Pennsylvania Car Accident Settlement Calculator

Under Pennsylvania's modified comparative fault system, motor vehicle accident claimants can recover as long as their fault does not exceed 50%. Your damages are reduced by your fault percentage, and the critical question in every Pennsylvania car accident case is whether the at-fault driver bears the majority of responsibility.

The statute of limitations for this type of claim in Pennsylvania is 2 years — in line with the national average of 2.7 years. This is a standard timeframe, but acting sooner preserves evidence and strengthens your position. Importantly, Pennsylvania recognizes a discovery rule, which can extend the filing window in cases where the harm was not immediately apparent.

Pennsylvania is a choice no-fault state. Your own personal injury protection (PIP) coverage generally pays medical bills first, whoever caused the accident, and whether a lawsuit for pain and suffering is limited depends on the option that applies to you. Pennsylvania drivers choose between full tort and limited tort (75 Pa.C.S. § 1705). Full tort, which applies when no choice is made, keeps an unrestricted right to claim pain and suffering. Limited tort, which the law also assigns to the owner of a registered car who has no insurance, bars that claim unless the injury is a serious injury (death, serious impairment of body function or permanent serious disfigurement) or a statutory exception applies. Economic losses can be claimed under either option.

Pennsylvania’s mandatory minimum auto insurance is 15/30/5 (bodily injury per person / per accident / property damage). These are relatively low minimums. Medical costs from even a moderate car accident frequently exceed $15K, which means you may need to pursue additional recovery options if the at-fault driver carries only the minimum.

Claims against government entities in Pennsylvania — such as accidents involving government vehicles, city buses, or dangerous road conditions maintained by a municipality — require a formal notice of claim within 180 days. This compressed timeline catches many accident victims off guard. If a government entity may be at fault, consulting an attorney immediately is critical to preserving your right to compensation.

Pennsylvania lets a vehicle owner recover diminished value, the resale value a properly repaired car loses because of its accident history, from the at-fault driver on top of the cost of repairs. Whether your own collision coverage owes it has no clear Pennsylvania rule. Pennsylvania measures damage to a vehicle by Holt v. Pariser, a 1947 Superior Court decision that lets the owner recover the reasonable cost of repair plus an allowance for any value the vehicle still lacks after the repairs are done. The diminished value guide in the related reading below carries the rule for every state and how to document the loss.