It isn’t uncommon to suffer personal injuries after being in an accident that wasn’t your fault. This leads to bills piling up from medical treatment or perhaps missing work. If you have suffered an injury from an accident, you are most likely owed damages to help pay for these bills.
When someone is negligent in an accident, they must be held accountable. This is when a personal injury case comes into play. It is always in your best interest to speak with a Philadelphia injury attorney to get know your options and how to move forward with a claim so that you can get the compensation you deserve.
What are considered damages in a personal injury case?
When you win a lawsuit, you are often times awarded damages. But what exactly are considered damages? Damages are defined as the money you get compensated for to help cover things like medical bills, lost wages, even pain and suffering after being involved in an accident. Keep in mind that there are certain states that do set limits on the amount of damages you are allowed to be awarded in a personal injury case.
There are two different types of damages that can be awarded. Economic damages are to pay for things like medical bills, wages and income loss or any property damage costs that stem from the accident. In terms of medical bills, this could include ambulance fees, emergency room bills, bills for surgery, physical therapy, medications, doctors’ appointments, consults with specialists and other costs that have accumulated because of the injury. This also includes any time off that had to be taken resulting in lost wages. Or if property was damaged in the accident, like your car after a car accident, you can also get compensated. The other type of damages–non-economic damages, are for things like pain and suffering. After an accident, you may have experienced pain from your injury causing you to suffer. Your injury might have also led to a chronic illness that will linger. Emotional pain and mental pain like fear, grief and insomnia are also taken into consideration. If you experience any of these, you might be able to be awarded a small amount. However, you could end up receiving a large settlement, which will depend on the severity of the situation.
There are some common methods that are used to determine the amount of damages you could receive. Many use a computer program that takes the types of injuries into consideration along with any medical bills or treatment costs to calculate a claim for the damages. Also, taking the total amount of damages that include medical bills and loss of wages and then multiplying that by a number ranging from 1 to 5, depending on the actual severity of the injuries and suffering is another common method. The “per diem” approach is less common and requests that a certain amount, for example $100, to be paid each day until the maximum recovery has been reached.
Since there is no official way to determine the amount of damages you could receive after an accident, work with a trusted personal injury attorney. They will be able to provide the evidence needed to prove negligence was the cause of the accident leading to your injuries. During your personal injury case, your attorney will do all of the work to gather medical bills and documents that can help them try to calculate just how much in damages you deserve. This amount will not always be awarded, but your attorney will do their best to convince the court that you deserve the full amount and do everything in their power to make sure you are awarded a fair amount.
Edelstein Law
If you are looking for a trusted and reliable Philly accident lawyer, Edelstein Law specializes in personal injury cases. The skilled personal injury attorney at Edelstein Law will focus on your case while aggressively fighting for you. Edelstein Law is conveniently located in Philadelphia and has in-depth knowledge and experience to fight for you from the beginning of your case to the end, never settling for less than you deserve. While you are recovering from your accident and injuries, the extra stress of receiving the damages you are owed can be a burden. With the help of Edelstein Law, their legal team will take care of your entire case so that you can direct all of your energy on healing!
