When it’s time to try your lawsuit or settle your injury claim everyone around you becomes an expert. Friends tell you how much compensation you should get when you sue for pain and suffering. Neighbors tell you about their cousin’s high-dollar settlement. While other people’s settlement stories are interesting, you should never let them affect your expectations.
When a court awards you damages, or an insurance company settles your claim, it’s based on you, your injuries, and your specific circumstances. Your pain and suffering are unique to you. They impact your life in ways that are distinct from anyone else’s. When Pacific West Injury Law negotiates the pain and suffering portion of your claim, we focus on you and your pain. We don’t agree with generic offers that don’t take your personal injury experiences into account.
Calculating Your Pain and Suffering
When calculating your pain and suffering damages, some “experts” use settlement calculators. Others use formulas that have been around for decades.
Many insurance companies make up for inexperienced negotiators by relying on claim settlement software. They punch in a few numbers and facts and use the results as the basis for claim negotiations. Insurance companies often rely on these evaluation resources because it takes humans out of the process.
When calculating your pain and suffering, you are the true expert. You’re the only one who can explain how your quality of life has diminished. A legal professional can help you put a dollar value on your experiences.
Emotional and Mental Distress
When an insurance representative negotiates your claim, they will likely downplay the injuries they can’t see.
Although the symptoms are largely subjective, emotional and mental distress are genuine post-accident concerns. Psychology Today explains how accidents or any sudden, disruptive incident can trigger PTSD. The injured victim experiences flashbacks, nightmares, mood disorders, and other disruptive mental issues.
As you have no outward manifestations of your inner injuries, a mental health professional can help you resolve your issues and document them for settlement purposes.
Loss of Wages
Lost wages are part of your economic damage claim. They are easier to prove than general damages, as your employer confirms the dollar value for your time off work. It’s a little more difficult when you operate your own business. You’ll need bookkeeping and accounting records to help validate your claim.
Your treating physician must be on board as well. Your doctor must confirm that you couldn’t work due to your injuries. Your doctor can also project your potential for continuing disabilities that will prevent you from working.
Medical Expenses
Medical expenses are another element of your economic damage claim. These are easily provable as the medical professionals and service providers issue bills and provide regular statement updates.
You should keep all copies of your medical bills to make sure you have them to support your settlement.
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What Is a Good Settlement Offer?
A good pain and suffering settlement offer is different for every injured person. It should pay you fair compensation for the pain, suffering, and emotional issues you’ve dealt with from the moment you were injured. That’s not something an insurance claim person can simply estimate. They can’t calculate with an old-school formula or compute it with settlement software.
At Pacific West Injury Law, we determine your pain and suffering value by looking at our law firm’s past settlement experiences. We research recent court cases in your jurisdiction to determine a potential settlement range. Most of all, we listen to you. Your experiences help us evaluate your pain and suffering and recover fair compensation for your injuries.
Maximizing Compensation
The best way to maximize your compensation is to present a comprehensive case. You must be prepared to address all the liability and legal issues. You must also fully document all of your damages with medical bills, records, proof of your financial losses, and thorough medical reports.
A Personal Injury Lawyer Can Improve Your Chances
When you trust an insurance company enough to negotiate directly with their representative, they often use your trust as a negotiation advantage. They understand that you might not know your claim’s true value.
If you’ve spent a long time recovering from your injuries, they know you’re dealing with financial issues, and you need the money. By the time they open settlement negotiations, the liability insurer will have talked to your neighbors, videotaped you coming and going, and run a credit check. They rely on everything they know about you as they negotiate your claim.
As a seasoned legal firm, Pacific West Injury Law initiates negotiations from a position of strength. We know you and your injuries. We know the legal issues, damage value ranges, and other critical information. When we represent you during the negotiation process, insurers know that we can and will file a lawsuit if they fail to negotiate fairly.
Proving Pain and Suffering Can Be Challenging
It’s difficult to prove your damages when other people can’t see the evidence. Pain and suffering have no outward wounds, but they’re real to you because you live with them every day. Getting others to see your point of view is often a challenge.
It’s up to you to document your experiences from day one. An injury journal helps you accomplish this important goal. You use your journal to record your day-to-day accident-related concerns. You make simple entries that detail your pain, suffering, emotional distress, family disruption, healing difficulties, and other issues only you can explain.
When you work with a personal injury law firm, your legal representative can use your notes to evaluate your pain and suffering and explain your painful experiences to an insurance company or a jury.
Nevada’s Statute of Limitations
In Nevada, you have two years from your accident date to settle your claim or file a lawsuit. If you don’t meet this deadline, you lose your legal right to recover damages from the negligent person who injured you.
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Hire an Experienced Attorney to Recover Damages
When you’re injured in an accident, Pacific West Injury Law puts their skills and knowledge to work on your behalf. We work hard to deliver the best possible results. Call us at (702) 602-4878 or leave a message on our contact page.
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