What Amount of Pain & Suffering Compensation am I Entitled to in a Car Accident Claim?
Pain & suffering is a form of non-economic damages that Missouri courts award in a car accident claim for compensation. Unlike medical bills, lost wages, and other 'economic' damages, pain & suffering is often an area of misunderstanding by car accident injury victims. Each and every person who is injured in a car accident in St. Louis is entitled to monetary recovery for pain & suffering of some sort. To qualify a claim for pain & suffering, a lawyer will put on evidence of the 'humanistic" damages sustained by the client. This includes activities that a victim may no longer be able to participate in due to physical limitations caused by the crash.
Any victim that seeks treatment from a doctor is going to incur 'special damages' based upon the amount of the doctor's bill. What about the general damages? A victim's pain & suffering will vary based upon the injury sustained and the existing lifestyle of the client. Children that endure a serious car accident are likely to suffer damages for the remainder of their lives. This can lead to a substantial claim for general damages. Doctors, parents, and therapists are extremely insightful into explaining this form of damages to the judge and jury.
There is no magic formula to compute the value of a claim for pain & suffering. Some people think that if you have $10,000 in medical bills, that you should be entitled to $20,000 in pain & suffering. Truth be told, there is NO formula for computing pain & suffering, so don't let any lawyer tell you otherwise. We have had clients with only $10,000 in medical bills who have been awarded $100,000+ in pain & suffering (general damages). Contact a St. Louis car accident lawyer to discuss the value of your pain & suffering claim.