How Much are your Structured Settlement Payments Worth?

The purpose of a structured settlement is to ensure you have scheduled money coming in over time.  If you were injured due to someone or a business being negligent and no longer able to work full-time or you could only work part-time, having consistent cash flow would mean everything.  However, because a structured settlement results from an agreement being made outside of court or in lieu of a lawsuit between you and the other party, knowing how much your structured settlement payments are worth is difficult.

The purpose of a structured settlement is to ensure you have scheduled money coming in over time.  If you were injured due to someone or a business being negligent and no longer able to work full-time or you could only work part-time, having consistent cash flow would mean everything.  However, because a structured settlement results from an agreement being made outside of court or in lieu of a lawsuit between you and the other party, knowing how much your structured settlement payments are worth is difficult.

Then, if you accepted this type of agreement but then found yourself faced with a situation of needing a large sum of money and wanted to get all the settlement money at once, your only option would be to try to go through the court system or to sell the payments to a structured settlement company.  In a case such as this, you would again be in a position of needing to know the value of your payments so you would know if the amount being offered is fair.  Of course, to sell the settlement, the company would charge a fee and depending on the company chosen, it may be more than you should pay.

We want to start by saying that in determining how much your structured settlement payments are worth depends on numerous factors.  For one thing, the structured settlement company chosen would need to know the amount of money left.  In other words, if you had been receiving payments for five years, then the value would be less than when the money was first awarded.  Another consideration would be the amount of payments you receive.  For instance, if the payments received were small but spread out over many years, the value of the payments would be less than if receiving larger payments or payments over a shorter period.

You will also find that the economy has a direct impact on how much your structured settlement payments are worth.  When the economy is strong, structured settlement companies would be far more likely to pay more but in the current economy, the amount you would receive would be lower.  The reason for this is that during bad economic times, the number of people declaring bankruptcy is increasingly more than in strong economies.

Because there are so many variables in trying to determine the value of your structured settlement, it is imperative to find a reputable company, one that would work on your behalf to get you the most money possible.  You will pay a fee regardless but shopping around makes it possible to find the lowest rate so ultimately, you end up with more money.  As a part of your search, learning what you can about the company would also benefit in that you want a company with a good reputation for providing people with the greatest value possible.  The goal is to find a structured settlement company that eliminates risk while giving you money for the emergency situation.