Managing your finances can be tough at times, especially after you’ve suffered an injury. This article explores certain tips to recover financially after suffering an accident. 

Suffering from an accident can be a life-changing experience. And for the first part of this experience is usually a negative one. You’re in physical pain and feel countless negative emotions like confusion, anger, and anxiety about the future. But, besides all that, suffering an accident can also bring financial hardship upon you. 

Medical bills, physical therapy, and even legal advice can cost you a lot. What’s more, a severe injury can also lead to your loss of income, leaving you financially insecure in the face of a difficult and costly situation. 

But, don’t despair! No matter how challenging a situation may seem in the first place, it is usually easier to navigate through it than you imagined. We have a few tips to help you recover financially after suffering an accident.

Tap into your savings 

If you’ve been wise and conscious enough to put some money aside every month from your paycheck, your current financial struggles shouldn’t be that terrible. Moreover, suppose you’ve followed experts’ advice and saved enough money to cover at least 3 to 6 months of living expenses. In that case, you can lower your financial anxieties and tap into your emergency fund. 

Think about it: your emergency savings fund was precisely created for unexpected situations like this one. We get it that you may have had other plans with that money, like purchasing something big. However, using your savings in this situation makes much more sense than gathering debt. The whole point of having a savings fund is to afford to cover costs associated with emergencies. 

If you don’t have an emergency savings fund, but you do have a retirement fund, you may also have the option of tapping into that. However, you should be aware that you may have to face some pretty big taxes and penalties for this. 

Ask friends and family for support 

We get it. Asking friends and family for financial support isn’t a desirable thing, especially when you see yourself as a grownup perfectly capable of earning a living. However, while it isn’t the easiest thing to do, it is actually nothing wrong with asking for help when you need it. 

Your loved ones are the most willing people to help you during such a crisis, no matter if that means offering you emotional or financial support. So, you shouldn’t hesitate to ask for a loan from your friends or family if you feel like you can’t handle bills on your own. 

Once you recover and get back on a more stable financial track, you can pay that money back. But, until then, accept your loved ones’ help. 

Try crowdfunding 

Weirdly enough, sometimes it’s so much easier to talk to strangers than to close people. Similarly, you may find it easier to ask strangers for some help when you’re struggling than ask your loved ones. However, the good news is that sometimes the actions of a few strangers can deeply restore your faith in humanity. 

If you’re genuinely struggling financially, you can try using crowdfunding to help you get enough to cover some of your costs like medical bills, surgery, or physical therapy. There are various platforms online that you can use to reach out to strangers for help with some of your expenses. 

Pursue a legal claim 

If your accident was caused by someone else’s negligence, you’re entitled to ask for financial benefits for the injuries and damage caused. Whether you’ve suffered a work or car accident or get injured in a completely different scenario caused by someone else’s negligence, you shouldn’t be the only one paying for your recovery. 

As the legal experts from PersonalInjuryClaimsUK explain, “The victims of accidents caused by others shouldn’t be left alone with the financial burden brought upon them by recovery. The person at fault should pay them compensation for their injuries and losses, pain and suffering, and emotional damage.” 

While making a compensation claim can seem like your last priority when you’re involved in a painful and challenging recovery process, it is actually a very wise move that will not only bring you justice but will also support you financially throughout this experience. 

Renegotiate with your boss 

After people suffer a severe accident, one thing that often happens is losing their ability to work, be it short- or long-term. This obviously translates into a loss of income for a certain period of time. However, what if your injury doesn’t have to mean the end of your career? 

Think about it: say, for example, that the accident left you physically disabled, meaning that you can no longer be an on-site employee. However, this doesn’t mean that you may not be able to take on a position within an office. 

One good way to make sure that you don’t lose your income is to renegotiate with your boss and ask for a new position that better fits your current capabilities and situation. You can never know if your company could benefit a new experienced office worker if you don’t ask.

 

Rethink your career 

Last but not least, another situation that may make you feel helpless is when your injury leaves you out of work. When the company you work for decides to let you go because you can no longer complete your tasks, it doesn’t mean that this is the end of your working life. You can rethink your career. 

These days, it’s so much easier to make a career change with so much information and courses available. For example, if you can no longer stand for a job that requires a lot of physical activity, maybe you can focus on a career that involves sitting for most of the day, like IT, copywriting, or data entry positions. Maybe you can even start your own home-based business. Either way, there are many ways to make a career change and earn a monthly living.