If you've been in a car accident and been told that the other person's insurance won't pay for all of the repairs, you might think you need to go to court -- but be careful doing so. If the damage on your car was determined to be a mix of damage from the accident and damage from a previous defect with the car, the other person's insurance company might decide that you're actually responsible for part of the repair cost. You need the services of a skilled car accident attorney to convince a court that the other person should still pay for all the repairs you need to that part of your car. Otherwise you could end up stuck with a repair bill for damage you didn't cause.

Getting the Blame

At the core of this problem is blame and making someone pay for damage they didn't cause. Say your car had some pre-existing damage that didn't affect the car's operation, so you hadn't gotten the damage fixed. Then this other person hits you and causes more damage nearby.

On one hand, the repair costs for your car are all due to this other person hitting your car. But on the other hand, the other person did not cause the pre-existing damage -- the other person's insurance company might claim that since the other damage was already there, and the repair costs include erasing that other damage, that you should pay a portion of the repair costs to cover this older damage.

Getting a Judgment

The idea of having to fork over what could be hundreds or thousands of dollars because someone else hit your car could be infuriating. Court might seem like a good option; maybe a judge will side with you and order the other party to pay up.

But that's not guaranteed. The judge could agree that you should pay part because you had the chance to get the damage fixed before and didn't. So, it could seem like you were trying to piggyback that repair onto a new claim.

Getting a Lawyer

If you think you have a case and want to try to get your money reimbursed, contact a car accident lawyer as soon as you can. Don't attempt to represent yourself in court unless you're going to small claims court -- but even then, get a lawyer to work on putting your case together first.

For professional legal help, contact a lawyer such as Carl L. Britt, Jr.