By If you’ve been injured by an actionof some other person or by the malfunction of a machine/product and are reading this, you want to know what compensation you are entitled to. Assuming you can prove that another person or business is liable for your injuries, there’re 2 parts to calculate the personal injury claims.
Firstly, youhave to determine what the personal injury claims are that you have. There are several classifications under which a personal injury claim will fall:
Actual Damages
These are the actual “out of pocket” costs or losses that you incur and include medical bills, loss of income, etc.
Specific Injuries
These are injuries to specific body parts such as a broken arm.
Pain &Suffering
This covers the pain that you endure and the temporary inability to do certain activities.
Future Claims
This covers all areas to which you should be compensated in the future such as future medical bills, permanent disability, etc.
Secondly, after you determine what personal injury claims you have, you need to place a value on each claim.
With actual damages, the evaluation is easy because it is the amount that you have paid, the cost that you are required to pay, or the amount of money that you actually lost. And you must have actually incurred the cost or loss. For example, if you have a friend or family member who is a doctor or nurse and he/she treats you, but does not charge you for the treatment, then you do not have a claim for the cost of the treatment. In case your friend or family member does charge you for the treatment, then you do have a personal injury claim for the cost of the treatment.
With specific injuries and pain and suffering, you need to estimate the value in the light of following questions;
- What is it worth to suffer a broken arm?
- What is it worth to be so sore that you cannot get out of bed?
There is not a set, ‘chiseled in stone’ amount or value for these injuries. And the value of the injury will actually vary from person to person. A broken right arm is worth more to a right handed person that to a left handed person.
With future claims, you will also need to estimate the value. Some future claims are easier to estimate than others. It is relatively easy to determine approximately how much income you will lose in the future, whereas, it is difficult to determine the value of future pain and suffering and future medical bills.
It’s general information only. If you have any questions about personal injury, talk with a lawyer licensed in your state.
