Pain And Suffering Settlement Examples

Dealing with an accident's physical and mental impact can be overwhelming for many people. This is exactly why it’s encouraged to recover damages for the pain and suffering following an accident. 

While proving this type of harm is usually a bit more difficult than presenting clear evidence of lost wages and medical bills, it’s still worthy of your effort. Depending on the case, pain and suffering may make up most of the compensation recuperated from a personal injury claim.

If you or a loved one were injured, you’re probably wondering how much can you receive for your pain and suffering. While it all hinges on the circumstances, we’re going to show you a few pain and suffering settlement examples that might help you get a better idea of how much you can recover.

Pain And Suffering Damages Explained

In most jurisdictions all over the US, pain and suffering is compensation that the damaged party may recover in personal injury lawsuits for mental anguish suffered due to the injury, as well as the physical pain itself.

Most common pain and suffering are considered a type of non-economic compensatory damage. Thankfully, the state of Florida doesn’t impose any caps on compensatory damages.

Calculating the exact amount of compensation is very difficult, as you’ll see in the pain and suffering settlement examples below. Taking into account the facts of the case, the amount depends on factors such as:

1. type of the accident

2. type and severity of the injury, along with the amount of pain

3. impact of the injury on the plaintiff's job and relationship with loved ones

4. medical treatment for the injuries

5. time required to heal from the injury

Take a look at this example and pay attention to all the factors involved:

Natalie was going to work when a careless driver collided with her car at an intersection, even though she had the right of way. As a result, she suffered whiplash and a broken arm. She had to pay $6000 in medical expenses and damage to her vehicle.

Her injuries required standard medical treatment and she experienced minor pain in her neck and a broken arm. Although Natalie’s home life wasn’t disrupted due to injuries, she couldn’t perform her usual recreational and daily activities.

If liability was in question, Natalie would likely win the lawsuit. Aside from receiving monetary damages, she would be rewarded with a moderate settlement ranging between one and two thousand dollars.

Calculating The Pain And Suffering Awards

Nothing is set in stone in personal injury lawsuits. There is no single method judges use to quantify the exact monetary value of pain and suffering settlements. The entire process usually consists of plaintiffs and their attorneys demonstrating evidence of emotional trauma and physical pain, after which the judge will decide what is a reasonable amount of compensation for the whole ordeal.

However, it is possible to get a rough estimate of the pain and suffering settlement by using a few common calculation methods used by personal injury attorneys and insurance company adjusters.

The two major ones are:

1. Per diem calculation method

A popular method used to estimate the settlement where the main point is to assign a monetary value to each day that the person is going through injury-related pain and suffering.

Typically, when using this calculation method, the injured party may assign their daily earnings before the accident to each day they are experiencing discomfort.

To illustrate the per diem method, let’s use one of the best pain and suffering settlement examples:

David was involved in a motorcycle crash and suffered a mild brain injury that rendered him unable to work for 30 days. His daily wage is $320 and he experienced pain and suffering for those 30 days.

David and his attorney can consider those figures and use the per diem calculating method to demand $9600 (30 x 320) in damages for pain and suffering.

2. Multiplier calculation method

The multiplier method involves a more complex calculation. It’s done by adding together all the economic damages from the accident and multiplying the figure by a number.

The multiplier can range between 1 and 5, corresponding to the severity of the injury or economic damages. The more serious the injury and its financial impact, the higher the multiplier.

One of the pain and settlement examples that clearly describes the multiplier calculation method is the following scenario:

Dennis is a violinist with the Jacksonville Symphony who was involved in a car accident and suffered a serious compound fracture to his left arm. As a result, he has undergone three surgeries and had to spend a few months rehabilitating.

His physician has informed him that although he was able to recover, his left arm will have limited mobility and he will suffer ongoing physical pain, most likely to never fully heal. 

Since he is no longer able to do his previous job, Dennis is worried about his financial situation, as well as the loss of life quality. His therapy and hospital bills amount to $200.000 and since he was unable to work for six months, he has $25.000 in lost wages.

While Dennis has alternative employment options, his earning capacity is now lower by 25%, which means he had a decrease of $500.000 of future expected income.

Since he suffered extensively and was left with chronic pain and a severe impact on both his life and professional career, Dennis’s attorney assigned a multiplier of 3 to his damages. Once all economic damages are added together ($200k + $25k + 500k) they are multiplied by 3. This rounds out to an estimated value of $2.175.000 for his pain and suffering and Dennis can seek a settlement of $2.9 mil once the economic damages are added together. 

Why Contacting An Attorney Is Crucial

Pain and suffering settlement examples can only take you so far. To receive a fair amount of compensation for what you or your loved one has endured, you need to hire an attorney. 

By having a legal counselor on your side, you can give yourself the necessary peace of mind while you’re recovering. The last thing you want to do at this stage is to delve into negotiations with the other party or the insurance company.

Additionally, even though some personal injury cases get settled before going to trial, not every case is the same. If your case does reach trial, your attorney can guide you through the process and secure a decision in your favor. 

If you need more information, book a free consultation with the Law Offices of RITE by calling (904) 500-RITE (7483) or sending a message to info@rite4justice.com. We’ll take care of everything for you and show you how much compensation you can recover for your pain and suffering.

Note: 

The information in this blog post is for reference only and not legal advice. As such, you should not make legal decisions based on the information in this blog post. Moreover, there is no lawyer-client relationship resulting from this blog post, nor should any such relationship be implied. If you need legal counsel, please consult a lawyer licensed to practice in your jurisdiction.