Property Damage Lawyers in Pennsylvania

When Your Possessions Have Been Damaged Due to Negligence, Call (888) 286-2850.

When you have been a victim of someone else’s negligence, you may be owed compensation for the loss or repair of any damaged property. Commonly, property damage occurs as a result of an auto accident.

What Damages Are Available in a Property Damage Claim?

• Damage to personal property outside of the car (for example, a drunk driver hit and damaged your house or your mailbox)
• Damage to property contained within the car (such as your iPod, GPS or cell phone)
• Rental car or substitute transportation during the repair period

Factors Affecting Damages

After an accident, you may suffer serious injuries to your person and your property. You may be wondering if you are eligible to recover compensation and, if so, how much. There are several different aspects that may impact how an accident or injury case is compensated.

The following factors may affect the damages you can be awarded for your injury:

• Nature
• Extent
• Duration

It is important to understand how these factors may play a party in the damages you are able to recover for your injuries. Our Harrisburg property damage can explain more.

How Do I File a Lawsuit for Property Damage?

The approach you take to file your property damage lawsuit will depend on the value of the property that was destroyed. We can help you decide what legal action to take depending on what item has been lost to another’s negligence.

You can file your property damage claim in one of two courts:

Small Claims

In many cases, property damage claims involve damaged property of a relatively low value, like an electronic or appliance. When the value is only a few hundred dollars or in the low thousands, you will likely benefit from taking your case to small claims court.

Retaining legal representation in small claims court is usually unnecessary and most attorneys will not have time in their schedule to directly represent a client in such a low-stakes case. Instead, you might only hire an attorney for a few hours of counseling and advice, letting you better represent yourself later.

Civil

Property damage claims for high-value items are where the representation of a personal injury lawyer will become necessary.

Your case cannot be filed in small claims if the damaged property is:

• An automobile
• Piece of real estate
• Or any other item with a significant multi-thousand-dollar value or higher

Instead, it must go to civil court with other types of injury claims.To file in this situation, you will want to coordinate with your attorney to find the right court or county clerk to accept your claim filing.

How Long Do I Have to File a Property Damage Lawsuit in Pennsylvania?

Personal injury claims in Pennsylvania follow a two-year statute of limitations on claim filings, as you might already know. To keep things simple, the same two-year statute of limitations also applies to property damage claims, which are also filed in civil court in pursuit of damages.

Once two years pass from the date of the damage, any claim you file afterward can be immediately dismissed by the court. There are rare exceptions to the two-year statute of limitations, so you will want to pay attention and stay atop filing before it expires.

One exception to the rule might be if you discover property damage caused by another after the statute expires, and you did not reasonably have a chance to find it otherwise.

You Deserve Justice—Destruction to Property Calls for Representation

When we represent someone who’s suffered an injury, we handle the bodily injury aspect of their case, as well as the property damage claim. We handle all correspondence with the insurance company to make sure your needs are taken care of while you are waiting for your car (or other property) to be fixed or replaced.

If your property cannot be fixed, you can seek compensation for the fair market value of the item before the accident. If the property can be fixed, you may be owed money for the loss of the item’s use as well as its repair.

Contact a Harrisburg Property Damage Lawyer for Skilled Legal Advice

If you have suffered an injury in Pennsylvania, contact Metzger Wickersham for the knowledgeable representation you need and the personal attention you deserve. We have a larger support staff than most other law firms in the area. This allows our personal injury lawyers to pay special attention to the details of the case.

Contact our firm at (888) 286-2850 for a free consultation with our experienced Harrisburg property damage attorney.