Calculating Personal Injury Compensation

When you are injured in an accident caused by negligence, you can seek fair compensation for expenses and damages that are related to that accident. Determining what is the fair monetary amount for your claims is the first part of the process of calculating Personal Injury compensation. It is an important element of your case and should be done as soon as possible, with help from an experienced California Personal Injury Lawyer for best results.

Personal Injury Lawyer

Your experienced Personal Injury Lawyer will have the knowledge and skill you need to successfully gain compensation for your accident injuries. Being harmed due to someone else’s careless or negligent behavior will set you back in many ways, but it is justice that you obtain fair compensation for all the expenses and non-economic damages that accident caused you to endure. This legal professional has in-depth experience with this area of law practice and is best able to help you get through negotiations, settlement talks and a court trial, when needed, to obtain the monetary compensation you deserve.

Personal Injury Claims

Personal Injury claims from accidents include a broad range of items, some economic and others non-economic. These two classifications include all the expenses you incurred for medical treatment and recovery, and related damage claims for property. Medical costs, follow-up treatment, therapy and rehabilitation services, equipment costs, work loss and job retraining are just some costs people attempt to recover via a personal injury lawsuit. Pain and suffering are non-economic damages that are more difficult to calculate. Survivors also are allowed to seek compensation when their loved one is killed in such accidents. They can claim lost income as well as loss of their companion and guardian, plus other expenses related to that wrongful death.

Steps Used for Calculator of Compensation

The steps to follow for obtaining fair Personal Injury Compensation begin at the accident scene. Here is a short guide for calculating these amounts, based on typical cases that insurance adjusters may have presented by injured victims and their attorneys. Those insurance adjusters will have some type of formula to follow on their side of the argument, but they will not reveal this information to you. You should do the same, and keep your basis for calculations private. Any formula is not set in stone; a range of variables will apply in each individual case.

Before making any claims, make sure you have done each of the following:

  1. Establish Liability – Duty, Breach of Duty and Actions that caused your injury are elements of determining liability. This is the most essential part of your claim; the person, persons or entity that bears responsibility for your injury accident are the ones who you want to get compensation from. Your attorney can be most useful in tracking this when there are multiple parties involved. For example, if the person who hit you was texting while they were driving, but that caused them to run a stop sign and then they hit you because their brakes failed, you may be able to claim compensatory damages from both the driver and the company that produced or installed defective brakes. Even if you were partly to blame, you can obtain a percentage of damage claims from the defendants in your case. An essential part of any negotiation or trial is proving liability.
  2. Documentation of Injuries & Damage – This will include all Police Reports, Photos, Witness Statements, Doctor Records, Repair Bills and other proof of financial costs.
  3. List of Claims – Make a list of all your accident related medical expenses, property damage, actual lost earnings, estimated future lost income and expected future medical expenses. These are your Economic Damages. Pain and suffering is considered a Non-Economic Damage; it must be calculated separately.
  4. Punitive Damages – In some cases where carelessness or deliberate harm is evident, there may be additional punitive damages. You may need to go to trial to have a jury assess this amount; your attorney may be able to negotiate additional payments if the insurance company does not want to risk a court trial.
  5. Calculate Damage Claims – Use the multiplier for general economic damages to estimate your non-economic damages. Claims may be reduced if you were found to be partially at fault, because California is a comparative negligence state.
  6. Calculating Compensation – Once you have all the above information gathered, it is time to do your estimation of what appropriate compensation will be for your claims.  The general formula runs from 1.5 to 5 times the total amount of economic damages as the estimate for non-economic damages. The value of the multiplier will be based upon your claims of pain & suffering, the provable extent of your injuries and estimates for future potential need for medical care and pain & suffering.
  7. Next Moves – When you have assembled all the above materials and have made your own estimate of the amount of compensation that would satisfy you, it is time to move forward. Work with your attorney to set up settlement negotiations or mediation meetings. You may also go to arbitration where the attorney acts as judge, or file an official lawsuit. If attempts to reach an agreeable settlement fail, you and your attorney will be ready to proceed with a courtroom trial. These preparations will serve you well before any judge or jury that hears your case or a later appeal.

Calculating Compensation

Once you have all the above information gathered, do your estimation of what appropriate compensation will be for your claims, within any statute of limitations.  The general formula runs from 1.5 to 5 times the total amount of Economic Damages as the estimate for Non-Economic Damages. The value of the multiplier will be based upon your claims of pain & suffering, the provable extent of your injuries and estimates for future potential need for medical care and pain & suffering.

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