If you suffered injuries in an accident, one of your goals might be to get compensated for your injuries. Compensation depends on the worth of your claim, but how much is my injury claim worth? Every case is unique, and many factors determine the monetary value of your claim, all based on what happened.
A personal injury lawyer can help you determine the value of your case and keep you from settling for less than the full value of your claim. You need an attorney if you have suffered an injury in an accident. Contact an experienced personal injury lawyer in your area to protect your legal rights after an accident. To learn more about what affects the value of your injury claim, continue reading.
What Factors Affect the Worth of My Personal Injury Claim?
A personal injury is a harm that negatively affects a person’s mental, emotional, or physical well-being. Suffering a personal injury can permanently alter a victim’s life. An accident victim may no longer work, may lose future economic opportunities, may require surgery or long-term care to resolve the issue, or may never get some sense of normalcy back.
The severity of a personal injury determines the value of an accident victim’s case. We consider some of the following factors when determining the value of a personal injury case.
The Cost of Medical Treatment
Your injury may require that you seek emergency or long-term medical treatment, and both can be incredibly expensive. If you have suffered an injury in an accident that is not your fault, you should not get stuck with the bill. One purpose of a personal injury lawsuit is to help the accident victim get reimbursed for their out-of-pocket medical expenses. The higher your medical bills, the more your personal injury case is worth. Contact a personal injury lawyer in your area to get the money you deserve after an accident.
Lost Wages/ Loss of Earning Capacity
You are entitled to compensation for the time you lost at work. The more money you lose because you missed work due to your injuries, the more valuable your injury claim.
In addition to lost income, you deserve compensation for lost earning capacity. Lost earning capacity is the inability to work in the same industry or at the same capacity as before the accident.
For example, before the accident, you may have worked as a firefighter, but because of the injury, you can only work in a sedentary job. You are entitled to the difference in value between the two jobs. If you lose earning capacity, the value of your injury case increases.
Property Damage
Compensation for a car accident case includes property damage. If you get into a car accident and your vehicle is damaged, you are entitled to the cost of repairs. You will have to show body shop estimates to prove damages to your vehicle. If you can prove that the accident damaged your vehicle, the overall value of your case increases.
Pain and Suffering
Pain and suffering refer to non-economic damages available in personal injury cases. Money for pain and suffering is awarded in a personal injury claim to address the inconvenience of suffering an accident. You must prove pain and suffering to receive compensation. The amount awarded for pain and suffering damages may vary from state to state. If you can prove pain and suffering damages, the value of your injury case will increase.
Mental and Emotional Distress
Mental and emotional distress compensation may be part of an injury claim. Lawyers prove mental and emotional damages through several means, and one way is to have your friends and family testify on your behalf. Your loved ones can speak about how you were before the accident and how your life has changed.
People who are intimately familiar with your personality can tell a judge or jury how you have changed since the accident. You may also testify about your struggles with mental and emotional distress.
Juries typically decide damages for mental and emotional distress. Some states may cap the amount of money allowable for mental and emotional damages. Despite state law limiting the award you might receive, a jury will look at the evidence and conclude the value of your mental or emotional injury.
Loss of Enjoyment of Life
The loss of enjoyment of life is compensable damage in personal injury cases. Loss of enjoyment of life is proven similarly to mental and emotional damages through the testimony of yourself, family, and friends. During your trial testimony, you may describe to a jury how your life has changed since the accident.
Let the jury know what activities you used to enjoy but no longer do, your level of social activity, and how your relationships have changed. An example of a substantial life change is your willingness to take future risks. Before the accident, you may have enjoyed climbing mountains, skydiving, or swimming in the ocean, but now because of the accident, you do not enjoy the same things that you used to enjoy. Your lawyer will account for that change in your quality of life when calculating the value of your personal injury claim.
Loss of Companionship/Consortium
Loss of consortium is the loss of companionship within a marriage. In many states, if an accident victim is married, their spouse will also be named as a plaintiff so that they can recover for a loss of consortium claim. A claim for loss of consortium adds to the value of a personal injury claim if a plaintiff can prove that because of the accident, their marriage is not the same. Usually, loss of consortium damages applies to restore the value of the damage to the partnership in a marriage.
If you have been in an accident, you need a legal team to help you build your case. Speak to an attorney in your area with experience settling and winning personal injury cases. The biggest benefit of having an attorney on your side is that they can help you build your case to maximize its monetary value. To learn more about how an attorney can help, continue reading.
