As you consider pursuing a car accident injury claim, you must understand the role economic and non-economic damages play in determining the value and strength of your case. Evaluating and proving these damages requires working with qualified legal counsel to gather evidence and make arguments grounded in legal principles. The compensation you may receive depends on many factors, including the severity and effects of the injury, insurance coverage, and applicable laws. Navigating this complex process yourself is difficult, but an attorney experienced in personal injury litigation can help maximize your recovery through their expertise in calculating and obtaining damages. With the right legal strategy and presentation of your losses, you can seek fair compensation for medical bills, lost income, pain and suffering, and other harms stemming from another's negligence.
Understanding Economic and Non-Economic Damages
Loss of Income and Earning Capacity
Economic damages refer to the actual financial losses resulting from an injury, including loss of income and earning capacity. Loss of income refers to the wages and benefits that would have been earned had the injury not occurred. Loss of earning capacity considers the potential for future career growth and salary increases. These damages are calculated based on factors like your employment history, salary, age, education, and occupation.
Medical Expenses
Economic damages also include the costs of medical care for your injury, such as emergency transport, hospital stays, surgery, physical therapy, medication, and medical devices. To recover these costs, you will need records of all medical expenses related to your injury.
Pain and Suffering
Non-economic damages refer to losses that are not easily quantified financially, such as pain and suffering. Pain and suffering damages aim to compensate you for the physical discomfort, mental anguish, and reduced quality of life resulting from an injury. Because these damages are more subjective, their value depends on the severity and duration of your pain and suffering.
Loss of Enjoyment
You may also be entitled to damages for loss of enjoyment of life if your injury prevents you from participating in hobbies, recreational activities, and social events that you previously enjoyed. For example, if a spinal cord injury leaves you unable to play sports or an amputation prevents you from playing an instrument, you may pursue damages for loss of enjoyment.
Emotional Distress
In some cases, you may be able to recover damages for emotional distress caused by a traumatic injury event or experience. Emotional distress refers to psychological and mental harm resulting from an injury, such as depression, anxiety, post-traumatic stress disorder, and insomnia. To claim these damages, you will typically need testimony from mental health professionals who have treated you.
Calculating Economic Losses in Injury Claims
Lost Wages and Income
When someone suffers an injury due to the negligence of another party, they often experience lost wages or income as a result. To calculate economic losses, you must determine the victim’s income prior to the injury and estimate how much they would have reasonably earned had the injury not occurred. This includes wages, commissions, bonuses, and any other form of compensation. These losses continue until the victim is able to return to work.
Medical Expenses
In addition to lost income, injury victims frequently incur medical bills to diagnose and treat their injuries. These expenses include hospital stays, surgeries, medication, physical therapy, and follow-up care. To properly calculate economic losses, you must gather records of all medical expenses that resulted from the injury. Future medical expenses for ongoing treatment or permanent care may also need to be estimated.
Loss of Earning Capacity
For severe or permanent injuries, there may be a loss of earning capacity, meaning the ability to earn an income is hampered. This can occur even after the victim returns to work. Calculating these losses often requires expert testimony to determine the difference between pre-and post-injury earning potential over the remaining years of the victim’s work life. Loss of earning capacity can be one of the largest components of economic damages in catastrophic injury claims.
By systematically calculating losses from income, medical expenses, and earning capacity, the economic impact of an injury can be quantified. While economic damages alone may not fully compensate a victim, they form an important part of making the injured party whole again. By including these quantifiable costs, injury claims can seek fair compensation.
Evaluating Non-Economic Damages Like Pain and Suffering
Non-economic damages refer to losses that are intangible and more difficult to quantify, such as pain and suffering, emotional distress, loss of consortium, and loss of enjoyment of life. Courts will take into account both the severity and duration of injuries when assessing non-economic damages.
Severity of Injuries
The more severe the injury, the higher the potential award for non-economic damages. Permanent or long-term injuries typically warrant greater compensation than temporary ones. Additionally, injuries that significantly impact daily living and mobility are viewed as more severe. For example, the pain and suffering damages for a permanent back injury requiring ongoing treatment and limiting normal activities would likely exceed those for a broken arm with a typical recovery period.
Duration of Effects
Injuries that cause suffering over an extended time period are also seen as meriting higher non-economic damages. Chronic conditions that require long-term treatment or rehabilitation and permanently alter one's quality of life can lead to sizeable pain and suffering awards. In contrast, injuries that heal within a normal timeframe with minimal residual effects would warrant lower awards for non-economic damages.
