Office Locations

Leesburg Office

101 Loudoun Street SW
Leesburg, VA 20175
Phone: 703.777.6535
Fax: 703.777.6963

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Winchester Office

302 West Boscawen
Winchester, Va 22601
Phone: 540.667.8889
Toll Free: 888.997.6535

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Legal News

Medical Malpractice Verdict Reduced to Statutory Cap of $1,925,000
CDC Guidelines to Help Prevent a Concussion
Worst States for Overall Nursing Home Staffing
Car Crash Victim Thought to be in Coma for 23 Years was Conscious
Brain injury sustained by young man while playing football as a lineman causes well known author Malcolm Gladwell to write New Yorker piece on the realities of brain injuries in the NFL
Astronomical Profits of Medical Malpractice Insurers Refutes Industry Claim that Frivolous Lawsuits Responsible for High Medical Costs
Fatal Outcome Following Surgery Complication at California Hospital
Maryland Emergency Medical Services Board Changed Guidelines Following a 2008 Helicopter Crash
Increase in Motorcycle Deaths Raise Concerns
Tractor Trailers Lethal on Interstate 81 near Winchester

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Practice Areas

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Frequently Asked Questions

Below are some initial questions many clients have when they first contact Barbara S. Williams, P.C.. The questions below may address many initial concerns you may have. If you don't find the answers here, you should contact us for answers to questions specific to your case. The consultation is free.

Car Crash Injuries

Q: I don’t think the insurance company is offering enough money to fix my car. What should I do?

How much you get may depend on whether you are seeking reimbursement under the collision portion of your auto policy or whether you are dealing directly with the defendant’s insurance company.

If your car is not totaled, generally you are entitled to the cost of reasonable repairs and associated expenses (such as a reasonable rental car payment), as well as the diminution value of your car in its repaired state. “Diminution” is the difference between what the car was worth right before the crash and what it is worth once fixed. Note that under nearly all collision policies in Virginia, your own insurer will exclude diminution from the amount they have to pay you. Therefore, under your collision coverage you would get the cost of reasonable repairs, but you do not get the difference in market value of your car (the value of the car before the crash minus the value of the car as repaired). Usually if you want to get the diminution value, you will need to do so through the defendant’s liability insurance company if someone else was at fault for the damage.

In contrast, if your car has been totaled, or is a total loss, you are entitled to use the National Automobile Dealers Association (NADA) yellow or black book to assess the market value of your car. You are only entitled to recover the value of your car, not the full amount of money you borrowed to purchase the car. You are not entitled to have your entire car loan paid off as much of that loan may have been interest and your car has likely depreciated in value since its purchase.

The following is a link to the Virginia Code section that allows various sources for assessing the fair market value of your car: http://leg1.state.va.us/cgi-bin/legp504.exe?000+cod+8.01-419.1.

Quick contact

Barbara S. Williams, P.C.
101 Loudoun Street SW
Leesburg, VA 20175
Phone: 703.777.6535
Fax: 703.777.6963
Toll Free: 888.997.6535

Get Directions