How Can an Injury Attorney Help Me?
Personal injury attorneys are advocates for their clients. Having an attorney working on your behalf can increase your chances of successfully receiving compensation for your injuries. Unrepresented clients are vulnerable to the tactics used by the insurance company that helps the company justify not paying injury claims. Attorneys can also assist in providing knowledge on what the stages of a personal injury case are.
Represent Your Injuries to the Insurance Company
Insurance companies are for-profit companies. Because insurance companies are for-profit businesses, their goal is to protect the bottom line. Insurance adjusters protect profits by avoiding payment of accident claims. To avoid paying an injured person’s claim, an insurance company may attempt to invalidate your claims.
Denying the severity of your injuries is one way that insurance companies avoid payment; another way is denying that their insured is responsible for your injuries. Unrepresented accident victims are vulnerable to these tricks. If counsel does not represent you, an insurance company may try to finalize a lowball offer by getting you to sign paperwork. It is in your best interest to speak to an experienced accident attorney before agreeing to a settlement offer from the insurance company.
Knowledge of Procedural Rules
Each state has a set of procedural rules you must follow. If a party does not comply with the state’s procedural rules, the court will dismiss their case. For example, every state has an important procedural rule: the statute of limitations. A statute of limitations is a deadline by which an accident victim must file a lawsuit or settle a personal injury claim with an insurance company.
Depending on the type of case, you may have more or less time to file a lawsuit. For example, in some states, a car accident victim may have one year from the date of the accident to file a lawsuit and four years to file a lawsuit for medical malpractice.
Having an experienced personal injury attorney removes the guesswork about compliance with procedural rules. By hiring an attorney, you can rest assured that your case will not suffer due to noncompliance with a procedural rule.
Access to Expert Witnesses and Other Resources
Every personal injury is a negligence case. In every state across the country, to win a negligence case, a plaintiff must prove duty, breach, cause, and damages. Proving causation often requires expert testimony. For example, a medical doctor’s testimony can prove that your injuries are severe. An accident reconstructionist can prove that the defendant caused your injuries.
A personal injury attorney has a network of expert witnesses to prove causation. It is unlikely that an unrepresented accident victim will have access to these resources, and it will be difficult to prove causation. If you have suffered an injury in an accident, contact an experienced personal injury attorney in your area immediately.
What Can I Do if I Cannot Afford an Attorney?
Most personal injury attorneys work on a contingency fee basis. A contingency fee agreement is a payment arrangement between an attorney and a client that defers any payment for legal services until the case finalizes.
The parties must set a contingency fee agreement in writing and sign it before any legal work may begin. The terms of the agreement must be explicit and understood by the client.
During your first meeting with the attorney, ensure that you discuss the percentage of payment that the attorney expects as payment if you reach a monetary settlement. Typically, a personal injury attorney will charge a percentage of the settlement.
Litigation costs are expenses incurred during the lawsuit. Examples of litigation costs include filing fees, postage, copying fees, deposition transcripts, mediation fee, and the money to employ an expert witness to testify on your behalf. A law firm may front these costs and get reimbursed at the end of the case, or the client may choose to pay litigation expenses as they arise.
How Do I Collect My Judgment?
Winning a personal injury lawsuit is only half of the battle. After you win a personal injury lawsuit, you must collect your money. Some defendants either refuse or cannot pay a judgment. In that circumstance, you may need to file a new action to receive your money.
Pursuing a garnishment action can ensure the defendant pays your judgment. Garnishment is a legal action where a plaintiff gains the right to a portion of the defendant’s regular income until a judgment is satisfied. Call an experienced garnishment attorney in your area to get representation in a garnishment action.
To avoid a new lawsuit, speak with the defendant or their attorney to schedule periodic payments. The defendant may not refuse to pay a lump sum, but they may lack the means to pay it. If that is the case, you may negotiate a periodic payment plan to receive your money promptly.
Contact an Attorney Today
Personal Injury Attorney, Jacob D. Lawrence
If you suffered an injury in an accident, call an experienced personal injury lawyer in your area. An injury attorney helps you put your best foot forward when presenting your case to a judge or jury. There is no reason to face an intimidating insurance company on your own or to guess what strategy will increase the value of your claim.
Contact an injury attorney today. Once you have the legal help you need, you can remain focused on your medical treatment and your physical recovery from your injuries. Leave your financial recovery to a legal professional.