Some Damages Accident Victims Omit When Estimating Compensation- Guest Post

Accident victims end up suffering multiple injuries and property damages, leading to lengthy court battles and recovery periods.

If proven guilty, negligent parties are liable to pay full compensation to victims. Experienced personal injury attorneys can help fight for fair compensation, guide plaintiffs to avoid committing mistakes that might hurt their claims, and deal with tricky insurance companies.

Quite often, victims exclude damages that affect the overall compensation they receive. In this article, we’ll highlight some damages that victims can involuntarily leave out when estimating their compensation.

Certain Medical Bills

The court mandates the at-fault party to pay all accrued medical bills. However, they mostly settle expenses incurred after a victim’s first hospital admission, omitting other medical costs such as:

• Regular check-up fees
• Dosage/medication charges, especially if victims take medicine for an extended period
• Miscellaneous medical expenses, like consultation fees, whenever an issue arises with existing injuries

Victims can get all medical records from the hospital. Your lawyer can help retrieve the data and use it to negotiate for better compensation.

Loss of Income and Job Position

Depending on the severity of the injuries, a victim can temporarily or entirely lose their job and ability to earn an income. Moreover, specific jobs don’t guarantee a position when recovering from injuries. This is common in manual and minimal-wage jobs.

To address this issue, law firms collaborate with vocational experts to determine lost wages. Usually, the findings are presented to the court/jury or insurance company for a final evaluation.

Here are additional factors related to diminished income or job loss:

Lost Opportunities

Victims in line for a promotion or pay rise also deserve compensation for the lost opportunity. Unfortunately, most people do not consider this when estimating compensation and only worry about the lost wages. Have the relevant paperwork for proper coverage, or request your employer to testify on your behalf.

Diminished Lifestyle and Daily Expenses

Severe injuries can result in a lifestyle downgrade, with some victims struggling to cover their basic needs. Negligent parties are liable to cover your daily expenses until you’re back on your feet. This includes essential things like food and paying the caregiver.

Mental and Psychological Trauma

Severe injuries, long-term recovery periods, paralysis, or amputation can result in psychological issues like stress or depression. Therefore, you’ll need to see a therapist or psychologist for an extended period of time.

A lawyer can help you negotiate for the usually expensive mental health expenses. This can be part of future medical expenses.

Punitive Damages

Reckless and malicious behavior, such as overspeeding, drunk driving, and disobeying traffic rules that lead to accidents, attracts punitive damages. These uncommon charges are easily omitted when estimating the total compensation. The punitive damages cannot exceed double the economic damages incurred.

Conclusion

Undoubtedly, it’s easy to omit the explained damages, especially during self-representation. You might inevitably focus on certain things, like sustained injuries and property damages.

Hiring a credible lawyer helps you avoid making mistakes that may impact your personal injury claim. With their assistance, you can get the compensation you deserve.