When you have been injured in a car accident caused by the negligence of someone else, you have a legal right to pursue compensation for your losses. Recoverable losses include both economic and non-economic damages. Economic damages include things like medical expenses, the cost of future medical care, and lost wages. They are said to be economic due to the fact that they are fairly easy to calculate based on things like outstanding medical bills. There are usually numbers on bills and receipts that you can point to in order to show your economic damages.
What about non-economic damages? Non-economic damages, while representative of real loss and harm suffered by an injury victim, do not have these kinds of concrete numbers to support a damage award. Non-economic damages include pain and suffering damages. These are damages meant to compensate you for things you “went through” as a result of being injured in an accident. It is compensation for the pain you have endured, the discomfort you may continue to endure, and the mental and emotional impact all of this can have on you. How are pain and suffering damages proven? How are they calculated? These are all good questions that we will discuss in further detail here.
To show pain and suffering that has resulted from injuries sustained in a car accident, you need to provide supporting evidence. This evidence can take on a number of forms. Testimony from the injury victim, as well as family and friends of the victim, can be compelling. Keeping a journal of your experiences after an accident, the treatment you had to undergo, the pain you live with, and the impact on your daily life, can be helpful and be used as a reminder to you should you need to testify. Testimony from your treating medical professionals can also act as evidence to support pain and suffering damages.
Your medical records and testimony from medical experts will be critical to your claim for pain and suffering damages. That is why it is so important for you to be clear with your doctors about the symptoms and pain you are experiencing as a result of your injuries. This will not only lead to more effective treatment of your injuries but will help you to later support your claim for pain and suffering damages. Make sure you are checking with your doctor to see that your reports of the pain you are experiencing is in medical records as this can be critical evidence used later on.
There are several methods that can be used to actually calculate a pain and suffering award. The most commonly employed method is the multiplier method. The multiplier method uses the actual damage award amount and multiplies that times a multiplier, which generally ranges from 1.5 to 5, in order to come up with a projected pain and suffering damage amount. The multiplier will be selected based on factors such as the severity of the accident and the severity of the resulting injuries.
New York City Personal Injury Attorney
If you have been injured in a car accident, find out more about your legal right to receive compensation for the harm you have suffered. Michael J. Redenburg, Esq. P.C. will not only answer your questions but fight for you against insurance companies that may try to prevent you from recovering the compensation to which you are entitled. Contact our office today.
