After being in a car accident and suffering injuries, you may be working with a car accident lawyer to file a claim against the party responsible for the wreck or their insurance company. While all the paperwork is being prepared, investigations carried out, and evidence collected, you might be wondering what the result of this effort will be. You certainly want to know whether the amount you will receive will be enough to cover your losses and expenses. How much money can you expect to collect? Let’s find out.
Although the average settlement amount of a car accident claim in the United States has been estimated at $19,000, several factors will play a role in the final settlement amount for your case.
How much are your injuries worth?
If you suffered a spinal cord injury, including fractures, you may be looking at a settlement above $1 million. If you have whiplash or have injured some soft tissues, the payout may range between $2,500 and $20,000.
Injuries that involve the brain or the back are generally the ones where you can expect the highest settlement amounts, in many cases over $100,000. Concussions and rib fractures may result in payouts between $15,000 and $100,000.
How are damages calculated?
There are ways to know how much your case is worth. This value depends on the amounts of economic, non-economic, and punitive damages.
Economic Damages
Economic damages are easy to calculate since they can be verified through invoices, bills, estimates, assessments, projections, and other types of statements. They refer to expenses related to your medical care, to the income you may have lost by being unable to return to work or by having lost your job, your loss of earning capacity, economic benefits you may have lost, and property that might have been damaged in the accident.
Non-Economic Damages
Just as economic damages can be easily calculated, non-economic ones cover intangible losses. These may be pain and suffering, stress, anxiety, emotional distress, loss of consortium, loss of enjoyment of life, and others. None of them have a defined financial value, and it may fall upon the court to determine how much compensation you should receive as a result of what you are experiencing.
Punitive Damages
The court may order a defendant to pay punitive damages, also called “exemplary damages,” when the court finds that the defendant acted in a way that can be considered to be grossly negligent or if they displayed a total disregard for the lives of others around them.
The purpose of punitive damages is to punish the defendant for those actions and to make this an example of what can happen to those who engage in this reckless or negligent behavior. In cases involving car accidents, punitive damages may be awarded to defendants involved in hit and run or drunk driving accidents.
Caps on Car Accident Damages
There are some state-imposed limits on how much compensation a car accident victim can receive through a settlement. Car accident lawyer Henningsen recommends you talk to your car accident lawyer to find out what the cap might be in your case. Your lawyer will also help you put together a complete file to demonstrate the severity and extent of your injuries.
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