4 Practical Steps to Take to End Financial Problems After a Personal Injury Accident
An accident, particularly one caused by someone else’s neglect or irresponsible behavior, can have a profound negative impact on your life. Besides the physical and mental anguish you experience, there is often a financial aftermath even after you’re back on your feet. This can occur not only because of the ongoing costs of medical treatment but also because you may not be able to work as long and as hard as you used to before.
Four practical steps you can take are to hire a lawyer, file for disability, create a budget, and seek assistance from programs to help you with your living expenses. Let’s take a closer look at each of these steps.
- Hiring a lawyer
One of the first things you should do is hire a lawyer so that you receive adequate compensation for your injuries from the person who caused the accident. This can often happen in personal injury cases because the laws are complicated. Ideally, you should find someone with whom you can speak to face-to-face, rather than someone who represents you remotely. In other words, look for someone in your local area. So, for instance, if you live in the Bronx, it might be better to do an online search for Bronx law firms rather than one for lawyers in New York City in general, where you’ll get hits in Brooklyn, Staten Island, and other places because, let’s face it, even a small radius search covers a lot of businesses in NYC.
- Filing for disability:
In order to file for disability, you need to contact your local Social Security office. You can call, go online, or visit a Social Security office near you. You can Learn More about Social Security Disability Insurance claims and compensation. The toll-free number for the Social Security office is 1-800-772-1213, and if you are hearing impaired, you can call TTY at 1-800-325-0778. You can also visit the Social Security website. Here you will be able to fill out an online application form. And, of course, if you neither want to call nor go online, you can always research the nearest Social Security office and visit it.
- Creating a budget:
There are many ways that you can create a budget—you can do it in a notebook, use an Excel personal budget spreadsheet, or use an app. Regardless of how you choose to go about it, there are about six basic steps you need to take:
First, think about all your sources of income and calculate your net income.
Second, track all your spending. This will include your fixed costs and your variable costs. You can keep track of every penny you spend by either putting it on your debit or credit card or by keeping receipts of everything you spend money on.
Third, set a goal. Now that you know how much money is coming in and how much is going out, set a realistic goal on how much you would like to spend and save.
Fourth, make a plan to be able to control your spending. You may, for example, be able to find a cheaper provider for a fixed cost or cut back on your flexible spending costs.
Fifth, make any adjustments to your habits to balance the money coming in with the money going out. In some cases, too, your plan could include ways to earn some extra money if your expenses exceed your income even after you cut back on your flexible costs. For instance, you might be able to start an online business or sell some household items or collectibles at a garage sale or at an online auction.
Sixth, review your results every month to see how things are going for you. It’s important to realize that it takes considerable trial and error before you can create a balanced budget.
- Finding financial assistance programs:
Looking for programs to offer financial assistance with groceries, health insurance, rent, or utility bills is not easy, but it is possible. Numerous government assistance programs and charities offer grants to help families in distress. In addition, funds may be available from non-profits and community action programs.
You could receive help for meeting the following expenses:
- Daily household expenses
- Groceries
- Gas and electric
- Medical expenses.
- Paying off your credit card debts.
In addition, there are a variety of food programs and free financial counseling services available to help you.
In conclusion, you can manage the financial strain after an accident by taking one or more of these steps to keep you afloat.
