Types Of Compensatory Damages
Compensatory damages are meant to offset an injury sustained
by an individual. Actual damages, or damages which reimburse
an individual for out-of-pocket expenses, include monetary awards
for medical expenses, property damage, and loss of income. General
damages may also be awarded for pain and suffering, mental anguish,
loss of consortium, and lost opportunity for the future enjoyment
of life.
Medical Expenses
Serious injuries incur hefty medical bills; therefore, an injured
person's medical expenses constitute a significant portion of
the damages to which he or she is entitled. Logic would dictate
that the greater the amount of money owed for physician's services,
the greater the damages are to be sought. Future medical costs
must also be factored into compensatory damages in the case of
a long-term injury requiring significant rehabilitation or on-going
treatment. An experienced personal injury attorney will be able
to select the necessary experts to establish the need for future
medical treatment as well as clearly determine the value of the
plaintiff's claim.
Property Damage
The plaintiff in a personal injury case may also be awarded
damages for the replacement or repair of any property harmed
in an accident. Automobile damage, for example, is a common occurrence
in personal injury cases. In addition to the costs of repair
and loss of value to the car, a plaintiff may also be able to
receive compensation for damage to property contained within
the car as well as reimbursement for obtaining substitute transportation
during the repair period.
The valuation of property damage is a complicated process and
may require the opinion of an expert appraiser. This professional
will determine whether or not the property has been totally ruined
or retains any salvage value whatsoever. If the property is useless,
damages can be requested in the amount of its fair market value
prior to the accident. If repair is an option, compensation for
loss of use by the owner can be added to the cost of the repair
itself. There are occasions when the cost to repair the property
exceeds its replacement value and the damages are still limited
to the fair market value of the property before loss. Other elements
that can be factored into the property damage equation are interest
and loss of profit, particularly in those instances in which
the property is utilized in one's employment.
Loss of Income
If the injury sustained by the plaintiff
prevents him or her from working, compensation can be sought
for the amount of money normally earned during that time period,
otherwise known as "lost
wages." The injured person can also claim lost wages for any
absences due to medical treatment of the injury. An injury severe
enough to prevent a person from working for the remainder of
his or her life may allow for damages to cover the loss of one's
future earnings. Finally, if a person dies due to an accident,
family members can choose to sue for the lost income that the
victim would have earned based on his or her age and current
salary. Logically, a younger person has longer work-life expectancy
and would therefore have a greater loss of future earnings in
the event of an untimely death.
Pain and Suffering
The most personal element of an injured person's experience
is the amount of physical pain and suffering which he or she
must endure. Each individual's tolerance for pain is different
which makes the quantification of suffering problematic, but
certain factors can be measured accurately to document one's
discomfort level. For example, an experienced personal injury
attorney will be able to collect information from the medical
practitioners involved in the case regarding the amount of medication
the injured person required, the types and length of treatments
necessary, and the duration of the recovery period. In addition,
the injured person's spouse and/or nearest friends and relatives
will be interviewed to ascertain the extent of change to the
victim's quality of life by comparing his or her condition and
normal activities prior to and after the accident. It is an integral
part of a victim's case that any enjoyment of life that has been
reduced due to an accident be brought forward and supported by
witness testimony and evidence.
A person who suffers a more severe and painful injury that causes
long-term or even permanent impairment will clearly have a more
valuable claim in a personal injury case than an individual whose
injuries are not as extensive. If the injury is indeed permanently
disabling, experienced counsel will seek out expert testimony
to support the victim's claim and help determine the most suitable
value of damages to be sought.
Mental Anguish and Emotional Distress
While mental anguish and emotional distress
often exist concurrently with pain and suffering, the former
are distinct in that they refer to mental responses to the
trauma of a physical event. Common symptoms of mental anguish
would include terror, shock, apprehension, confusion, humiliation,
and sorrow. To try to stem the tide of personal injury lawsuits
based solely upon mental anguish and emotional distress, some
states have instituted strict guidelines such as the "zone of danger" test which takes into
account how physically close the plaintiff was to the accident.
Another limit placed upon such cases is the "physical manifestation
rule" which requires that the emotional distress experienced
by the plaintiff be exhibited by physical reactions such as depression,
anxiety intense enough to cause ulcers, or loss of appetite and
weight.
Loss of Consortium
Another type of damage that can be recovered in a case of severe
and permanently disabling injury is that of loss of consortium,
which refers to the inability of the victim to engage in the
activities related to companionship with his or her spouse or
loved ones at the level he or she once enjoyed. Although the
damages awarded for loss of consortium are generally less than
other types of compensatory damages, they can be significant
in tragic cases of accidents which lead to severe impairment
such as paraplegia.
Lost Opportunity
Lost opportunity damages are sometimes recoverable in addition
to the damages sought for lost wages and loss of future earnings.
These refer to a business opportunity that has been precluded
due to an accident. It is imperative that the presentation of
such a claim is supported clearly and not purely conjectural
as this could damage the credibility of the case as a whole and
cause a jury to reject the more substantial damages sought by
the plaintiff.
What You Need To Know:
Insurance companies' obligations are to their stockholders and
policy holders, not to the people injured by their insured's
negligence. Insurance companies' desire to maximize their own
profits provides them with every motivation to try to deny your
claim or pay you the very minimum amount that they can get away
with. The insurance companies also have enormous advantages:
they have immense wealth, armies of experienced adjusters and
lawyers and years of experience reducing and denying claims.
At the Law Office of Stephen A. Burroughs,
our only obligation is to you, our client. We will use our experience
and every resource available to protect your interests, and we
will work hard to help you receive the full value for your case.
We will advise you every step of the way to help you avoid any
mistakes that could cost you money. There is no charge for attorney's
fees until you recover money for your personal injuries, and
we will also help you resolve your property damage claims for
no fee whatsoever. For assistance, call today at 1-877-300-3773, contact
us or submit
an free online case evaluation.
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