Personal injury lawsuits are some of the most common cases that go through the courts. Whether it’s from defamation or a car crash that wasn’t your fault, some costs add to the settlement. This number may seem randomly generated, but personal injury lawyers diligently and meticulously calculate it to get you everything you deserve while also covering their fees.
Here’s how these settlements are calculated and why the number might be far higher than you had to pay out of pocket.
Health and Hospital Costs
There’s no such thing as a free doctor’s visit in America. If you don’t personally pay for treatment or a copay, your insurance will have to pay it from the money you pour into it every month. A car accident attorney in Columbia, MO, will want to focus on how much you have to pay for your treatment after your crash. This could mean your hospital bills, or it could mean your therapy and chiropractor visit bills. All of this paperwork is poured over by your legal team to ensure every last cent is accounted for.
Damage To Property
This cost could mean your medical bills, but it also refers to the damage to anything you own. If a large truck hit you while you were transporting some fragile and expensive electronics, you can count that as property damage. The damage to your vehicle also needs to be considered since this will be the second-highest cost behind your hospital bills. Keep track of anything that you lose or that gets harmed during this accident.
Lost Wages
Did you have to take off work time because of this injury? You’ll need paperwork showing how much you made before the crash and then paperwork showing your wages since there. This information should be enough to pull together an average of your lost wages. It’s not your fault that you had to stay out of work for those days, and you shouldn’t be financially punished for something that’s not your fault.
If your case is for libel, lost wages can also refer to what money your company has lost because of public opinion change. A bad faith review or a cruel lie publicly spread can take down a company in just weeks. Instead of having to worry about how you’ll keep your company afloat, this type of personal injury suit can clear your name and win back some of that money.
Mental Anguish
No lawsuit exists without some mental anguish at the helm. This pain can weigh a person down and keep them from making the right decisions. Although you may feel like you’re okay, sometimes the impact of what’s happened doesn’t show up until you have to explain it in court. Mental anguish is usually calculated by adding up the rest of your settlement and multiplying it by three or four times. This space gives you wiggle room to win back the time you lost in the lawsuit and cover your lawyers’ fees.
