If you get injured in an automobile accident without any fault, the at-fault driver has a legal obligation to compensate for your damage. For example, medical expenses, transportation fees for commuting to hospitals and consolation money. When having a settlement meeting, the total amount of money might be suggested by the at-fault driver or his insurance company. The total amount is a collection of cost items for various damages. Understand what cost item is legally compensated for. That is critical to get what you deserve. In this article, we specify compensation items depending on the kind of accidents: human damage traffic accidents or property damage traffic accidents.
Note that we explain each cost item according to the attorney's standard. The attorney's standard is the most expensive standard comparing with the two other standards. See this article as well: Three standards to calculate the compensation.
Compensation items for a human damage traffic accident
(1) Medical expenses
| Amount of money | The actual cost you paid as medical fees |
| Condition | Medical treatment was medically necessary and rational. |
All the actual cost you paid for doctor's medical treatment is for compensation. However, if the treatment is not acknowledged to be medically reasonable, such medical costs might not be compensated. For example, costs for using therapeutic hot spring or supplement is not legally acknowledged as the cost for compensation.
(2) Fee for attendance with a patient
| Amount of money |
Attendance for hospitalization If a family member of a patient attend, JPY6,500 per a day is compensated. If a patient use an attending service, the acutual cost is compensated. Attendance for commuting to a hospital JPY3,300 per a day |
| Condition | These costs are compensated depending the doctor's instructions, the level of injury, the age of the victim. |
(3) Nursing care costs in future
| Amount of money | Annually required amount * Leibnitz coefficient |
| Condition |
If a doctor admits nursing care cost will be necessary also in the future, nursing care cost in the future will be compensated. |
As a general rule, nursing care costs in the future is admitted if a patient is with 1st grade (1) or 2nd grade (1) of residual disability. See the table of the grade of residual disability.
(4) Miscellaneous expenses for hospitalization
| Amount of money | JPY1,500 per a day |
| Condition | A patient was hospitalized. |
The cost is for buying toiletries, bedding, newspaper and magazines, and so on.
(5) Miscellaneous expenses in the future
| Money | Annually required amount * Leibnitz coefficient |
| Condition | A patient needs nursing care in the future. |
As a general rule, miscellaneous expenses in the future is admitted if a patient is with 1st grade (1) or 2nd grade (1) of residual disability. See the table of the grade of residual disability.
The costs for disposable diapers, towls and gloves could be for compensation.
(6) Transportaion fee for commuting to a hospital
| Amount of money | The actual cost you paid for commuting to a hospital. For exaple, fees for trains and bus. |
| Condition | A patient had to commute to a hospital. |
Fees for trains and bus will be compensated with no problems. If you use your own car, gasoline cost and parking cost will be compensated. However, if you want fees for taxi to be compensated, you will need special reason for that. For example, you broke your leg and it was difficult to use trains nor busses.
(5) Miscellaneous expenses in the future
| Money | Annually required amount * Leibnitz coefficient |
| Condition | A patient needs nursing care in the future. |
As a general rule, miscellaneous expenses in the future is admitted if a patient is with 1st grade (1) or 2nd grade (1) of residual disability. See the table of the grade of residual disability.
The costs for disposable diapers, towls and gloves could be for compensation.
(6) Transportaion fee for commuting to a hospital
| Amount of money | The actual cost you paid for commuting to a hospital. For exaple, fees for trains and bus. |
| Condition | A patient had to commute to a hospital. |
Fees for trains and bus will be compensated with no problems. If you use your own car, gasoline cost and parking cost will be compensated. However, if you want fees for taxi to be compensated, you will need special reason for that. For example, you broke your leg and it was difficult to use trains nor busses.
(7) Costs for buying equipments
| Amount of money | The actual cost for buying the goods |
| Condition | If the goods are admitted to be necessary for a patient |
For example, fees for prosthetic hand, prosthetic leg, wheelchair, guide dogs, nursing support bed
(8) Cost for remodeling houses and cars
| Amount of money | The cost which is related with residual disability left in a traffic accident |
| Condition | Only in the case where the necessity for remodeling is admitted |
The cost is compensated only in the case where the the victim's residual disability is heavy. For example, remodeling a bathroom, house and car is an option.
(9) Cost for a funeral
| Amount of money | JPY1,500,000 |
| Condition | Funeral is conducted. |
If the funeral costs under JP1,500,000, the actual cost is compensated.
(10) Cost for requiring compensation
| Amount of money | adequate range |
| Condition | In the case where the costs is necessary for requiring compensation |
Trial procedure fee, cost for issuing a medical certificate, cost for issuing a traffic accident certificate are compensated.
(11) Fee for attorneys
| Amount of money | 10% of total amount of compensation money |
| Condition | In the case where you file a suit |
(12) Lost wages
| Amount of money | Depending on the case |
| Condition | A victim had to tentatively or eternally leave the work environment due to his/her injury |
the amount of compensation for lost wages is depending on what kind of work you engage in.
If you are an office worker and capable of proving the amount of money you couldn't earn because of your injury, you can be compensated with decreased income. If you are a house wife, the compensation money is calculated by using average wage of the same aged women. If you are a freelancer, sometimes you can be compensated with not only lost wages but also fixed costs including rent fee for a house. In any case, you have to prepare documents proving how much money you could earn if being without your injury.
(13) Consolation money for injury
| Amount of money | The amount according to the table issued by Nichibenren Traffic Accident Consultation Center |
| Condition | Case where a victim commute to hospitals or is hospitalized due to the injury got by a traffic accident |
(14) Consolation money for residual disability
Amount of money
|
1st grade |
JPY28,000,000 |
| 2nd grade | JPY23,700,000 |
| 3rd grade | JPY19,900,000 |
| 4th grade | JPY16,700,000 |
| 5th grade | JPY14,000,000 |
| 6th grade | JPY11,800,000 |
| 7th grade | JPY10,000,000 |
| 8th grade | JPY8,300,000 |
| 9th grade | JPY6,900,000 |
| 10th grade | JPY5,500,000 |
| 11th grade | JPY4,200,000 |
| 12th grade | JPY2,900,000 |
| 13th grade | JPY1,800,000 |
| 14th grade | JPY1,100,000 |
As a general rule, the above amount of consolation money is paid only if a victim is officially acknowledged to be left with residual disability in a traffic accident.
(14) Lost wages due to residual disability
| Amount of money | Income * workability loss rate *Leibnitz coefficient for period of losing workability |
| Condition | Lost wages for residual disability is compensated only if a victim is officially acknowledged to be left with residual disability in a traffic accident. |
Cost for compensation in a property damage traffic accident
(1) Repairing fee
| Amount of money |
| Condition |
If the damaged property comes under following conditions, reparing fee is not compensated but cost for replacement will be compensated instead.
- Repair is physically impossible.
- The estimated cost for repairing is over the cost for the replacement
- The core of the property is severely broken
(2) Replacement cost
| Amount of money | Cost difference between market price of the damaged property at the time if an accident and the scrap value of the car |
| Condition | Repair is impossible. |
(3) Valuation loss
| Amount of money | Several percentage of reparing fee |
| Condition | Deficiency is acknolwdged in appearance and function of the car even if it is repaired. |