Why You Should Understand Pain and Suffering in a Personal Injury Case

Do I need a car accident lawyer blog image. Personal Injury case

If you or a loved one were injured in an accident, due to someone else’s negligence, you might be entitled to compensation for pain and suffering. A personal injury lawyer can help you get compensation for your pain and suffering. Learn more about what it entails to have a strong personal injury case.

What is a Personal Injury Case? Understand Your Rights

As a victim of a personal injury accident, you have the right to seek compensation for damages resulting from someone else’s negligence. This can include car accidents, truck wrecks, motorcycle crashes, pedestrian accidents, dog bites, slip-and-fall accidents, wrongful death claims, and more.

If another person is found liable for the accident, the victim might be able to collect compensation for medical bills, lost wages, and pain and suffering. Personal injury attorneys specialize in these cases and help victims and their families get the compensation they need to avoid paying out of pocket.

Woman holding her neck with a rear-end accident in the background. Pain and suffering claims in a personal injury case.

Physical and Emotional Pain and Suffering Compensation in a Personal Injury Case

Pain and suffering can be broken down in two categories:

  • Physical pain and suffering – This includes your current physical pain and suffering and the distress and discomfort you will likely experience in the future. Physical pain and suffering compensation might cover numbness and tingling in the extremities, back pain, nerve damage, traumatic brain injury, internal organ damage, and more.
  • Emotional pain and suffering – Mental or emotional pain and suffering encompasses all the emotional distress someone might experience, including shock, trauma, depression, fear, anxiety, dread, loss of enjoyment of life, and mental anguish.

Pain and Suffering Statistics in Personal Injury Cases

Though pain and suffering occur after all kinds of accidents, auto accidents are the most common personal injury accidents. If you or a loved one were injured in a car accident, Thompson Law can help.

Auto Accident Statistics in Texas

In Texas (2022):

  • One motor vehicle collision was reported every 57 seconds
  • One person was killed in an auto crash every hour and 57 minutes
  • One person was injured every two minutes and 9 seconds
  • The fatality rate for Texas roadways decreased by 1.99% from 2021
  • There were no deathless days on Texas roadways
  • There were 15,299 serious injury crashes

Examples of Pain and Suffering in Personal Injury Cases

Pain and suffering, both physical and mental, can occur after any accident. But since auto accidents are so common in Texas, let’s look at some examples of pain and suffering after a car crash.

  1. A person is involved in a severe accident where several bones are broken, and they sustain a concussion. After the accident, the victim experiences physical pain, depression, insomnia, loss of appetite, and anger. They also have mounting medical bills and can’t perform their job in the same way. The claimant receives help from both medical doctors and a therapist for their condition.
  2. A person is involved in a high-speed head-on collision. Though they walk away from the accident with a few broken bones and back strain, they develop nightmares, night terrors, insomnia, and a severe phobia of driving or riding in a vehicle. The victim receives medical help but is also diagnosed with PTSD after the crash.

In both cases above, the victims sustained physical injuries and experienced significant emotional distress. Depending on other factors and details of their accident, they could be entitled to compensation for physical and emotional pain and suffering.

Common Personal Injuries

At Thompson Law, we know that every personal injury case is unique. Our dedicated team takes the time to learn the extent of your personal injury damages and injuries so we can help you get fair value for your claim. With a Texas personal injury attorney on your side, you can focus your time and energy on recovering.

Common types of personal injuries include:

Medic doing cardiopulmonary resuscitation on a person laying down prone on a gurney while fire fighters try to extinguish a fire from a rollover auto accident. Pain and suffering in personal injury cases.

Emotional pain and suffering can be more challenging to calculate, but victims deserve compensation for losing their quality of life, short or long-term.

Consider a cyclist who can no longer enter triathlons, a mother who can no longer lift her small child or someone who can no longer perform their work duties or struggles with depression. No matter the unique circumstances of your case, a personal injury lawyer can help you get fair compensation after your accident.

Calculating Pain & Suffering in Personal Injury Cases

Many things are considered when assessing the degree of your pain and suffering:

  • The extent of the defendant’s negligent behavior, and whether punitive damages apply
  • The severity of your injuries
  • The level of physical and mental pain suffered typically caused by your type of injuries
  • How the injuries have impacted your life
  • Your employment and how it is affected
  • The state of your health and how long it could take you to heal
  • Your current and future medical treatment
  • The prognosis of your injury

Proving Pain & Suffering

Your personal injury attorney will help determine whether you have a case that qualifies for pain and suffering compensation. Many things must be collected and presented to make a personal injury case for proving your physical and mental pain and suffering.

