There are several methods for calculating pain and suffering benefits for an injury. Ultimately, an experienced slip-and-fall attorney will be able to give you the most accurate estimate of what you may earn for the physical pain and emotional trauma you endure after an accident.
Pain and Suffering Compensation After a Slip-And-Fall Accident
Slip-and-fall accidents are personal injuries caused by a business or property owner’s negligence. Owners or their employees can leave obstacles sitting out in public places, like a grocery store, that can cause someone to slip or trip and suffer a serious injury.
A puddle or trash left on the floor could cause an accident and if someone gets hurt, the owner or corporate owners would be liable for the costs of the victim’s recovery. This would include things like medical expenses and lost income while the victim couldn’t work.
Victims may also seek “pain and suffering” support. It’s a legal term that represents the physical pain victims endure with an injury and may keep experiencing for years to come. It also covers the emotional challenges that victims face. This includes the anxiety and PTSD symptoms they experience after a frightening tumble. Victims may deal with depression while managing a difficult recovery for weeks or months. The loss of enjoyment of life victims experience would also play a role.
These elements in a personal injury case can be much harder to quantify, but they affect victims just as much as physical wounds and financial hardships. An experienced California slip-and-fall attorney could draw upon past cases and research to help you determine what you should demand for the pain and emotional trauma you’ve been dealing with.
Estimating the Value of a Slip-And-Fall Case
Unfortunately, giving you an immediate answer about what your injury and pain and suffering are worth would be difficult until the lawyer has heard about your accident and been able to investigate the business involved. Every accident and injury is different.
There are some factors that weigh heavily into how much you could receive for pain and suffering damages:
- How long your pain affects your life
- The level of pain you endure
- The cost of pain medication and pain management therapy
- How long you must deal with emotional trauma
- The effect of emotional distress on your life
- The cost of mental health care
Methods for Calculating Pain and Suffering in a Slip-And-Fall Case
There are a few ways that judges and juries and insurance adjusters might assess pain and suffering damages.
The multiplier method can be employed. This calculation totals all of your economic damages and then multiplies it by an agreed-upon number that signifies the level of pain and mental anguish you’ve endured. The multiplier might be anywhere from 1.5 to 5, with 5 perhaps representing someone who will have to endure lifelong pain with a severe injury. Economic damages of, for example, $10,000 could be multiplied by a pain factor of 2, coming out to $20,000. The victim would receive $10,000 to pay financial damages and $20,000 for pain and suffering.
The daily rate method allows you and insurance adjusters to reach an agreed-upon award amount for a single day of the pain and emotional trauma you must cope with. Then that number is multiplied by the number of days it takes you to reach a point of no pain or emotional symptoms. The total financial damages and the total pain and suffering would be added together to determine the size of a settlement check.
Contact a California Slip-And-Fall Lawyer After an Accident
It’s critical to have a good idea of what your slip-and-fall injury is worth so that insurance adjusters can’t get away with providing you with far less than you’ll need to recover.
Take advantage of a free consultation with Maison Law to discuss what you’ll need out of a Slip-And-Fall settlement check to have the best chance to heal and rebuild your life. Contact us today to talk to an actual lawyer. It’s a no-risk chance to learn about all of the tactics insurance companies will use to limit the support you receive.
If you feel we can help protect your case and maximize the compensation you receive, you don’t have to worry about having the money to hire a Maison Law attorney. We don’t get paid unless we win your case for you. Then our fee comes out of the settlement money an at-fault party is forced to provide.
