Since suffering an injury in an accident I have decided to pursue legal action and wanted to know what is my claim worth for personal injury?
In order to answer the question “what is my claim worth for personal injury” it is necessary to understand the four main elements involved in a personal injury claim. These four elements are; general damages for pain and suffering, general damages for psychological trauma, general damages for loss of amenity and special damages for financial expenses — all of which will be outlined below. It is also important to take note that these four elements will not all always apply to individual cases and additional factors may also come into play.
General Damages for Pain and Suffering
The value of compensation you receive in regards this element is calculated by measuring it against the Book of Quantum — a publication which lists a variety of injuries and allocates various financial values depending on the severity of the injury, the length of recovery time and its permanence. It is then adjusted to take certain factors into account including your age, physical condition prior to the injury and, in certain situations, your sex.
General Damages for Psychological Trauma
This element of “what is my claim worth for personal injury” is a little more difficult to evaluate and you may have to undergo a psychiatric assessment to determine if you do, in fact, qualify for compensation as regards psychological trauma.
General Damages for Loss of Amenity
If you have suffered reduction to your quality of life, you may be able to include general damages for loss of amenity along with your personal injury compensation claim. For example, if you cannot partake in a leisure activity you enjoyed prior to the accident, or if you cannot perform day-to-day tasks. This element will be calculated by referring to previous amounts of compensation awarded in similar situations to your own personal lifestyle.
Special Damages for Financial Expenses
You may be able to recover any expenses or loss of income which can be attributed directly to the negligence of the person or entity responsible for your injury so that your financial situation will be no worse than it would be if the accident had never happened. You may qualify to include expenses for medical treatment, for example, or for the restructuring of your home – if you can provide receipts, invoices and other credible financial forms to justify those expenses.
Additional factors which may contribute negatively to the outcome of your claim and are sometimes called upon when asking “what is my claim worth for personal injury”, could be the issue of contributory negligence — where the potential plaintiff may have contributed to the cause of the accident or the extent of their injuries — or if the injured party accepts an unsolicited offer of compensation for the negligent party’s insurance company.
It is always in your best interest, therefore, to speak with a solicitor as soon as possible after an accident in which you sustain an injury occurs, who can assess your claim value and can subsequently advise you on how to proceed with a claim.
