What is my Personal Injury Case Worth?
When you are hurt in a traffic accident, fall, or other personal injury accident, you may sustain a variety of damages. These damages may include physical, emotional, and financial damages.
Tennessee’s personal injury laws are fault-based. This means you need to prove the other party was responsible for causing your injury to recover compensation for damages from that party. However, once you prove fault, you must know what your personal injury case is worth to settle your claim. Our Tennessee personal injury attorneys have laid out some of the factors used to calculate the value of a personal injury claim.
What Are My Financial Damages Worth?
As an initial point, your financial damages are your out-of-pocket expenses related to the accident, the injury, and your recovery. In most cases, an accident victim is entitled to compensation for the financial losses from the time of the injury through the settlement of the claim.
Examples of financial damages in a personal injury case may include:
- Emergency room fees and hospitalizations
- Costs of medical care
- Physical therapy, occupational therapy, and rehabilitative therapy
- Expenses for personal care, including help with household maintenance and chores
- Medical equipment, medications, and medical supplies
- Travel costs to and from doctor appointments
- Loss of income, including commissions, salaries, wages, bonuses, and other forms of compensation
Simply, to calculate the value of your financial damages, you add all your financial losses together to arrive at a total out-of-pocket cost for your claim. However, past and current monetary losses may not be the only financial damages you may be entitled to receive.
In addition, you may be entitled to future damages if you sustained a permanent disability or impairment. Future damages include ongoing medical treatment, long-term personal care, lost income, and loss of earning capacity. Significantly, the potential for future damages is one reason you never want to settle your personal injury case before completing the care and treatment you need to recover from your injuries and to learn your final prognosis.
What Are My Non-Economic Damages Worth?
Non-economic damages include pain and suffering. Even though non-economic damages are less tangible than other damages, it does not mean that they are any less difficult, challenging, and painful.
Examples of non-economic damages include:
- Physical suffering and pain
- Mental anguish
- Disfigurement and scarring
- Physical impairments and disabilities
- Emotional distress and suffering, including depression, and, post-traumatic stress disorder, anxiety
- Loss of consortium or companionship of a spouse
- A decline in quality and enjoyment of life
Simply, non-economic damages are more difficult to calculate. There is not a legal formula for calculating pain & suffering damages. Therefore, there is no exact way to determine the value of non-economic damages. However, the value of pain & suffering damages is often based on your total financial damages.
In general, there are several factors that affect the total value of your case. Examples of those factors include the severity of your injury and whether you suffered a permanent injury. Also, whether someone else is 100 percent at fault and whether you experience pain every day are other factors that affect the value of your case.
Get Help from a Tennessee Personal Injury Attorney
Often, an insurance adjuster tries to pressure you to settle your claim quickly and before you get legal advice. However, a quick settlement may mean receiving much less money for your injury claim. For example, the adjuster is not going to tell you if you are accepting an amount that is far lower than the true value of your claim.
However, a Tennessee personal injury attorney calculates the true value of your claim and lets you know when your case is ready for settlement. Contact the personal injury attorneys at Cummings Law today. You should consult with an experienced personal injury lawyer before accepting a settlement. That is a great decision. This helps ensure you are receiving fair and just compensation for your injuries, losses, and damages. Contact the right attorney to improve your chances for the best recovery you deserve.
Posted in: Personal Injury