Seeking Compensation for Emotional Trauma: What You Need to Know

After you’re injured at the fault of another’s negligence or recklessness, you want to get compensation. You’re going to get expensive medical bills in the mail for medications, surgery, riding in an ambulance, and other treatments. On top of that, you might be out of work and without a steady income. A personal injury claim will give you the chance to recover compensation for most of those damages, but did you know you could also get money for non-economic things like pain and suffering?

How to Get Compensation for Emotional Trauma

If you plan to include pain and suffering in your personal injury claim, there are a few things you should know:

1. You’ll need a lawyer: Fighting for compensation for pain and suffering, which is subjective, will complicate matters. A skilled and experienced personal injury lawyer can increase your chances of success by bringing in professionals to prove your emotional trauma.
2. Pain and suffering examples can vary: Pain and suffering can mean many things, since the spectrum is so wide, but there are common examples, including anxiety, depression, PTSD, insomnia and sexual dysfunction.
3. Calculating pain and suffering is complex: Two people can suffer the same injury but react differently to it. Insurance companies will typically look at the cost of medical treatment, lost wages and property damage to calculate costs.
4. Some states have limits on pain and suffering damages: In Michigan there is a cap of $438,800 on pain and suffering damages. There is an exception of $783,500, but only for certain cases.
5. You don’t have forever to file a claim: You must file most accidental injuries within 3 years, medical malpractice within 2 years, intentional injures within 2 years and domestic abuse within 5 years.

At Goodman Acker P.C., our Detroit personal injury lawyers have over 75 years of experience in representing victims in Michigan. Call (248) 793-2010 or contact us today.