How Personal Injury Compensation Can Help You Get Back on Your Feet
A serious injury can alter the ways you live your life. From medical bills and lost wages to suffering and pain, you may feel overwhelmed by the effects of your injuries.
Certain costs, like your medical expenses or lost wages, are easy to calculate. Some costs are subjective, like your suffering and pain.
Loss of wages
Accidents that result in a loss of income could be devastating. Many families rely on wages for basic living expenses, including mortgage or rent payments, food and utilities. In New York, injured workers might be capable of filing an injury claim against the driver who caused the accident to seek the cost of lost wages. A successful claim requires evidence that the injury is the cause of the wage loss and that it is directly linked to the accident.
The first step to calculate the loss of your wages is to determine the average weekly wage (AWW) that you earned prior to your injury. This can be done by looking at your past pay receipts. A lawyer can help collect the necessary documents to support your claim. Include both salaries if you have more than one employer, or have multiple sources of income. It is also helpful to include any other financial benefits you are receiving like bonuses as well as health insurance or retirement contributions.
Depending on the severity of the injury, you may be not able to return to work at all or can only return to a reduced capacity. If you are in this circumstance the insurance company will need to provide you with temporary benefits, like a weekly fixed payment which is based on a percentage of your average weekly wage.
You could be eligible for reimbursement for your paid time off (PTO) which you utilized during the time you were recovering from your injuries. The value of PTO is generally considered to be the equivalent of one day's salary.
Another factor to be considered when calculating your lost wages is the costs of any expenses related to work you incurred. This could include the cost of transport, meals or other equipment necessary for your recovery.
While workers' compensation can provide you with the medical treatment and compensation for missed wages, it cannot cover future lost earnings. If your injury prevents your from working in the same field or earning the same amount you earn, you may claim compensation by filing an additional claim known as "lost earnings capacity." You will have to prove that your injury has impacted your ability to pursue your desired career direction.
Medical bills
Many people are shocked when they see the costs of hospital visits, especially an emergency room visit. The cost of outpatient treatment can also be very high. This is because medicine is a profit-making business and the doctors must cover their expenses and earn a profit. In turn they are entitled to place a lien on your personal injury settlement or award in order to recover the amount they've been charged.
Medical bills are deemed to be a part of the claim for compensation for injuries caused by the negligent acts of another. They are usually refunded by the party responsible for the accident and their insurance company. However, during the pendency of a case involving a car accident, it is your responsibility to pay the medical bills.
After your personal injury protection (PIP) which has a limit of $8,000 or $2200, is exhausted, you can make use of the remaining health insurance coverage to pay your medical expenses. However, it is very important that you have your health insurance's contact information on file with the medical provider to make sure that these bills are paid for by them.
It is also important to confirm whether the medical professionals who treated you are authorized to do so by the Workers' Compensation Board. If they aren't you'll be accountable for paying the bills once you receive the personal settlement for your injury.
It is also important to inform your lawyer for accidents about the physical therapists, doctors and other medical professionals that you have visited. Your lawyer may not be aware of them and may not be able to collect the amounts owed from your settlement.
An injury lawsuit can assist you in recovering from the physical and emotional trauma that you have suffered because of the negligence of others. You could receive compensation for your injuries, or the loss of a loved one when you can prove that negligent party caused the injury. This includes medical expenses, lost wages, and other non-economic damages such as discomfort and pain.
Suffering and pain
Pain and suffering are difficult to quantify in terms of dollars. This is due to the fact that they are not economic damages, like medical bills or income loss. This is why it is essential to hire a skilled attorney who can explain to the jury how your accident has affected you. Evidence like witness testimony or copies of your medical records and photos can be helpful. But, describing to the jury how your injury has impacted your lifestyle and hindered you from engaging in activities and hobbies can be a major factor.
Your lawyer can use one of two standard methods to determine the amount of your pain and suffering, which are the Multiplier method or the Per Diem method. The Multiplier method totals up all the damages you've suffered financially and then multiplies that amount by a number that ranges between one and five, based on the severity of your injuries. The Per Diem method assigns an amount of money to every day you've been injured, and then multiplies that amount by the number of days it will take to recover fully. These are only two of the many elements that your attorney will consider to determine the most fair amount of settlement for your pain and suffering.
The pain and suffering of a person is not something that can be analyzed by a computer or an algorithm, so the personal injury case requires careful consideration of the particular elements that impact each victim's situation. It is also important to consider your emotional stress, mental discomfort and physical pain. auto accident injury includes feelings like depression, anxiety, and grief. Severe mental pain can even include PTSD, or post-traumatic stress disorder.
A psychologist or another expert can testify to the severity of your injury and how it has affected your life. This can be done via written reports or face-to-face testimony. The more details that you have the greater chance it is that your attorney will be able to secure you a greater amount of compensation for your pain and suffering.
You may sue someone who intentionally injured you, even if the majority of personal injury cases are caused by accidents. This type of negligence claim is known as a civil tort. While these kinds of claims aren't common however, there are a variety of civil torts that may be filed for, including medical malpractice, wrongful deaths and dog bite injuries and defamation lawsuits.
Damages
After an accident, a financial award can assist someone in getting back on their feet. It could also cover other intangible losses, such as pain and suffering. Typically the damage is paid by the defendant in an insurance settlement or by the judge or jury in court cases.
In general there are two kinds of damages: compensatory or punitive. Compensation damages compensate the plaintiff for actual costs and are available in almost every personal injury case. Punitive damages punish wrongdoers and deter future similar behavior.
When seeking compensation, it is crucial to include not just the losses that have occurred in the past, such as medical bills and lost wages, but also estimated future expenses and losses. This includes prescription drugs, future surgeries and any other costs that are not anticipated. It is important to also consider the impact of your injury on your quality of life. For instance, if you are unable to play with your children or engage in other activities you normally do, it is crucial to consider the loss.
Add up your expenses and wages missed to get a simple calculation of your losses from the past. To determine the cost of future medical expenses and earnings potential that are less, you'll require an official letter from your doctor stating how long you'll be absent from work and the average hourly rate. Then, you'll be able to divide the number of days between your date of maximum medical improvement and when you are expected to return to work by that daily rate to calculate estimated lost earnings.
In addition, if your accident has damaged your relationships with family members, you could be eligible to receive compensation for the loss of companionship, or "loss of consortium." This type of compensation is designed to ease the emotional pain caused by the effect an injury can have on your relationship with your spouse and other loved ones.
The pain and suffering of a person is difficult to quantify, but you are entitled to fair compensation. Often, this category of damages will be based on a judge or jury's decision, not on actual evidence. Your lawyer can explain it in detail and help you determine the amount of damages you're entitled to.