What types of damages can accident victims recover?

A serious personal injury can cause long-lasting financial harm. Getting compensation can make it possible to avoid serious hardship and focus on getting better.

After an accident, you may be able to seek one or more types of damages.

Medical expenses

Personal injury claims almost always include medical expenses. Beyond emergency treatment, the expense of ongoing care and physical therapy can be considerable. Demands for the cost of care can include expenses that a health insurance carrier paid for, but providers may seek recovery for the amount of any claims that it paid to care providers.

Lost wages

Pain or immobility could keep you from working for an extended period of time. A demand letter that precedes a legal action should include a request for the wages that you are not able to earn. Bear in mind that a permanently disabling condition could entitle you to future lost wages.

Pain and suffering

The ordeal of an injury may entitle accident victims to compensation for pain and suffering. The physical and emotional trauma of an injury causes people to experience acute distress and could have long-term ramifications on their quality of life. If you sustained a particularly severe or debilitating injury, this class of damages may be an appropriate legal remedy.

It is important to recognize that everyone’s circumstances are different. Understandably, different people with the same injury would not necessarily incur the same type or amount of damages. A number of factors unique to your individual circumstances can bear on the total value of damages that you should pursue.