How Much to Ask For in a Personal Injury Settlement?
It can be complicated to figure out how much to ask for in a personal injury settlement. Here’s a helpful guide.
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Introduction
Personal injury cases happen every day – and they usually always involve someone trying to get compensated for injuries sustained due to someone else’s lack of care, lack of judgment, or negligence. These injuries can be life-changing and come at a high cost, both monetarily and otherwise.
If you have been injured and have filed – or will be filing – a personal injury case, it can be confusing to know just how much to ask for. Do you just focus on the medical bills? What if you are still being treated? What if you are no longer able to work? What if your family life has been uprooted at the expense of someone’s negligence? How do you place a value on something with isn’t monetary?
Let’s take a look at how personal injury settlements are valued so that you may have a better understanding of what you can expect from your case.
Common Personal Injury Cases
If you think about it, accidents and injuries can happen any time – and any place. Therefore, there are many different types of personal injury cases that make their way into the court system. A few of the most common are:
- Motor vehicle accidents
- Medical malpractice
- Wrongful death
- Premises liability
- Product liability
- Bicycle accidents
- Elder abuse
- Pedestrian accidents
- Dog bites/ animal attack
What Are Damages in a Personal Injury Case?
Different types of damages may be sought in a personal injury case. Compensatory damages are those that are intended to compensate the injured party for what was lost because of the accident or negligence. When it comes to a monetary loss, this is rather easy to do. But this isn’t as easy to do when it comes to things like pain and suffering. How do you value it?
Below is a list of the most common damages included in personal injury settlements.
Medical Bills. Medical care often takes up a big chunk of settlement costs. This may be for past, current, and future medical treatment. You should be reimbursed for this amount.
Wages. If your accident has impacted your income, such as income that you lost, loss of income altogether, or a loss of earning capacity, you should be entitled to this cost.
Property Loss. Depending on the accident or injury, you may have lost or damaged an automobile or other personal property that you should be compensated for at fair market value.
Pain and Suffering. For any pain and suffering that occurred after the accident and may even still be ongoing today, you could seek compensation. Working with an attorney can help you calculate this type of damage as it doesn’t come with a straightforward monetary value.
Emotional Distress. Some accidents – especially those that are severe – can have a negative psychological impact on the injured party. This means distress like sleep disturbances, anxiety, fear, panic, and so forth can be damaging to one’s quality of life – and thus result in being compensated.
Physical Impairment. Additional damages can be awarded if you suffer the loss of a limb or an organ, for example, as the result of the accident.
Loss of Enjoyment. If your injuries are disruptive to your enjoyment of life, such as things you have always enjoyed doing but can no longer do, like running, hiking, skiing, etc., you may be entitled to these damages.
Loss of Consortium. When the injuries from the accident impact one’s relationship or companionship, whether sexual or otherwise, it may be possible to be compensated for the loss of consortium.
Factors That Impact Settlement
Not all personal injury settlements are the same. For instance, if two different bicyclists get hit by two different cards, there are going to be two different sets of factors that come into play when determining what the settlement will be.
Generally speaking, you will want to look at the following to be able to try to determine a good settlement amount.
- Medical bills – past, present, and future
- Rehabilitation and therapy costs
- Lost wages – and loss of future income
- Pain and suffering
These are the basic damages that should be sought in a personal injury case as those who are injured often have medical expenses, including rehab and therapy, a loss of income, and, to some degree, pain and suffering.
But there are additional factors that should be considered, including:
- The extent of the injury and/or length of treatment. More severe injuries will obviously lead to a greater settlement.
- The cost of going to trial if the case doesn’t settle. There is still no guarantee you will get the full amount you are seeking if it does.
- The cost of legal representation. Most personal injury attorneys work on a contingency basis. So, whatever you receive from your settlement, a percentage of that goes to the attorney.
- Insurance policy limits. Depending on the type of injury, if insurance is involved, settlements usually cannot go above and beyond the limits set forth in the insurance policy.
Why You Need a Personal Injury Attorney
Having an attorney on your side that is experienced in personal injury cases is an absolute must if you want to be compensated justly and fairly – especially if the other side is represented.
Someone who has the experience and knowledge of personal injury cases – especially those similar to yours – can be a great advantage. They will be able to research your case and look at the verdicts and settlements of similar cases to be able to determine what your potential settlement may be.
Attorneys use either a daily method or a multiplier to get a better idea of damages. The daily method determines the value of your loss per diem, then multiplied by the number of estimated days of recovery whereas a multiplier adds up all the value of damages and then multiplies it by a number 1 to 5 depending on the severity of your symptoms.
Carefully going over your case and looking at all the angles, your attorney will calculate your best place to start with the settlement offer (which will often be a higher than the anticipated amount) – and then begin the negotiations.
Hopefully, your personal injury settlement will be cleared up quickly so you can move forward with life.
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