Motorcycle accident cases are one of the most dangerous sources of a personal injury claim in the U.S. today. Motorcycle accidents carry a higher risk of catastrophic damage and injury for several reasons. In a motorcycle accident, you are not surrounded by the same amount of material as in a car – exposing you to impact and the road. In addition to this, a motorcycle is much less visible than most other varieties of motor vehicles. This puts riders at additional personal injury risk.
If you have suffered an injury as a result of a motorcycle accident in the past four years, you can seek compensation for the damages you received. As well as claiming for medical bills, lost wages, and property damage, you can also claim for pain and suffering damages.
For the best chance at maximum compensation in your motorcycle accident case, contact The Law Place today. Our law firm is highly experienced with personal injury cases relating to motorcycle accidents. Contact us to arrange a free consultation and free case evaluation.
Call us today, our lines are always open 7 days a week, and the contact number is (941) 444-4444!
What Are Pain and Suffering Damages?
‘Pain and suffering damages’ is the legal terminology used to describe and allocate compensation for the total level of trauma and injury involved in an accident case. While these are considered non-economic damages, they can quickly transfer categories by impacting your earning potential or incurring large medical expenses.
A good accident injury lawyer will be able to work to maximize the ‘dollar amount’ of your compensation through careful demonstration of facts and evidence. This can be incredibly important, as insurance companies are adept at trying to lower this amount.
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How Is Pain and Suffering Calculated in a Motorcycle Accident Case?
There are a number of different methods for calculating the compensatory amount of an injury claim for pain and suffering.
The following sections will explore the various methods and aspects involved in calculating pain and suffering in a motorcycle accident claim.
The Physical Injuries Inflicted in the Motorcycle Accident
Physical injuries in a motorcycle accident can take a large range of forms, each with its own level of risk and physical pain, depending on the severity of the accident. All motorcycle accidents are different, and there are many ways an injury case can unfold.
Common injuries seen by motorcycle accident lawyers in a pain and suffering case would include:
- Cuts, abrasions, lacerations, and road rash.
- Burns.
- Broken or fractured bones.
- Head injuries or brain injuries.
- Damage to the spinal cord, including cases of paralysis.
- Internal injury, bleeding, or organ damage.
- Crush injuries.
Accident victims who have suffered these injuries from a motorcycle or car accident should seek legal advice for the value of their potential pain and suffering claim.
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The Cost of a Motorcycle Accident on Your Mental Health
As well as actual physical injuries, a motorcycle or car accident is often the source of large amounts of trauma and mental anguish. Damages for pain and suffering also take this into account.
Our personal injury lawyers have often seen the following mental health impacts of a motorcycle accident:
- Anxiety around the road or motor vehicles.
- Depression or loss of enjoyment of life.
- Recurrent flashbacks or nightmares about the motorcycle accident.
- Post-traumatic stress disorder.
- Sleep issues, such as insomnia or night terrors.
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The Potential Lasting Impacts of a Motorcycle Accident
There are other ways that your motorcycle accident may impact your life, outside the realms of physical injury and mental health issues.
The following results of a motorcycle accident are commonly used to help calculate pain and suffering damages:
- Mild movement or mobility impairments.
- Disabilities as a result of injuries from the crash or their complications.
- Scarring or disfigurement.
- Dismemberment or amputation.
- Cognitive or emotional impairment from a head or brain injury.
So How Is the ‘Dollar Amount’ for Pain and Suffering Calculated in a Motorcycle Accident Claim?
This is one of the most frequently asked questions concerning pain and suffering claims. There are two separate methods commonly used by insurance companies to calculate pain and suffering payout amounts.
These two methods are known as the per diem method and the multiplier method, and both determine the amount of money you are owed for your damages using information unique to your case.
The following sections will explain how each method goes about calculating pain and suffering compensation.
The Multiplier Method
The multiplier method involves the assimilation of a large number of quantifiable figures relating to the economic damages and non-economic damages that were a result of your accident.
These figures are found by looking at the amount of lost wages, the expenses of medical treatment, and the presence of property damage.
Once all these economic damages are calculated, they are then multiplied by a figure between one and five. Five represents the highest level of severity, in terms of length of recovery and pain level involved, while one represents the least severe.
There are some situations where the total of economic damages may be multiplied by a value greater than five. This may occur in cases dealing with brain injuries or paralysis.
The Per Diem Method
Per diem is the Latin translation for the phrase per day, which basically amounts to this method calculating the value of each day of the total recovery process.
The per diem method often uses the accident victim’s personal daily income as the base figure to calculate the pain and suffering payout.
As such, you should try and avoid a situation that would lead to you claiming using the per diem method if you have suffered from a long-term injury. This is because it will be much harder to calculate the appropriate settlement figure than the multiplier method.
Other Methods Insurance Companies Use to Calculate a Pain and Suffering Settlement
Your insurance company may not use either of the above methods to calculate your claim amount.
An insurance company may choose from a whole host of computer programs commonly used to determine a claim’s value based on inputted factors.
An insurance company may also draw on models based on their previous claim history when deciding the value of your claim. However, this can often be unfair as not every accident case is similar, let alone the same.
For the best chance at securing a fair settlement, call the personal injury attorneys at The Law Place and tell us about your situation in a free case evaluation. Once we have all the relevant information, our injury lawyers can work to help you achieve a fair compensation settlement.
Why Is a Personal Injury Lawyer So Useful When Pursuing a Pain and Suffering Settlement?
There are a large number of ways your attorney may help you with your pain and suffering claim.
They will help you to collect and collate the necessary evidence that may be needed as proof to secure your desired claim amount. The Law Place also employ personal investigators and car crash recreation teams to secure that hard to pin down or lost evidence.
In addition to this, your attorney will be able to help you deal with the insurance company. It is in the interest of insurance companies to pay you the lowest amount of compensation possible. They often employ their own teams of experienced attorneys and claims adjusters to this end.
Your insurance company may even try to trick you into divulging information that is unnecessary with the express purpose of lowering your claim amount.
Contact The Law Place Today
If you would like a free consultation to discuss how we would go about working together to maximize your pain and suffering claim, call our office today.
Our lines are open for free consultations 24 hours, 7 days a week. All calls are toll-free, under no-obligation, and are protected by the attorney-client relationship of confidentiality.
Call (941) 444-4444 today!
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