Types of Personal Injury Compensation

You could be eligible for compensation if you were injured due to negligence or the wrongdoing of another person. Speak with a personal injury lawyer near you to learn more about the potential damages you could be awarded.

There are two major kinds of damages that could be awarded in personal injury lawsuits which are economic and non-economic damages. This article will look at these categories and discuss how they might affect the amount of compensation you're entitled to recover.

Economic Damages

A person may be entitled to financial damages should they be injured in an accident. These damages could include medical expenses, lost earnings and property damage.

These kinds of damages are often very expensive, especially if they are serious injuries. This is because they require intensive treatment. When they recover, personal injury lawyer patients may have to pay for mobility equipment or prescription medications.

These expenses can add up quickly, which is why it is crucial to keep receipts for them. These receipts will help establish the worth of your losses and increase your compensation.

In personal injury lawyers injury cases, the loss of earnings and future earnings are the most common types of economic damages. This is because the victim could be out-of-work for a number of months, weeks or even for years following an accident. In this case the award of compensation must reflect the amount the victim would have earned had they not been disabled from working.

If a person is disabled or an individual in the family dies due to an accident, the victim may be entitled to damages for services provided to the living. These include home health, nursing and physical therapy.

Many people also require assistance doing the things they used to do before their accident. These include household chores driving a car as well as caring for the environment, and providing care for a dependent family member.

In these instances, an attorney may be in a position to provide receipts, bills as well as other evidence of the value of these items. They may also hire experts to testify to the value of these damages.

These damages may be valued differently depending on the specific needs of the victim and the circumstances surrounding the incident. In general, juries consider a wide range of factors when determining an award of economic damages.

Examples of these damages might include:

The two most painful things in life are suffering and pain

This award is usually given to those who have suffered serious injuries who suffer physical or emotional injuries as a consequence of the accident. The awards can range from minor (a couple of dollars for pain and suffering) to huge amounts of money (millions of dollars in a wrongful-death case).

Emotional distress

This type of damages is aimed at compensating the emotional trauma that an injury can cause a victim. This can include anxiety, depression and loss of enjoyment.

Disfigurement

An injured person who is permanently damaged as a result of an accident may be eligible for this. It is a costly procedure, as many people need surgeries and other treatments to correct or remove the disfigurements.

Loss of companionship and consortium

The damages award is intended to pay for the loss of a loved one as a result of the accident. This is particularly relevant in the case of children or other dependents.

Non-economic damages are an independent element of the legal system, distinct from economic damage and is much less common. Non-economic damages can be subject to a greater burden of proof, but they are usually more difficult to value than economic damages and aren't subject to the same limitations as economic damages.