You’re probably familiar with the economic damages associated with a personal injury case. You know, things like medical bills and property repair or replacement costs.
You may even be aware you can claim lost current and future earnings—but how familiar are you with non-economic damages? These are things without a tangible price, like pain, suffering, and mental anguish.
The legal perspectives on pain and suffering compensation can be complex. To help you navigate this part of your personal injury claim, here’s a closer look at non-economic damages and how they can fit into your case.
What is Pain and Suffering in a Personal Injury Case
You can’t put a price tag on pain and suffering, but this doesn’t mean you can’t receive compensation. Pain and suffering typically refer to the emotional trauma you can experience after an accident.
Some examples of pain and suffering in a personal injury case include:
- You may be experiencing emotional distress in the form of anxiety, panic attacks, depression, insomnia, and even PTSD (post-traumatic stress disorder), to name a few examples.
- Experiencing pain and discomfort, which can be either temporary or permanent.
- The loss of the ability to have an intimate relationship with your partner. While this is a common listed damage in wrongful death cases, it can also apply to your personal injury case. For example, your injuries may leave you partially or fully paralyzed.
- Loss of memory regarding the accident and events leading up to the collision, which can be temporary or permanent.
- Your life is negatively impacted by the accident, which can be from physical injuries, emotional distress, or a combination of both. Your decrease in quality of life can also be temporary or permanent.
Sometimes, being injured in an accident can unfortunately damage your reputation—while not common, it can happen. The defendant may try to damage your reputation in an attempt to discredit your personal injury claim. You may be eligible to receive compensation for the damage to your reputation.
Before you add slander and/or libel to your list of non-economic damages, check with your attorney. You may have grounds for a defamation case. If so, this case will be filed separately from your personal injury claim.
How Your Pain and Suffering Claim is Calculated
Even though you can’t place an actual price tag on your pain and suffering, it’s still possible to calculate the damages associated with your emotional distress.
To make figuring out what your claim is worth a little easier, the Northwestern University School of Law has a helpful guide. Remember, this is only a guide for calculating non-economic damages in Texas—these numbers do not bind you; they’re only suggestions.
The guide recommends using either a multiplier or per diem method to determine how much your pain and suffering are worth.
Using the Multiplier Method
Okay, so the multiplier method is basically what the name implies. The jury in your personal injury case assigns a number representing your pain and suffering, which is the multiplier used to calculate your non-economic damages.
For example, the jury first calculates your economic damages, including tangible damages like medical expenses, lost wages, and property damages. The jury next considers the severity of your injuries.
Your injuries are ranked on a scale, typically from one to five. Higher numbers indicate a more severe injury. Taking the total of your economic damages, the jury multiples it by the number assigned to your injuries, which gives you the compensation amount for your pain and suffering.
If you suffered a broken arm that heals without an issue, the jury may rank your injury as a 1.5. Your economic damages total $150,000. The jury will multiply the $150,000 by 1.5 to find your non-economic damages, so your total jury award is $225,000 for all listed damages.
Using the Per Diem Method
Chances are you know Per Diem is the Latin term for per day. If your injuries are temporary, your attorney may recommend using the per diem method.
Instead of assigning an injury severity rating, the jury looks at the number of days your injuries impacted your life. The jury will consider several factors when determining how much each day you’re injured is ultimately worth.
Remember, don’t be offended that strangers are assigned a value to your injuries and the associated pain and suffering. But this isn’t personal, it’s only a way for them to come up with the total amount you’ll receive in compensation. Some of the key factors the jury considers include:
- Injury severity
- The amount of pain, discomfort, and inconvenience the injuries have on your life
- How the injuries impact your social life, including relationships.
- Do your injuries negatively impact your job/career? For example, are you denied a raise or promotion because of your injuries?
- How long it takes your injuries to fully heal
If rehabilitation or psychological therapy is necessary, the jury will also factor this into their recommended compensation award.
How to Prove Pain and Suffering
Even if your pain and suffering are obvious, you still need to provide proof before a jury will even consider compensating you for your emotional distress. Some of the items you may be required to provide are:
- Medical documentation from a physician detailing the extent of your injuries
- Prescriptions for any medications prescribed to treat your physical and/or emotional injuries
- A personal written statement outlining how your pain and suffering is negatively affecting your life
If you are seeing a counselor or therapist for any mental distress caused by the accident, you may need to provide documentation. However, privacy laws still apply when it comes to physical and mental health conditions and treatments.
You can keep the information vague, but you’ll still need to disclose some facts. Your attorney will help you decide what’s relevant and which information is protected.
Let An Attorney Help Calculate Your Pain and Suffering Damages
While quantifying pain and suffering in monetary terms is challenging, it doesn’t negate your entitlement to fair compensation for these intangible damages.
By scheduling a consultation with an attorney, you can gain a clear understanding of how to effectively argue and quantify these damages, thereby enhancing your ability to secure the compensation you rightfully deserve.
