value for the car, since fixing it will cost about $2,000-$4,000. That is most certainly not enough to find/buy a car which will give me 5-10 years of use. What should I do to get an appropriate replacement car?
   
2. My wife is suffering from the pain of the wreck and would like to go to see a chiropractor to fix her kneck and back injury. Will the other driver's insurance company be required to cover that as well as her already incurred hospital bills?
   
3. I was also on my way to drop my wife off at the airport, she took 2 weeks vacation from work to go on a vacation to Japan, to visit family. Needless to say we had to cancel the flight. She will be completely reimbursed for her plane flight, however her vacation is ruined and she is now sitting at home in pain during her vacation. Is there anything that should be persued from the other party as compensation for this loss?

Assuming we hire a lawyer to commence legal action, what sort of remedies should we look to obtain?

[Mr. Knowitall]

The book value of my car is quite low (approx: $900) it was a '94 escort, however it had another 5-10 years of good driving left, without any major investments. ... What should I do to get an appropriate replacement car?

As is usually the case with people whose well-maintained older cars are destroyed in accidents, you're probably out of luck.

My wife is suffering from the pain of the wreck and would like to go to see a chiropractor to fix her kneck and back injury. Will the other driver's insurance company be required to cover that as well as her already incurred hospital bills?

As you have apparently already successfully had them pay for hospital bills, consult the adjuster handling your case about coverage for chiropractic care.

I was also on my way to drop my wife off at the airport, she took 2 weeks vacation from work to go on a vacation to Japan, to visit family. Needless to say we had to cancel the flight. She will be completely reimbursed for her plane flight, however her vacation is ruined and she is now sitting at home in pain during her vacation. Is there anything that should be persued from the other party as compensation for this loss?

You can argue for compensation; you're probably out of luck.

Assuming we hire a lawyer to commence legal action, what sort of remedies should we look to obtain?

Your lawyer will discuss possible causes of actions and remedies with you.

[maestrodork]

Thanks for the advice. I am currently in the process of working out issues with the insurance agency. It is State Farm. I will keep you posted on the results...