So recently I had someone ask me “What do I do?  I can’t get to work because I’ve had a car accident and it was totaled!”.  This is a common problem and puts employees in a precarious situation.  If you don’t have a car, then you can’t drive to work.  And of course most people don’t wan to use personal days or vacation days to just sit at home (collect them and get thee to Hawaii or somewhere warm!).  So what do you do?  Here are some ideas:

• Ask coworkers to carpool- you can always make a deal with coworkers that if they can pick you up and drive you for a week, then when you get your car back, you’ll do the same for them.  Who doesn’t want a little time off from driving?
• Rent a car- this obviously costs money, but some car rental places have cars for around $30 a day.  While you won’t be driving a Ferrari for that, at least you’ll be mobile.
• Take public transportation- explore what your city has to offer in terms of various modes of public transportation.  There may be more possibilities than you think.
• Take the company van- many large companies have company vans, buses or shuttles that will take employees to work for free. Some of them even have wifi on board!
• Contact a lawyer- yes, it may be time to call a car accident lawyer.  Why?  Because they are experienced at getting insurance companies to pay you more than you’d be able to get on your own.  That could more than compensate for having to rent a car.  Also if you were injured in the crash, a car accident lawyer will be able to refer to you the appropriate doctors and help you get the medical care you require.
• Work from home- many employers are becoming a lot more flexible in allowing employees to work from home.  If you explain to your boss that you were in a car accident and that you currently don’t have any transportation, he or she may be willing to let you just work from home until things get sorted out.  And with applications like Skye and GoToMeeting, you can even be face to face with other employees while you’re at home.
• Go on vacation- if all else fails, go on vacation!  Why not?  You can get some great discounts on last minute vacations.  Just take a cab to the airport and fly away to somewhere fabulous.  You’ll soon forget that your car is wrecked.

So while getting in a car wreck is the pits, it happens to almost all of us at one point or another.  The best thing to do is to remain calm and sort out all of your options.  In the best case scenario you may be able to work a few days from home, and you may even end up with a new car!