When you’re hurt in a car accident, you’ll likely file a personal injury claim to obtain compensation for all of your medical bills and property damage to your car and its contents. But there are other damages you can recover for, as well. It’s important when you file your claim that you take into account what you’ve suffered as a result of the accident.
The skilled Kansas City car accident lawyers at Peterson & Associates, P.C. understand that damages for a car accident can go beyond the high cost of medical care, and we appreciate the total impact of car crash injuries. Here, we discuss what’s referred to as “pain and suffering” and why this can be an overlooked but critical piece of your injury claim.
Table of Contents
- The Difference Between Economic and Non-Economic Damages
- Understanding Pain and Suffering Damages
- How Our Attorneys Will Help Prove Pain and Suffering Damages
- Factors that Impact Compensation for Pain and Suffering
- Pain and Suffering: Understanding Diminished Quality of Life
- Peterson & Associates, P.C. for Your Pain and Suffering
The Difference Between Economic and Non-Economic Damages
When you’re injured in a car crash, you may file a personal injury claim that includes compensation for economic damages. These are measurable, tangible, and quantifiable financial losses such as medical bills, follow-up treatment, lost wages, and property damage. Economic damages are generally more concrete and can be documented and more easily calculated.
Non-economic damages, however, are more subjective than economic damages. They relate to harm that can’t be easily determined with a calculator, such as pain and suffering, loss of consortium, damage to your reputation, disfigurement, and scarring.
Economic damages are usually intended to help restore a person to their original condition; non-economic damages are a type of compensation for what the injured person experiences mentally and emotionally after the crash.
Understanding Pain and Suffering Damages
When you experience broken bones, head trauma, or spinal cord damage in a car accident, the injuries are often obvious and need immediate medical attention. However, many crash victims experience another type of “injury”—emotional and mental distress, also called pain and suffering. This can include post-traumatic stress, depression, insomnia, and anxiety. Pain and suffering includes the psychological trauma you experience because of the accident and can include the following:
- Emotional distress, including anger, grief, and fear
- Loss of sleep due to emotional trauma or ongoing physical pain
- Inability to participate in the activities and hobbies you once enjoyed
- Changed or strained relationships with your family members and friends
- Diminished quality of life and enjoyment
Calculating Pain and Suffering Damages
Missouri law does not provide a specific formula to calculate pain and suffering damages. Instead, the jury is instructed to use their "common knowledge and experience" to decide what amount is fair and reasonable to compensate the plaintiff for their intangible losses.
Each of these can change an accident victim’s life; however, there are typically no bills or receipts to quantify the financial toll they may take on the victim. Thus, it’s difficult to calculate compensation for these types of damages. However, there are a couple of general ways to help make this determination:
Multiplier Method
To arrive at a numerical number for your non-economic damages, one approach is a multiplier method, which assigns a number between 1.5 and 5 based on the severity of your injuries. Then, this number is multiplied by your economic damages. However, this method doesn’t always value the total extent of a victim’s pain and suffering. Our experienced lawyers know how to document your damages and negotiate for fair car accident compensation that includes all non-economic damages.
Per Diem
The term "per diem" is Latin for "per day." In the per diem method, a value is placed on the daily expense of the pain and suffering, which is then multiplied by the number of days it took an injured victim to recover. In general, this approach assigns a dollar amount to each day of pain and suffering. For example, if the daily value is $200 and the recovery period is 10 days, the total pain and suffering claim would be $2,000.
How Our Attorneys Will Help Prove Pain and Suffering Damages
Proving the full impact of the crash on your physical, mental, and emotional health is critical for recovering damages for pain and suffering. Our attorneys may use any of the following types of evidence to support your claim:
- Medical records that detail your condition, the severity of your injuries, treatment, and prognosis for the future
- Photos of your injuries at different phases of healing
- A journal you keep that describes all of your symptoms and how pain and limitations have changed your life
- Testimony from medical experts about your injuries now and expected limitations in the future
- Mental health records diagnosing depression, anxiety, and/or PTSD
- Statements from family and friends on how the crash has negatively impacted you
Our attorneys will use as much documentation as possible, so it’s important that you take photos, keep a journal, and attend all your doctor appointments. Keeping your lawyer up to date on your recovery will help them better understand your pain and suffering.
Factors that Impact Compensation for Pain and Suffering
There are many factors that can impact the amount of compensation you might receive related to pain and suffering, including the following:
- If your injuries are severe and/or permanent
- The liable driver’s percentage of fault
- Your age and pre-accident health condition
- How your injuries have impacted your daily life and relationships
- The skill and experience level of your personal injury lawyer
- Whether your case settles out of court or goes to trial
In general, victims with more serious, long-term injuries tend to receive higher pain and suffering awards than those with minor injuries. A knowledgeable Kansas City car accident lawyer can evaluate your case and provide an estimated range of damages you may recover.
Pain and Suffering: Understanding Diminished Quality of Life
Providing documentation about how the accident has negatively impacted your life can help our attorneys help you. Part of that documentation should include the way the crash has diminished your quality of life. This refers to your loss of enjoyment of life and your inability to participate and derive pleasure from the activities and interests that you loved and felt were important before you were injured.
For example, if you hurt your arms and/or hands and now live with chronic pain or a permanent injury and were an avid golfer or loved to play tennis, you may never be able to participate in those sports again. Or, if you suffered leg injuries or spinal damage, you may have to give up any number of activities that involve walking, running, or standing. The psychological trauma of these changes and inability to enjoy what you once did can be a devastating loss.
Your life can also be diminished because relationships with family members and friends can also suffer if you’re injured in a car crash. If you have constant pain or PTSD, you may withdraw from your social groups or evenings out. Because of certain physical limitations, you may feel frustrated or anxious and react inappropriately or in ways your family members aren’t used to. You may even be reluctant to drive.
Your injuries may also impact your marriage and the closeness you share with your spouse. If you suffered a traumatic brain injury (TBI), your personality may change, and your spouse may not understand these changes.
When you document the activities you can no longer do and the relationships that have suffered, you can demonstrate the significant effect of the accident on your overall happiness and well-being. This evidence is crucial to recovering the pain and suffering damages you need to move forward with your life after a crash.
Peterson & Associates, P.C. for Your Pain and Suffering
Quantifying non-economic damages can be challenging. It’s not always easy to calculate the loss of a relationship, the frustration and depression you feel because your life has changed, or the anxiety that keeps you awake at night. However, our attorneys understand that any negative consequences to your life after an accident should be compensated. Our skilled attorneys will work tirelessly to determine the total impact of your car crash—including both economic and non-economic damages. At Peterson & Associates, P.C., we’ll negotiate for a settlement that compensates you for all your injuries, including pain and suffering. Read our case results to learn how we have helped clients with their personal injury claims.