While economic damages are relatively straightforward to calculate based on medical bills, lost wages, and other out-of-pocket losses, assessing appropriate levels of non-economic damages relies more on subjective factors. However, courts do consider precedents from comparable cases when determining reasonable compensation for pain, suffering, and diminished enjoyment of life. With the guidance of legal counsel, claimants can present evidence to demonstrate why their circumstances warrant damages at the higher end of the typical range for similar injuries.
Maximizing Compensation With a Texas Car Accident Lawyer
Working with an experienced Texas car accident lawyer is the best way to maximize the compensation you receive for your injuries. They can help determine the full amount of damages you have incurred and fight to recover both economic and non-economic damages.
Economic Damages
Economic damages refer to losses that can be quantified monetarily, such as medical bills, loss of income, and property damage. Your lawyer will review records to calculate all past and future medical expenses resulting from the accident. They can also work with economists to determine how much income you have lost and will lose in the future due to your injuries.
Non-Economic Damages
Non-economic damages are more subjective losses, such as pain and suffering, mental anguish, loss of enjoyment of life, and physical impairment. Your attorney will build a compelling case to prove the severity of your non-economic damages. They can use testimony from doctors, psychologists, friends and family to show how the accident has impacted your quality of life and daily activities.
While economic damages are typically easier to calculate, non-economic damages can make up a significant portion of a personal injury settlement. Insurance companies may try to minimize these claims, but a skilled lawyer knows how to negotiate maximum compensation for non-economic damages. They understand that chronic pain, limited mobility, depression or anxiety also deserve fair compensation.
With the help of economic and medical experts, your attorney can determine a settlement amount that will adequately compensate you for the entirety of your losses. They will then negotiate firmly with insurance companies to recover damages that fully match the severity of your injuries and losses. Maximizing compensation in this way can help ensure your financial security and allow you to move on from the accident.
FAQs: How a Car Accident Attorney Can Help You Recover Damages
What Are Economic Damages?
Economic damages refer to losses that can be quantified monetarily, such as medical bills, lost wages, property damage, and other financial costs resulting from an injury. An experienced car accident attorney can help you calculate the total economic damages you have incurred due to someone else’s negligence. They will gather records and documents to substantiate these damages in a claim.
What Are Non-Economic Damages?
Non-economic damages refer to intangible losses, such as pain and suffering, emotional distress, loss of enjoyment of life, and other subjective types of harm. These damages can be more difficult to calculate but are equally important in personal injury claims. Your attorney will evaluate the severity and impact of your injuries to determine an appropriate amount to demand for non-economic damages.
How Can an Attorney Help Prove Liability?
To recover damages in a car accident claim, you must prove the other party was liable or responsible for causing the collision through negligence or wrongful action. An attorney can investigate the crash, gather witness statements, obtain the accident report and other evidence to build a case proving the other driver’s liability. They can also deal with insurance companies and handle negotiations to reach a fair settlement.
What If the Other Driver Doesn’t Have Enough Coverage?
Unfortunately, some drivers may not carry adequate insurance or may not have any coverage at all. If the at-fault driver lacks sufficient coverage to compensate you fully for your losses, your own insurance may provide underinsured or uninsured motorist coverage to make up the difference, depending on your policy limits. An attorney can review your policy to determine available coverage and pursue multiple options for obtaining maximum compensation on your behalf.
With the help of a skilled car accident lawyer, you have the best chance of recovering both economic and non-economic damages resulting from someone else’s negligence or wrongdoing. An attorney can substantiate your losses, prove liability, negotiate skillfully with insurance companies, and pursue multiple avenues for compensation to make you whole again.
Conclusion
Though the decision to seek compensation after an injury is a personal one, understanding the components that make up an injury claim can empower you to advocate for the fullest recovery possible. Both economic and non-economic damages serve critical purposes, the former replacing concrete losses and the latter providing recognition of intangible harms. With the guidance of experienced legal counsel from lawyers at Fletcher Law, you can evaluate the complete impact of what you have suffered and determine what constitutes fair restitution. In the end, no amount of money can undo what has been done, but financial awards allow the injured to look ahead instead of behind. Your losses, tangible and otherwise, deserve acknowledgment. An injury claim gives you the chance to be made whole once more.