A serious personal injury can severely affect the victim. Not only can it lead to time off work, but also loss of wages, enormous medical bills, pain, and suffering, and a prolonged recovery. For most people with a serious injury, the total financial cost can easily be over $50,000. But what most victims would like to know is the personal injury lawsuit settlement amounts they could potentially anticipate receiving from the insurer and the courts to help them recover some of the money for these expenses. Unfortunately, there is no easy answer to this question because the compensation depends on many factors, of which the most important is the seriousness of the injury. Typically, the majority of Florida personal injury settlements can range between $5,000-$100,000, but some victims have received millions of dollars following a jury verdict and insurance settlements, especially if the accident resulted in catastrophic injuries and/or permanent disability.
What Factors are Involved in Determining the Amount of Settlement?
To get an idea as to how insurers and juries estimate the amount of compensation, below are some factors they consider.
Calculating the Damages
U.S. law divides compensation for damages into two classifications: economic and non-economic.
Economic Losses
In general, economic losses refer to any financial losses that you sustain as a result of the accident. The economic losses generally include the following:
- Past and future cost of medical care
- Any costs related to hospital or doctor visits
- Costs to repair your car or home
- Lost wages
- The estimated loss of future wages
- Fees for the lawyer
- Cost of rehabilitation
- Prescription medications
- Costs of mental health treatment
- Household assistance if you have become disabled
- Out-of-pocket expenses, like deductibles and/or copayments
Non-Economic Damages
Non-economic damages may include emotional anxiety or pain, damage to your reputation, humiliation, loss of enjoyment of activities, etc. In many states, these injuries are referred to as pain and suffering.
Other Factors that may Affect the Amount of Compensation
- The severity of your injuries: In general, the more severe your injuries, the higher the compensation. For example, a broken pelvis is considered to be a more serious injury than a dislocated shoulder and, consequently, the compensation should reflect that.
- The insurer: Insurers will usually minimize the amount of your compensation, no matter what type of injury you have. Many times, the insurer will even suggest that your injuries are not severe, and they usually have their physicians who will state that. In other cases, the insurer will claim that you were at fault and deny you compensation altogether.
- Long-term disability: For example, if your spine was injured and you are paralyzed and disabled, your compensation will be much higher because more medical and supportive care is required.
- Your age and health: In general, if you suffered a serious injury at a young age and become disabled, then you are likely to get a higher compensation compared to someone who was injured at age 70 and was retired.
- Income: if you were earning a six-figure salary working as a lawyer, doctor, or other high-earning professional, and got permanently injured due to the actions of a drunk driver, the courts will take into account your future earnings potential and likely offer you a higher compensation.
- Limit your insurance policy: Many insurance policies have a cap on the amount of compensation you can receive.
Comparative Negligence
Finally, one other factor that will affect the amount of compensation you receive is the Florida law on comparative negligence. In general, with many accidents, the fault is never clear, and one party may be more at fault than the other. As an example: you are driving on the road, see a cat run in the middle of the road, and suddenly apply the brakes. The driver behind you was following too closely and does not have time to react and rear-ends your car, resulting in significant damage. The jury may deem that you were at 20% fault for applying the brakes suddenly and the other driver was at 80% fault for following too closely. If an award of $10,000 is made, you will receive only $8,000 because you were at 20% fault. Therefore, if you have been injured, the amount of compensation will also depend on how much you were also at fault.
Conclusion
If you have been injured in an accident, the only way to get a rough idea of personal injury lawsuit settlement amounts is to speak with a knowledgeable attorney. An experienced personal injury lawyer in Florida will have dealt with all types of injuries and may be able to give you a rough estimate on Florida personal injury settlement amounts for which you may be compensated. Non-economic damages are hard to quantify and there is a cap on the amount of money you can receive for those.