I'm a little L.O.S.T. here. If you know what your medical expenses are, that's what you ask for. If there will be on-going expenses, then ask that they all be covered. If you are asking for a pay day - get off. I, like everyone else here, pay enough for insurance now because some people think it's somekind of payday. I do sympathize that you came out upside down on your Liberty, but that's bad financial decision making on your part. That some jerk hit you is incredibly bad luck. But please don't make the rest of us pay for it.

my .02 (you can flame now if you like)

No offense intended, but you really shouldn't be asking for an amount now. It sounds like there may be on going medical issues. You need to make them accountable for the expenses. If you settle for $$s now, all the bills become yours, and 10-20 or even 50K will be gone very quickly. Insurance companies love to settle, it gets them off the hook sooner(and forever). Make sure they pay for everything that is required for recovery, it's a good idea to add in writing that anything in the next year or two related to the injury be paid for as well. And forget about your existing medical plan covering it, if they find out (and they will) that the injuries were caused by, and payment received from another party, they too will refuse to pay. Even just getting what is owed may take time - up to a year or more, which is another way the insurance companies get people to settle. If in fact the guy only has the minimum coverage and it won't cover all of the bills, then you need to decide if he has enough to make it worth suing over. Pay the retainer and a lawyer will answer that for you, they don't like to sue for nothing.