  1. Medical Bills:  Bills which establish the financial burden placed on you by medical treatment.
  2. Medical Documentation:  Documents for any medical visits, including physical and mental therapy.
  3. Medical Testimony:  Written opinions from medical doctors and or mental health professionals regarding the nature of your condition and how it could impact your life in the long run.
  4. Expert Testimony:  Opinions from third-party medical witnesses that support the testimony provided by your doctor or therapist.
  5. Visual Injury Proof:  Before and after photos of your vehicular property damages to demonstrate a mechanism of injury are important, especially for accident reconstruction purposes. Further, any photos showing injuries after the accident and post-accident scarring, discoloration, or disfigurement will help prove pain and suffering.
  6. Medication List:  A list of any medications prescribed after the accident. Notes on which medications must continue long-term. This includes medicines for both physical and mental conditions.
  7. Personal Journal or Diary Entries:  A personal journal that outlines your day-to-day experience with your physical and mental pain, and how it has impacted you and affected your life, job, relationships, and mental health.
  8. Witness Statements:  Testimony from family and friends talking about how your injuries have affected you, changed your life, and affected the quality of your life.

Woman signing medical documents at hospital

A Personal Injury Attorney Can Help You

If someone else’s negligence caused your injuries, Thompson Law can help. You don’t have to fight your personal injury case by yourself. We’ll ensure you know your rights and develop a strategy for obtaining the financial compensation you need. Whether you’re dealing with hospital bills, lost wages, emotional distress, or physical pain, our attorneys are here to support you with a free consultation.

Call Thompson Law today to speak to an attorney about your case. After an accident, you shouldn’t have to face the negligent party or their insurer alone. We’ll handle the complex legal aspects of your case so you can focus on getting the care and treatment you need.

No Win No Fee for Personal Injury Case

Frequently Asked Questions Related to Pain & Suffering Damages

How soon do I need to get a personal injury lawyer after an auto accident?

It is advisable to contact a personal injury lawyer as soon as possible after an auto accident. Early legal consultation can help preserve crucial evidence, ensure proper documentation of your injuries, and provide guidance on the appropriate steps to take for your claim.

What is pain and suffering in legal terms?

In legal terms, pain and suffering refer to the physical and emotional distress that a person endures as a result of an injury. This can include actual physical pain, as well as mental and emotional anguish such as anxiety, depression, and loss of enjoyment of life.

Pain and/or suffering are considered non-economic damages, or general damages, meaning they do not have a precise monetary value like medical bills or lost wages. Courts and insurance companies typically evaluate the severity of the injury, the impact on the individual’s daily life, and the duration of the suffering when determining the compensation.

How is pain and suffering calculated?

Calculating pain and suffering can be complex, as it involves assessing non-economic damages that do not have a clear monetary value. Two common methods used by injury attorneys are the multiplier method and the per diem method.

The multiplier method involves adding up all the actual economic damages, such as medical bills and lost wages, and then multiplying this sum by a number typically between 1.5 and 5. The multiplier is selected based on the severity and permanence of the injuries – more serious or long-lasting injuries tend to have a higher multiplier.

The per diem method, on the other hand, assigns a specific dollar amount to each day the claimant experienced pain or suffering and then multiplies this daily rate by the total number of days the individual is expected to endure the suffering. This method relies on consistent and logical justification for the daily rate used, which can be tied to the claimant’s daily earnings or another reasonable rate.

How can a personal injury attorney help prove pain & suffering damages?

A personal injury attorney can help prove pain and suffering damages by gathering substantial evidence, such as medical records, expert testimonies, and personal statements, to demonstrate the extent of the claimant’s physical and emotional distress. They can also work with medical professionals to establish a clear connection between the injury and the claimant’s suffering. Additionally, an attorney can guide the claimant in documenting their suffering, ensuring that all relevant experiences and impacts on daily life are accurately recorded. This comprehensive approach helps present a compelling case for adequate compensation.

What is the average settlement amount for pain and suffering in a personal injury case?

The average settlement amount for pain and suffering in a personal injury case can vary widely based on several factors, including the severity of the injury, the impact on the individual’s daily life, and the favorability of jurors towards injury claimants in the county in which the case is being adjudicated.

Generally, pain and suffering settlements can range from a few thousand dollars for minor injuries to several hundred thousand dollars for more severe cases involving long-term or permanent disabilities. It is important to note that each case is unique, and the final settlement amount is highly dependent on the specific circumstances of the injury and the effectiveness of the legal representation.

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Thompson Law Guarantee

Thompson Law receives an attorney fee and you pay no legal fees as our client unless we pay you. Thompson Law has 350 years of combined experience in legal representation and has won over $1.8 billion dollars in cash settlements for our clients. We master the art of managing client cases with empathy, compassion, respect and, of course, prodigious skill. Contact us today for a free, risk-free consultation to discuss your accident and your options.

State law limits the time you have to file a claim after an auto accident. If you have been injured in an accident, call now to get the help you need.