After a car crash, you may face numerous challenges, including physical pain, financial stress, and emotional strain. If another driver hit you and caused significant injuries that have left you unable to work while you heal, you may wonder whether you have any legal recourse. A personal injury attorney from Robinette Legal Group, PLLC, can help you fight for the financial recovery you need to restore your life after a devastating crash.
What Factors Affect Car Accident Compensation?
The amount of compensation you might recover in a legal claim will depend on various factors, such as:
- The type and severity of your injuries
- Whether you miss time from work
- Whether you suffer prolonged or permanent disabilities
- The duration of your medical recovery and the types of treatment you receive
- The parties who bear liability for your injuries and losses
- Whether you share any responsibility for causing the car accident
- The availability of insurance coverage
Compensatory vs. Punitive Damages
In car accident lawsuits, juries typically award injured accident victims compensatory damages, which reimburse plaintiffs for financial and personal losses they incur due to injuries and property damage. However, in rare cases, juries may also award punitive damages to car accident victims. Punitive damages do not compensate an injured plaintiff for their losses. Instead, they punish an at-fault party for egregious behavior that caused an accident and dissuade others from engaging in similar conduct. For example, punitive damages may be awarded in cases involving impaired or reckless driving.
Economic vs. Non-Economic Damages
Compensatory damages in a car accident case fall into two categories: economic and non-economic damages. Economic damages reimburse a car accident victim for financial losses they incur due to the crash, including car repair/replacement expenses, medical care, and lost income. Non-economic damages provide money to a car accident victim for personal losses and emotional suffering they endure due to the crash and any resulting injuries or disabilities.
How Are Pain and Suffering Damages Calculated?
In car accident cases, pain and suffering settlement amounts typically depend on the severity of an accident victim’s injuries. Courts instruct juries in personal injury cases to use their common sense and personal experience to put a dollar value on the pain and suffering endured by an injured victim. The insurance company may use other methods to calculate pain and suffering compensation, such as the multiplier or per diem methods.
Average West Virginia Car Accident Settlements
A West Virginia car accident settlement can provide an injured crash victim with compensation for financial and personal losses they suffer due to injuries and property damage through a personal injury claim, including for:
- Medical bills, including treatment and rehabilitation costs
- Costs of long-term disability care
- Lost wages/income during recovery or lost future earning capacity due to disabilities
- Pain and suffering
- Reduced quality of life caused by disabilities
- Car repair expenses or reimbursement for the value of their totaled vehicle
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Contact Our West Virginia Car Accident Lawyers for a Free Consultation
Following a car accident caused by another driver’s carelessness, you deserve compensation for your injuries and aggressive legal assistance to help you recover. Contact Robinette Legal Group, PLLC, today for a free initial case evaluation with an experienced West Virginia car accident lawyer to discuss your legal options for pursuing a car accident claim.
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