Your injury is unique. Every injury is different, and the impact of the injury will be different for each person. If you were in a car accident, you may be out of work and may be able to go back to normal life in just a few months. Another person may suffer from a spinal cord injury, causing lifelong consequences.
An attorney will calculate the value of your injury claim using numerous factors:
Medical Bills
First and foremost, injuries will require some form of medical treatment. You may need to have a cast put on a broken arm, or you may have to undergo months of physical therapy, have surgery or have a caretaker.
Your medical bills will be used to evaluate your potential settlement value.
In most cases, the higher the medical bills, the higher the case’s value. In serious accidents, the settlement value is often higher due to the higher medical costs.
Future Medical Expenses
Future medical expenses will factor into the value of your claim. If you’re expected to need continual therapy, need orthotics or prosthetics, or will need future surgeries or pain management, these factors will add to the potential value of your case.
Note: Do not seek treatment for injuries not related to the accident.
Some injured parties will use their accident to seek care for injuries or conditions not related to the accident. If you seek care for injuries unrelated to the accident or seek excess treatment in an attempt to push a claim’s value higher, you can actually damage your claim.
A judge can look at the unrelated treatment and care as a means of inflating the value of the claim, leading to a lower value for your injury claim.
Loss of Current and Future Income
Personal injuries can lead to loss of current and future income. You may be unable to return to work for months, a year or ever. An attorney will include these losses in the total value of you injury claim.
Property Damage
In the event that property was damaged in the accident, the property’s value will also be added to the settlement amount. For example, if you were in a car accident and the other driver was responsible for the accident, property damage values can be added to the total value of the claim.
Any property damaged, such as a home if a vehicle ran into the home causing injuries, would be added to the total settlement amount.
Pain and Suffering
Pain and suffering is a non-economic damage. The more serious the injuries, the higher the multiplier will be for these general damages. Perhaps the accident led to a crushed disc in the person’s back.
The disc may cause lifelong pain and suffering. Future surgeries may be required, and there may be a loss of enjoyment from life.
The value of pain and suffering, when added to the total settlement amount, can be substantial.
Punitive Damage
Your case may include punitive damages when gross negligence plays a factor in your accident. For example, if an employer forced an employee to operate heavy machinery knowing that the equipment or usage of the equipment was unsafe, punitive damages can be sought if the employer does not have workers’ compensation.
If the scenario included a drunk driver that caused an accident, punitive damages may be added to a case because the driver negligently drove while intoxicated.
Wrongful Death
If the employee was killed in the above scenario, the estate or living spouse can bring a wrongful death claim against the negligent party. A wrongful death claim will have several factors, including:
- Age of victim, used to determine the total loss based on lost wages and earning capacity.
- The decedent’s earnings, education and training prior to death. These factors can be used to determine potential future earnings of the person based on raises and expected time to retire.
- Medical costs for any treatment that the deceased underwent before dying from their injuries.
- Loss of parental guidance for a minor.
Wrongful death lawsuits can have substantial settlement amounts, especially if the person was killed or died because of an accident at work.
An attorney may absorb most of the case’s costs. Since a lot of personal injury attorneys will offer their service on a contingency basis, it’s a great choice for anyone injured.
“We handle all Houston car crash cases on a percentage basis. This means we cover all expenses to pursue the claim with the insurance company and file a lawsuit for the injuries you suffered in the accident,” explains https://flemingattorneys.com/houston-car-accident-lawyer/.
If a state follows modified comparative negligence, the total settlement amount will be reduced by the percentage of negligence the injured party contributed to the accident. If the injured party was more than 50% at fault for the accident, you will not be able to seek damages and may be sued.
