If you have been seriously injured in a car accident, the immediate aftermath can be incredibly difficult. You may need emergency treatment in hopes of saving your life and your physical abilities, and you may then face the prospect of covering the high medical expenses you are likely to incur. Your long-term future can be just as challenging if your injuries result in chronic pain or make it impossible to enjoy the kind of life you lived before the crash. Though your life may never be the same, it is possible to achieve some relief by pursuing pain and suffering damages in your personal injury claim.
What Are Pain and Suffering Damages?
Most personal injury claims seek compensation for economic damages, including medical bills resulting from your injuries and the cost to repair or replace your vehicle. In some serious injury cases with lasting effects, you may also want to seek compensation for non-economic damages due to pain and suffering, which includes chronic physical pain, disfigurement, mental distress, loss of the ability to perform or enjoy activities from your life prior to the accident, and loss of personal relationships. These negative effects on your quality of life may not come with a clear monetary cost, but an experienced personal injury attorney can help you determine how much compensation you should seek for your non-economic damages.
How Much Compensation Can I Pursue for Pain and Suffering?
In Wisconsin, for claims against most private and nongovernmental parties, there is no limit to the amount of compensation you can receive, so the size of your settlement or award depends on the ability of you and your attorney to make a strong case for pain and suffering damages. You should keep records of all medical expenses, property expenses, and loss of income resulting from your injuries. Your attorney can also argue for increased pain and suffering damages based on the kind of injury you experienced, your age at the time of injury, and testimony from you, your family and friends, and health experts speaking to the impact of the injuries on your life.
It is very important that you contact a personal injury attorney as soon as possible after a crash so that evidence can be gathered and preserved before it’s gone. There can be critical timing issues with collecting and preserving evidence, which include obtaining 911 transcripts as well as traffic cam footage, obtaining witness statements while memories are fresh in people’s minds, and, when necessary, taking photos of the accident scene that may show physical evidence of a crash, such as skid marks. There are also certain photographs an experienced attorney will want to get early on, which cannot be reproduced after time passes (such as property damage photos prior to repairs being done and pictures of physical injuries and the healing process).
Contact a Green Bay Car Accident Attorney
If you are suffering from the lasting effects of a car accident injury, you need an attorney who is willing to commit to your case for the long term. It may take a few months to understand the full extent of how your injuries are impacting your life, but our attorneys will be there for you throughout the process and treat you with the compassion you deserve. We strive to seek full compensation for you with a legal strategy that gives you the best chance of achieving it. Contact us today at 920-739-7366 for a free consultation with an experienced Appleton, WI personal injury lawyer.
Sources:
https://docs.legis.wisconsin.gov/statutes/statutes/893/V/54