Most pieces of advice concerning car accident claims focus on compensation for the injury, but injury damages are just part of the bigger picture. Among other things, you also need to be compensated for the physical damages inflicted on your properties. There are different categories of compensations for property damages; here are four examples:

Compensatory Damages for the car

This part of the compensation is meant to return your car to its pre-accident status. If the windshield is cracked, for example, the repair costs part of the compensation should be adequate for the replacement of the windshield. If the car is damaged beyond repair, then the defendant should give you enough money to buy a replacement car that is similar to the damaged one. In many accident cases, damage to the car forms the biggest portion of property compensation.

Compensatory Damages for Personal Belongings

It's not just your damaged car that the defendant should pay for; they should also pay you for your personal items that were damaged during the crash. Maybe your suitcase was crashed, your books were burned, or your bicycle (on the roof of the car) was damaged. The defendant should repair or replace these damaged items just as they should for the car. Of course, you have to prove that these items were damaged in the car; this is why accident victims are advised to take pictures or video records of the damage immediately after a crash.

Incidental Damages

Incidental damages cover the expenses you have to incur due to the accident, those that you wouldn't have incurred without the accident. Examples include the cost of calling for help after the crash, the cost of renting a taxi home when your car is towed away, or the cost of sleeping in a hotel because your car is damaged and there is no transport to take you to your destination.

Consequential Damages

Consequential damages cover the cost of an interim replacement car. For example, you shouldn't miss the use of a car just because someone crashed into you on the highway and the mechanic says it will take a week to fix. You can use incidental damages to rent a car for the duration of the repair. In most cases, you just use your money, document the expenses, and include it in your damages claim.

Identifying all these forms of property damages will help you to maximize your recovery. A car accident attorney can help you with more ways of maximizing your recovery.