When filing a personal injury claim after an accident, it’s typical to expect compensation for economic damages that cover medical bills, lost income, and property damage. But when you bear the brunt of a physical or mental injury that affects your ability to participate in activities that you enjoyed or found pleasure in, how do you calculate pain and suffering?
In Georgia, these non-quantifiable damages fall under non-economic damages and include loss of enjoyment of life and emotional and mental anguish. Victims can secure settlements for pain and suffering damages by demonstrating a direct link between another party’s negligence or intentional actions and injuries that contributed to their loss of enjoyment of life.
Read on to learn more about how our experienced personal injury attorneys at The McGarity Group can assist with building a successful case for loss of enjoyment of life.
Injuries That Contribute to Loss of Enjoyment of Life
Sustaining injuries after an accident disrupts the serenity in many victims’ lives. While medical bills and rehabilitation costs can be filed under economic damages, they can also serve as grounds for pain and suffering and loss of enjoyment of life. These injuries often lead to an ongoing state of social isolation, physical limitations, and loss of independence.
Injuries that are likely to cause loss of enjoyment of life are:
- Traumatic Brain Injuries: A TBI can cause your cognitive abilities, memory, and emotional bandwidth to decline, making it difficult to participate in activities that require mental focus, such as maintaining a career
- Disfigurement: Scars, lacerations, and burns from a personal injury can profoundly impact self-esteem and body image. Disfigurement of the face and body can cause the victim to withdraw and develop a fear of being seen, which has a negative effect on social interactions and intimate relationships.
- Spinal Cord Injuries: Notorious for limiting mobility, these injuries can lead to nerve damage and partial and complete paralysis. Those suffering from a spinal cord injury may lose their independence and become unable to engage in sports, exercise, or physical tasks that require a complete range of motion.
- Loss of Senses: Vision and hearing loss following an accident not only impacts the enjoyment of life but also increases the victim’s likelihood of becoming injured again due to their impairments. Difficulties with vision have been linked to depression and decreased social interactions. According to the CDC, hearing loss is associated with depression and cognitive decline. As people lose their ability to see and hear, the parts of the brain used for these functions begin to deteriorate.
- Chronic Pain: Ranging from minor to severe, chronic pain may present as stiffness, numbness, or tension within the body. Constant pain can hinder the ability to be present and make participating in daily tasks or activities you once loved unbearable.
Catastrophic injuries create barriers for victims who simply wish to enjoy the activities and quality of life they experienced before their untimely accident. Don’t accept the average pain and suffering settlements; seek guidance from our qualified personal injury attorneys at The McGarity Group to get compensation that covers the full extent of your damages.
Filing a Loss of Enjoyment Claim
In the context of a personal injury claim, to build a case for loss of enjoyment of life, an assessment of the emotional, mental, and physical impact of an injury on the victim’s quality of life is necessary. Unlike economic damages, which have a clear dollar value, loss of enjoyment of life is harder to quantify.
The following instances illustrate the intangible losses that negatively impact a person’s quality of life:
- Not being able to engage in hobbies or interests due to physical limitations.
- Inability to interact socially with others or maintain relationships.
- Difficulty performing daily self-care activities.
- Inability to care for children or take part in family life.
It must be proven that the opposing party behaved recklessly or carelessly with distracted driving, driving under the influence (DUI), or disregarding traffic laws. Without causation, the at-fault party is not responsible for your injury. Georgia Code § 51-12-33 states that the victim needs to be found less than 50% at fault for the accident to receive compensation. You may only recover compensation if your injuries result from harm.
It’s important to use medical records to document physical injuries that lead to pain and suffering. Testimony from medical professionals such as psychologists and psychiatrists can provide detailed accounts of the emotional and mental effects of your injury. Witnesses can also validate loss of enjoyment as well as other non-economic damages. They provide accounts of the victim’s emotional distress, attest to the visible signs of behavioral and mental changes, and testify to the victim’s inability to participate in activities and diminished quality of life.
How Do Insurance Companies Calculate Pain and Suffering In Personal Injury Lawsuits?
Two of the most widely used ways insurance companies calculate pain and suffering are the multiplier method and the per diem method. The multiplier method begins with the total economic damages incurred by the injured person, such as lost wages, medical bills, and property damage, which are multiplied by a number between one and five. A multiplier is then applied to these damages. This multiplier is determined by the severity of the injury.
If you have $30,000 in economic damages and your injuries are considered to be severe, a multiplier of three might be used. In this case, the calculation would be:
$30,000 (economic damages) x 3 (multiplier) = $90,000 (total pain and suffering damages)
The multiplier method provides flexibility based on the specifics of each personal injury case, such as loss of enjoyment of life and mental anguish experienced by the victim.
The per diem method assigns a daily monetary value to the pain and suffering experienced by the victim. A daily rate is determined for pain and suffering, which can be based on factors like your current income and the days lost from your job due to your injuries.
If a value of $150 per day was assigned for your suffering, and you experienced pain for 120 days, the calculation would be:
$150 (daily rate) x 120 (days of suffering) = $18,000 (total pain and suffering damages)
The per diem method presents challenges because assigning the appropriate daily rate can be subjective and may require careful consideration of the duration of suffering and its effect on the injured party’s daily life. Due to the subjectivity of the per diem method, the multiplier method is the most widely used method to calculate pain and suffering damages.
Additional Damages Victims Might Be Owed
Depending on the severity and outcomes of your personal injury case, you may be entitled to additional compensation for your losses. If you don’t pursue recovery for each type of damage, you won’t be able to receive all of the compensation you deserve.
Make sure you aren’t missing any relevant expenses or losses when filing a claim for each of the following types of damages:
- Loss of Consortium: These damages are awarded to a spouse of an injured party in a personal injury lawsuit. It’s categorized as a non-economic damage because the spouse of the victim loses the benefits of their relationship with the victim due to their injuries, such as a loss of intimacy and affection.
- Wrongful Death: Wrongful death can be applied to economic and non-economic damages. While pain and suffering and loss of enjoyment of life can be awarded in a wrongful death claim, there are quantifiable losses that a spouse or other immediate family members can receive due to the wrongful death of a loved one. The economic damages that can be recovered for a wrongful death claim are medical expenses leading up to the fatality, burial, and funeral expenses, loss of the deceased party’s future earnings, loss of medical insurance and pension, as well as loss of inheritance.
- Punitive Damages: These additional damages are awarded to punish a defendant for outrageous or egregious conduct. They also serve as a deterrent. According to Georgia Code § 51-12-5.1, to be awarded punitive damages, it must be proven that the defendant’s actions demonstrated willful misconduct, malice, fraud, wantonness, oppression, or an entire lack of care showing conscious indifference. Georgia has a cap of $250,000 for punitive damages.
The best way to secure the maximum compensation is to work with an attorney experienced in accident settlements as quickly as possible. Our experienced personal injury lawyers will review your case, explain which types of damages apply to your accident claim, and discuss the deadlines and statute of limitations for each element of your case.
Claim Damages for Your Loss of Enjoyment of Life
The effects of being injured due to someone else’s negligence can rob you of the life you enjoyed before the accident. You may have considered receiving compensation for physical pain and the financial burden of medical expenses, but don’t forget to account for the pain and suffering damages as well.
Contact our personal injury lawyers in Buford today at 770-932-8477 for a free case evaluation. We work on a contingency fee basis, meaning you won’t pay us anything unless we win your case. Reach out to us online to discuss your options for your loss of enjoyment of life claim.