Types of Personal Injury Compensation
You could be eligible for compensation if you sustained an injury due to negligence or wrongdoing of another person. Speak with a
personal injury lawyer near you to find out more about the damages you could receive.
In
personal injury lawsuits injury cases, there are two types of damages that can occur: non-economic and economic. This article will explore these two categories and discuss how they impact the amount that you are entitled to for compensation.
Economic Damages
If someone is injured in an accident, they could be entitled to compensation for their losses. These damages could include medical expenses, lost earnings and property damage.
In most cases, these types damages can be extremely expensive especially in the event of serious injuries. This is due to the fact that they require intensive treatment. In addition to hospitalization, patients may have to pay for prescription drugs and mobility aids as they recover.
These expenses can quickly add up, so it is important to keep receipts. These receipts can help you establish the value of your losses as well as increase your compensation.
Other common types of economic damages in personal injury cases involve lost wages and future earnings. The reason for this is that victims can be out-of-work for a period of weeks, months and even years following an accident. In these instances the victim is entitled to the amount they would have earned if they had been able to work.
A person who is disabled or has lost a loved one due to an accident could be entitled to damages for life-care services. These could include nursing, home health and physical therapy in addition to other services.
Many people need assistance in the same areas they had prior to their accident. These may include household chores, driving a vehicle and taking care of the environment, and assisting someone in the family who is dependent.
In these cases an attorney might be capable of providing receipts, bills and other proof of the cost of these items. They can also engage experts to testify regarding the value of these damages.
The value of these damages can vary widely depending on the circumstances surrounding the accident , as well as the victim's specific needs. In general, juries examine a range of factors when making an award of economic damages.
Some examples of these damages could be:
Pain and suffering
This is typically given to those who have suffered from severe accidents who suffer emotional or physical injuries due to the accident. These awards can range from relatively small (a couple of dollars for pain and suffering) to massive amounts of money (millions of dollars in a wrongful-death case).
Emotional distress
This type of damages is targeted at redressing the emotional stress that an injury can cause a victim. This can include anxiety, depression and a loss of pleasure.
Disfigurement
This could be given to the person who has been injured and has been permanently disfigured by the accident. This can be costly because many people require surgery or other treatments to treat or remove disfigurements.
Loss of companionship and loss of consortium
This damages award is meant to compensate the loss of a loved one in the event of an accident. This is particularly important for victims who have dependents or children.
Non-economic damages are an independent part of the legal system apart as is economic damage, and are far less frequent. While they can have the burden of proof higher, non-economic damages are usually more difficult to value and are not subject to the same restrictions as economic damages.