Can I Sue for Pain and Suffering for My Car Accident?

September 21, 2023

Often, one of the first questions people ask an attorney is what they can pay for after a car accident. Your damages stretch beyond just the money that you have directly lost. You can also be compensated for your experience. Perhaps the most significant element of your car accident damages is the pain and suffering you are living with after your accident.

Before you can even begin to discuss damages, you must first prove that the other driver was to blame for the car accident. The legal rule is that the other driver has the obligation to pay you for all your damages when their negligence caused your injuries. Your lawyer would investigate your car accident and assemble the necessary evidence to persuade the insurance company or a jury of the other driver’s fault.

Economic and Non-Economic Damages

Your car accident injuries will cause you several effects. On the economic side of the ledger, your car is damaged, and you may miss work. Plus, you may have significant costs associated with your medical treatment.

On the non-economic side, you have suffered physical injuries that will affect you. The injuries that you have sustained are painful in several ways. There is the physical discomfort you are feeling due to the accident. Your physical injuries could also cause you emotional difficulties. The physical pain could also cause you to experience depression. The physical injuries and your situation may also lead to anxiety. At the same time, you are also upset because you can no longer enjoy your life before the accident because of your physical injuries.

The responsible driver has a legal obligation to restore you to the position you were in before the accident happened. They cannot fix your health because their actions have already harmed it. They can use money as a substitute to pay you for what you lost because of their negligence.

Your pain-free existence and your peace of mind are things that you no longer have. They are part and parcel of your personal injury damages. Thus, they are something for which you can receive compensation. You can be paid for what you have endured and will go through in the future.

Pain and suffering is not an independent lawsuit. This is part of the damages that you would seek for your accident. Your physical injuries are the genesis of your car accident claim. Everything begins with having suffered an injury to your person or emotion.

Once you learn the extent of your condition, you could then work to obtain full and fair compensation for your injuries. In medical terms, you have reached the point of maximum medical improvement (MMI). You then have some visibility as to what your future may look like with your injuries.

How You Are Compensated for Pain and Suffering

The insurance company may calculate your pain and suffering damages in one of two ways:

• They will apply a multiplier to the cost of your medical bills based on the severity of your injuries. The more serious the injury, the higher the multiplier.
• If you have suffered an injury, you will recover soon; the insurance company may assign a per diem value to your pain and suffering.

Either way, the insurance company will likely not offer you enough money and not anything close to what you deserve. Your car accident lawyer would need to tell your story and show how you have been harmed and what you will experience in the future.

Contact a Baltimore Car Accident Lawyer at LeViness, Tolzman & Hamilton to Discuss Your Case

When you speak to a Baltimore car accident lawyer at LeViness, Tolzman & Hamilton, you will learn how much you may be due in a settlement. Call us today at 800-547-4LAW (4529) or contact us online to schedule a free initial consultation.

We have offices in Baltimore, Glen Burnie, Lanham, and Owings Mills, allowing us to represent clients in Maryland, including those in Anne Arundel County, Baltimore County, Carroll County, Harford County, Howard County, Montgomery County, Maryland’s Western Counties, Prince George’s County, Queen Anne’s County, Southern Maryland, and the Eastern Shore, as well as the communities of Catonsville, Essex, Halethorpe, Middle River, Rosedale, Gwynn Oak, Brooklandville, Dundalk, Pikesville, Nottingham, Windsor Mill, Lutherville, Timonium, Sparrows Point, Ridgewood, and Elkridge.