If you have suffered a severe personal injury due to someone else’s careless, reckless, or negligent actions, you may be entitled to receive compensation. Compensation can take the form of money, medical treatment, and other forms of assistance.
Types of Personal Injury Damages
The three major types of damages available include:
- Economic damages. Economic damages include money for lost wages, property damages, and medical expenses.
- Non-economic damages. Non-economic damages (also called non-pecuniary damages) are damages that are not related to the loss of money. There are several types of non-economic damages, including emotional distress, pain and suffering, loss of enjoyment of life, and loss of consortium (companionship). These damages may be awarded if the plaintiff can prove that they suffered a specific type of harm due to a defendant’s actions. For example, if you are injured in an accident caused by a driver who was texting while driving, you might be able to recover damages for emotional distress and pain and suffering. Non-economic damages can be significant in personal injury claims. They help compensate plaintiffs for losses that cannot be measured in monetary terms, such as pain and suffering or disruption to social or family relationships.
- Punitive damages. Punitive damages are awarded as punishment for the perpetrator’s actions. The rationale behind this type of award is that the court is punishing the perpetrator for their actions and wants to make an example of them so that they will not do something similar in the future.
If you have suffered severe injuries due to another person’s negligence, you should contact a personal injury attorney to discuss all your legal options.