Vehicle Damage Attorneys

After a car accident, the visible damage to your vehicle is just the beginning. From minor dents to significant structural issues, the extent of damage can impact not only your safety but also the value and usability of your car. Understanding the types of vehicle damage and their implications is crucial when navigating insurance claims and repairs.

Insurance companies often assess damage to determine liability and compensation, but their evaluations may not always align with the actual costs or safety concerns. It’s essential to have a clear understanding of the damage to ensure you receive fair treatment and adequate compensation.

At Kanner & Pintaluga, we specialize in helping accident victims understand their rights and the true extent of their vehicle damage. Our experienced team is here to guide you through the complexities of post-accident procedures, ensuring your vehicle is properly assessed and your claim accurately represented.

What Experts Can Discern From Vehicle Damage

Every scratch, dent, and crumpled panel tells a story that will serve as invaluable evidence to substantiate your claim. Accident reconstruction experts and claim adjusters alike can discern key details about the accident by surveying your car. Some of those details could elevate your claim’s chances of success.

Some examples of information that can be determined from vehicle damage inspections include the force of collision, point of impact, and the sequence of events immediately following the collision. In some cases, vehicle damage analysis may tell more than photos or statements from the people involved. While beneficial, visual evidence cannot compare to the persuasiveness and tangibility of physical evidence.

Different Signs of Damage and Their Importance

Type of Damage

Superficial scratches and paint transfer often indicate the point of impact and which direction the collision came from. Alternatively, dents can provide insight into the magnitude of the collision’s impact, with high-velocity collisions typically resulting in significant deformations. That said, an accident doesn’t need to be at high speeds to be harmful. Suspension damage can occur in minor and major accidents alike, creating a mechanical imbalance that can cause vehicles to feel unstable and unsafe.

Serious accidents may damage critical structural components of your vehicle, crushing panels and bending frames. These types of damage can suggest how severe the collision was and, consequently, the potential for catastrophic injuries. Broken glass from damage to windows, windshields, and headlights can indicate the accident’s severity as well as provide further details about liability. For instance, shattered glass on the driver’s side suggests a side-impact collision, which may implicate the other driver depending on the crash scenario.

Deployed airbags are also particularly effective at highlighting the force of the collision. Not only do they help establish that the force was violent enough to cause deployment, but they may also be important for establishing that head and spinal injuries were attributable to the impact.

Location

The location of the damages on the vehicle may also be crucial in attributing driver negligence and liability:

• Front-End Damage: Damage to the front end of a vehicle often suggests a head-on collision or a rear-end collision.
• Rear-End Damage: Rear-end collisions typically result in damage to the rear bumper, trunk or tail lights of the vehicle that was struck from behind.
• Side-Impact Damage: Damage to the sides of vehicles, especially near the doors, indicates a T-bone or broadside collision.

Severity

Extensive damage, including bent panels and dents, is usually indicative of a high-impact collision and consequently severe injuries. However, even seemingly minor damage can lead to significant underlying issues, such as suspension damage, frame misalignment, or hidden structural damage that only a mechanic could accurately diagnose.