There is a dangerous misconception that getting injured is like winning the lottery, or that people get more money than they need or deserve in personal injury lawsuits. That isn’t true.
The amount of money you get in any personal injury lawsuit is supposed to cover all your medical bills AND any future medical bills related to your injury, plus the money you missed out on making because you were hurt and couldn’t work. It is also compensating you for your pain and suffering, and this is where most of the “extra” money comes into play.
Injury claims are supposed to compensate you for ALL your damages, and the pain and suffering you experience because of an injury are very, very real damages. Unfortunately, pain and suffering are much harder to put a dollar value on than other types of damages.
What is Pain and Suffering?
Pain and suffering can include a wide range of physical, emotional, and mental damages after an injury. This type of compensation is meant to make up for the changes in victims’ lives because of their injuries. Some of the most common types of pain and suffering that are eligible for compensation include:
- Physical pain
- Depression
- Anxiety
- Insomnia
- Post-traumatic stress
- Loss of enjoyment of life
- Inability to enjoy former hobbies
- Inability to complete daily tasks
- Loss of spousal intimacy
- Damage to relationships with friends and coworkers
- Changes in personality (such as after a severe head injury)
- Humiliation (such as after a disfiguring or disabling injury)
Personal injury lawsuits are intended to put things right after a serious injury. Because their injuries and everything that comes with them are the result of someone else’s negligence, injury victims also deserve compensation for these damages.
Related Reading: Can I Sue for Pain and Suffering If I Wasn’t Physically injured?
Your lawyer can collect testimony from medical providers, people who have known you since before the accident, and from your own word to help prove how your injury has negatively impacted your life. Keeping a daily journal post-injury is a good way to document this.
How Are Pain and Suffering Damages Calculated in Georgia?
When you send your demand letter for your personal injury claim, your lawyer will request how much compensation you want for pain and suffering as part of the settlement. However, if your claim goes to trial, ultimately the judge or jury will be the one making the decision of how much money you get for your pain and suffering.
Two methods often used to determine pain and suffering compensation include:
- The “Multiplier” Method: A “multiplier” between 1 and 5 is chosen based on the severity of your injury, with more severe injuries rating higher numbers. Your economic damages (damages other than pain and suffering) are multiplied by this number to get your pain and suffering compensation amount.
- The “Per Diem” Method: This method provides a set amount of money per day for each day it takes to recover from your injuries. For example, if the court decided to give you $100 per day, and you needed one year (365 days) to recover, they would offer $365,000 in pain and suffering damages.
However, there is no one formula that always applies when it comes to calculating pain and suffering damages in Georgia.
How Can I Get More for My Pain and Suffering?
Both the “multiplier” and “per diem” methods can be blunt, without a lot of room to customize the compensation amount to the victim’s needs. The more severe your pain and suffering, the more compensation you deserve. Your lawyer’s job is to communicate to the jury, through both evidence and persuasive argument, how severely your injuries have affected your life.
In addition to the length of time needed to recover and the amount of pain victims suffer, other factors that may be taken into consideration include the general health of the victim before their injury and the age of the victim. For example, younger people are often eligible for more compensation, especially if the injuries are disabling or permanent, since they were likely more physically and socially active before the injury, and/or will have to live with the injuries longer.
At the Law Offices of Gary Bruce, we always fight to make sure that our clients get the full amount possible for what they’ve suffered because of their injuries.
You’ve Suffered Enough. Call Gary Bruce Today.
Injuries are not just expensive, they are traumatic. Even minor injuries are painful and inconvenient, while serious injuries can upend lives in ways that victims may never fully recover from. When your injury is the fault of someone else, compensation for your pain and suffering is the very least that you are owed.
Contact our Georgia and Alabama personal injury firm today to learn how we can help you get compensation for your pain and suffering after an injury.