Personal Injury Non-Economic Damages Claims: Pain and Suffering
Did you know you may be entitled to non-economic pain and suffering damages beyond direct financial losses from personal injuries? For instance, if you’ve been injured in a car wreck and you’ve experienced physical or mental trauma causing anxiety or loss of ability to enjoy life, you may be entitled to thousands or hundreds of thousands of dollars in addition to repair and medical bills. The same may apply if you’ve suffered damage to your reputation or marriage as a result of personal injury. If you’ve been a victim of personal injury causing pain and suffering damages, here’s what you need to know to get the compensation you deserve.
What Are Non-economic Damages?
Non-economic damages, also known as pain and suffering or general damages in some jurisdictions, represent non-financial losses stemming from personal injuries. For example, the injured party may suffer physical pain, aggravation of prior injuries, physical disfigurement, physical disabilities, emotional distress, loss of enjoyment of life, reputational damage, or relationship damage (loss of consortium).
Non-economic damages contrast with direct financial damages, such as medical bills and lost wages. However, they can have financial consequences. For example, reputation damage can cost a business owner thousands or millions of dollars in revenue from lost customers.
What Are Some Examples of Pain and Suffering Damages?
To illustrate the concept of non-economic pain and suffering damages, let’s consider a few examples. Imagine an office worker who suffers a car accident that causes long-term neck and back pain and nerve damage. As a result of the damage, they are unable to sit and type at their job without pain. This chronic pain represents additional damages beyond the direct economic damage the victim incurred from medical bills for treating their injury.
To take another example, consider a victim of sexual assault who suffers post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). The victim may experience anxiety when leaving their home, difficulty in relationships, or temporary inability to work. These constitute non-economic damages that go beyond the violent crime committed against them.
To take a third instance, consider an individual who suffers damage to their reputation after being falsely accused of committing a crime and having their case reported in news media. The victim may experience social ostracization, inability to find work, lost business, humiliation, and anger. These non-economic damages aggravate the damage done to their good name.
Finally, consider the case of a wife with children who has lost her husband to a car accident or violent crime. The loss deprives the family of a husband and father, including his social companionship, the duties he was able to perform around the house, and any income he brought in. Additionally, the family may face medical and burial costs. These non-economic damages compound the injury of the original tragedy.
What Are the Different Types of Personal Injury Non-economic Damages?
Non-economic damages fall into a number of common categories. These include:
- Pain and suffering, both present and future
- Mental anguish, both present and future
- Loss of consortium
- Impairment of future earning capacity
- Fear of future economic insecurity
- Damage to reputation
Pain and suffering encompasses both physical pain and suffering and mental pain and suffering. Physical pain and suffering includes:
- Physical injuries
- Scarring
- Disfigurement
- Medical procedures to treat injuries
- Day-to-day recovery processes
- Physical disability
- Physical impairment
- Physical inconvenience
Mental anguish can include:
- Emotional distress
- Loss of enjoyment in normal pursuits and pleasures of life
- Anxiety
- Depression
- Mood swings
- Sleeplessness
- Appetite loss
Loss of consortium refers to damages arising from deprivation or impairment of benefits from a relationship. Traditionally, it involved damages stemming from loss or injury of a spouse, including present and future medical costs, loss of spouse’s services, and loss of a spouse’s love and companionship (loss of society). Today, loss of consortium laws vary widely by jurisdiction. In some jurisdictions, it extends to loss or injury of a child. It sometimes falls under other categories of damages, such as wrongful death. It typically does not include lost wages or income, although these damages can be claimed separately.
Impairment of future earning capacity involves reduced income expectations based on injury or emotional distress. For example, a warehouse worker who suffers a back injury may become unable to perform their job because they can no longer lift heavy objects.
Fear of future economic insecurity represents a type of mental anguish associated with expectations of impaired future earning capacity.
Damage to reputation occurs when false or malicious statements damage the character of a person or business in a way that harms them financially or socially. For instance, a business falsely accused of selling unsafe products may lose customers and income as a result.
How Do Courts Assess Non-economic Damages?
Non-economic damages don’t equate to a set price like economic damages, so courts must attempt to estimate damages. Commonly, attorneys and courts use two main methods to assess non-economic damage claims:
- The multiplier method
- The per diem method
The multiplier method adds all economic damages and uses a number between 1.5 and 5 to estimate pain and suffering damages. The multiplier number varies by factors such as:
- Type of damage
- Severity of damage
- Medical prognosis
- Whether permanent impairment resulted
- Recovery duration
- Diminishment of quality of life
The per diem method takes the same factor into account, but uses them to estimate a daily damage amount and projected recovery date. Multiplying the daily amount times the number of days between the injury date and recovery date yields pain and suffering damages.
In most cases, claimants use the multiplier method. Plaintiffs typically push for higher base amounts and multipliers, while defendants often argue for lower numbers by claiming the plaintiff is exaggerating damages.
How Much Do Courts Award for Non-economic Damages?
Insurance data shows that pain and suffering damages average about $15,000. This average reflects the fact that most claims involve minor injuries. However, damages can be significantly lower or higher. For serious injuries involving long-term damage, pain and suffering damages may run as high as $250,000 to $500,000 or more.
How Do You Qualify for Non-economic Damages?
Defendants will challenge non-economic damage claims by disputing the extent of damage. To make your case, you need to be able to demonstrate pain and suffering through documentation. Potential documentation can include:
- Medical bills and records that prove the nature, extent, and effects of injury
- Receipts documenting expenses stemming from damages, such as pay stubs and tax returns quantifying loss of income projections
- Written diaries, journals, or video blogs documenting daily physical and emotional pain and suffering, recovery processes, and recovery duration
- Witness statements observing pain and suffering experienced by the plaintiff
- Expert statements from qualified witnesses such as doctors, psychologists, or accident reconstruction experts
Specific qualification for pain and suffering vary by state. An attorney experienced with laws in your state can help you maximize your chances of qualifying for non-economic damages.
Call Shapiro Law Group, P.A. to Recover Your Pain and Suffering Damages
Pain and suffering claims require experienced legal representation to respond to objections of defendants’ legal teams and insurance providers. Shapiro Law Group, P.A. combines in-depth knowledge of Florida law with commitment to achieving optimal outcomes for our clients. We understand the stress and anxiety that follows a personal injury, and our team will help you navigate complex legal processes. We’re dedicated to protecting your rights and winning the compensation you deserve. If you need a Florida personal injury attorney to represent your non-economic damage claim, call Shapiro Law Group, P.A. today.
