Estimate your settlement range with the multiplier method, minus fault and fees
There's no official formula, but claims are commonly valued with the multiplier method: 1.5 to 5 times your medical bills and lost wages, plus property damage. On this calculator's default case — $13,000 in medical bills and lost wages plus $4,000 in car damage — that gives a $43,000 to $56,000 range before fault and fees. Nationally, the average auto bodily injury claim runs near $24,200 (III/ISO, 2022), and Martindale-Nolo's reader survey put the average injury payout at $23,900, with most readers receiving $10,000 or less.
| Source | Figure | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| III/ISO (2022) | Average auto bodily injury liability claim | ~$24,200 |
| III/ISO (recent years) | Average property damage claim | ~$5,500 – $6,500 |
| Martindale-Nolo reader survey | Average car accident injury payout | $23,900 |
| Martindale-Nolo reader survey | What most readers actually received | $10,000 or less |
These are national averages, not a quote. They blend fender-benders with catastrophic cases across every state, so they set expectations rather than price your claim.
| Injury Tier | Typical Multiplier | Commonly Published National Range |
|---|---|---|
| Minor soft tissue | 1.5–2x | $2,500 – $25,000 |
| Moderate, ongoing treatment | 2–3x | $25,000 – $75,000 |
| Fractures or surgery | 3–4x | $75,000 – $250,000 |
| Severe or permanent impairment | 4–5x | $250,000 – $1M+ |
These are commonly published national ranges, not guarantees. Policy limits, state law, and the strength of your medical records all move the outcome.
This tool estimates what a car accident injury claim might settle for, using the same structure a demand letter uses: economic losses first, a pain and suffering multiplier second, then adjustments for fault and attorney fees. Insurers don't publish a formula. Adjusters commonly run claims through evaluation software (Colossus-style systems), so the multiplier here is a negotiation anchor, not the insurer's internal math. It's still the anchor demand letters are built on.
Add your economic specials: medical bills to date, projected future treatment, lost wages, and future lost earnings. Multiply that total by 1.5 to 5 based on injury severity to estimate pain and suffering. Vehicle and property damage gets added on top, never multiplied. Subtract your fault share, then the contingency fee: typically 33% if the case settles before a lawsuit is filed, 40% after.
Enter real numbers from your bills and pay stubs, not guesses. Pick the severity tier honestly, since it swings the result more than any other input. Set your fault share from the police report and what the adjuster is arguing. Then try the attorney fee both ways to see what representation costs and what it would need to add to pay for itself.
Take the defaults: $8,000 in medical bills, $2,000 in future treatment, and $3,000 in lost wages make $13,000 in specials. A moderate injury at 2–3x puts pain and suffering at $26,000 to $39,000. Add $4,000 in vehicle damage and the gross case value runs $43,000 to $56,000. At 10% fault, that drops to $38,700 to $50,400. After a 33% fee, you'd net roughly $25,929 to $33,768 before case costs.
First, policy limits. If the at-fault driver carries $50,000 in coverage, a $100,000 formula result usually collects $50,000, because the policy caps practical recovery regardless of the math. Second, contributory negligence. Alabama, Maryland, North Carolina, Virginia, and DC can bar recovery entirely if you share any fault. Everything here is educational; state law and a licensed attorney decide what your case is actually worth.
$23,900 was the average injury payout in Martindale-Nolo's reader survey, and most readers received $10,000 or less. Insurance industry data (III/ISO) puts the average auto bodily injury liability claim near $24,200 in 2022, with property damage claims around $5,500 to $6,500. Severe injuries settle well above these averages; minor ones fall under them.
1.5 to 5 times your economic specials is the standard multiplier method: add medical bills, future medical costs, and lost wages, then multiply by a factor tied to injury severity. On $13,000 in specials, a moderate-injury multiplier of 2 to 3 gives $26,000 to $39,000. Vehicle damage isn't multiplied; it gets added separately.
$2,500 to $25,000 is the commonly published national range for minor soft tissue injuries, built on a 1.5 to 2x multiplier. The Nolo survey found most injured readers received $10,000 or less, which fits that band. Low medical bills keep the math small, so finish your treatment before you accept any number.
Yes, by your percentage of fault in most states under comparative negligence. A $43,000 to $56,000 case drops to $38,700 to $50,400 if you're 10% responsible. In contributory-negligence jurisdictions (Alabama, Maryland, North Carolina, Virginia, and DC), even a small share of fault can bar recovery entirely, so fault arguments matter far more there.
2 years is the personal injury deadline in California, Texas, Florida (shortened from 4 in 2023), Illinois, Pennsylvania, Ohio, and Georgia. New York, Michigan, and North Carolina allow 3 years, while Tennessee gives just 1, among the shortest. Miss the statute of limitations and you generally lose the right to sue, so check your state's clock early.