If you or a loved one is seeking compensation after an injury, you may be seeking both economic and non-economic damages. A personal injury lawyer can help you pursue the financial compensation you deserve. You may be familiar with economic damages, compensating you for the financial harm you suffer.
Non-economic damages are more difficult to ascertain. These types of damages are designed to compensate you for how an injury changes the quality of your life or how an accident impacts your ability to enjoy your family and relationships.
Below are some examples of non-economic damages and how they are determined.
Damages After an Accident
Generally, compensatory damages after an accident (e.g., a car accident) are divided into two categories: economic damages and non-economic damages.
Economic Damages
Economic damages are easier to identify and are more closely related to your specific losses. In some jurisdictions, economic damages may be called special damages. These damages are available to compensate you for how an injury affects your finances.
Economic damages may include:
- Past and Future Medical Expenses
- Property Damage
- Lost Income
- Diminished Earning Capacity
You typically need to provide documentation to prove your economic damages. For instance, your medical bills, wage and salary documentation, and repair estimates for damaged property will be important.
Non-Economic Damages
Non-economic damages are sometimes called general damages. These damages provide compensation for the harm that flows from your injuries. Insurance adjusters and juries must infer your non-economic damages based on the nature of your injuries.
Understanding Non-Economic Damages
Non-economic damages encompass a variety of losses. Unlike economic damages, which are tied to specific financial costs, non-economic damages address the intangible impacts of injury. While you don’t have to prove each type of non-economic damage to receive compensation, presenting evidence can increase your damage award.
Here are some common examples of non-economic damages:
Physical Pain
Experiencing pain can drastically affect your daily life. Your sleep may be disrupted, or you may have difficulty working. Any impact to your quality of life due to physical pain can be a component of non-economic damages.
Mental Suffering
After an accident, you may face mental health challenges like nightmares, anxiety, or depression. Some people even have flashbacks, lapses in concentration, or memory issues. These mental burdens can also contribute to your non-economic damages. The cost of therapy or counseling would be considered a part of economic damages, but your mental distress itself is a non-economic damage.
Inconvenience
Injuries can cause significant disruptions to your daily life. You may need assistance with transportation, or it may be difficult to perform ordinary tasks like cooking or cleaning. The inconvenience stemming from your injuries can also be compensated as part of your non-economic damages claim.
Loss of Activities
Injuries can also prevent you from taking part in activities that you once enjoyed, like:
- Exercise
- Hobbies
- Travel
- Family or Community Events
- Work
The inability to participate in these activities can impact your life in a significant way. If you are unable to continue these activities, this can be a basis for claiming non-economic damages.
Calculating Non-Economic Damages
Although non-economic damages are abstract, they must be quantified. The value assigned considers the severity of the injuries, with more serious injuries leading to higher non-economic damages.
Courts use several methods to calculate non-economic damages:
The Multiplier Method
In this approach, a multiplier is applied to the sum of your economic damages based on the severity and duration of your injuries. Multipliers can range from 1.5 to 5.0, with higher multipliers for more severe or long-lasting injuries.
For example, if your economic damages were $20,000 and the multiplier was 2.5, your total damages would be $50,000. Of this amount, $20,000 would cover economic damages, and $30,000 would be allocated to non-economic damages.
The Per Diem Method
Under this method, a daily value is assigned to your non-economic damages. This daily value is multiplied by the number of days your injury lasts. For instance, if a daily value of $100 is assigned and your injury persists for two years, your non-economic damages would total $73,000. Adding your economic damages gives you the total damage award.
Proving Non-Economic Damages
While non-economic damages are often presumed, presenting thorough evidence can improve the likelihood of receiving fair compensation. For detailed insights into the non-economic damages that might be relevant to your case, contact Guardian Accident & Injury Lawyers a personal injury lawyer today.