It is no surprise to anyone that serious injuries cause physical pain. But we do not always consider the other costs of injuries–the medical bills, the time spent recovering, and the emotional toll, to name a few. When someone else causes your injury, it is not fair for you to shoulder those costs or be left uncompensated for your losses.
The party responsible for causing your injuries needs to “pay you back” for what they cost you, and a Ponca City personal injury lawyer from BDIW will fight to make sure they do.
Compensatory Damages Explained
Oklahoma is a fault state, which means those at fault for an accident and subsequent injuries are accountable for paying compensatory damages to the accident victims.
In personal injury cases, “damages” are what the at-fault party must pay to make the injured party “whole.” Of course, “wholeness” may not actually be attainable as some injuries cannot fully heal. Even so, an experienced personal injury lawyer will calculate an amount that makes up for those continued losses to the most satisfactory degree possible.
Compensatory damages fall into two broad categories: economic and non-economic.
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SPEAK TO AN ATTORNEY TODAYCompensatory Economic Damages
Economic damages are the ones that hit your bank account–whether by taking money out or preventing money from going into that account.
Medical Expenses
Injuries require medical care, and medical care is always expensive. You may require surgery, hospitalization, X-rays and other imaging, physical, occupational, or other rehabilitative therapies.
If your injuries cause permanent disability, you may need ongoing therapies and care. In the most severe case, say if you sustain cognitive injuries or are paralyzed, you will need daily care.
The personal injury attorneys at BDIW will assess your medical costs and anticipated care by speaking with your doctors, reviewing your bills, and consulting with medical experts to ensure you receive fair compensation for your present and future medical needs.
Income Loss
When injuries prevent you from working, you lose wages for those missed hours or days or have to use sick time. Either way, you lose because of an injury that was not your fault.
Should your injuries be permanent and prevent you from returning to your job or from working at all, you have long-term income loss to deal with. How can you and your household survive if you can not work and earn in the same capacity you once did or at all?
Your attorney will add up your lost wages or the value of your sick time and include those losses in your settlement demand. If you are out of work permanently, your attorney will calculate your potential earnings and the value of other lost job benefits and factor those amounts into your economic damages.
Property Loss
Some accidents result in damage to your property. If you are in a motor vehicle accident, your car may need costly repairs or be a total loss. Other property inside the vehicle, perhaps electronic devices or luggage, may also be lost.
Once again, the at-fault party must compensate you for these losses, and your personal injury attorney will hold them accountable.
Other Expenses
Every accident comes with its own unique circumstances and consequences. For example, if you have children who need to be cared for and driven places, but you cannot fulfill these responsibilities because of your injuries, you will have to pay for help.
When injuries leave you with permanent mobility issues, you may have to change your living space to accommodate your condition.
Victims do not always recognize the extent of these consequences, which is why it is so important to have a knowledgeable personal injury lawyer handle claims for compensation.
Compensatory Non-Economic Damages
Economic damages are tangible. Their amounts are documented in actual bills or employee contracts. Non-economic damages do not come with this tangible documentation but are as important as economic losses.
Pain and Suffering
Physical pain deserves acknowledgment, and a financial award is the way civil courts allow for that acknowledgment. This physical pain brings emotional suffering as well, often causing depression, anxiety, and a general lack of peace.
Some victims experience psychological trauma from their accident, such as post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), insomnia, or night terrors.
Diminished Quality of Life
Injuries affect your overall quality of life. You may not be able to participate in the hobbies or activities you previously enjoyed, attend as many (or any) social events, go on vacations, or take part in other special events. Scarring or disfigurement can leave you self-conscious and uncomfortable in your own skin.
Cognitive injuries may prevent you from interacting with loved ones. Your abilities to communicate, speak, or respond to emotions may all be damaged.
These non-tangible but devastating life changes demand recognition.
Oklahoma’s Laws for Compensatory Damages
Oklahoma’s fault laws follow a comparative negligence system. According to Statute 23-13, victims can hold an at-fault party accountable for compensatory damages as long as the victims hold less fault for the accident than the at-fault party. If victims meet this threshold but still hold some blame, their compensation is reduced in proportion to the percentage of fault they hold.
While there is no limit to what victims can receive in economic compensatory damages, limits may apply to non-economic damages, as per Statute 23-62.2
How an Oklahoma Personal Injury Law Will Protect Your Compensatory Damages
These laws make it especially important for you to have high-quality legal representation when seeking a personal injury settlement. The at-fault party’s insurance adjusters and legal representatives will fight hard to put the fault for the accident causing your injuries on you, even resorting to unethical means to achieve this goal. Since they pay less if you hold more fault, it serves their interests to inflate your level of fault.
The BDIW team has been dealing with insurance companies for decades. We are well aware of their strategies and how to prevent these strategies from affecting your settlement.
Though Oklahoma law limits non-economic damages in some cases, it removes the cap if victims can prove the at-fault party acted with reckless disregard or gross negligence, was fraudulent, or acted intentionally when causing harm. If these circumstances apply to your situation, your attorney will gather comprehensive evidence to prove them and get you the highest compensation possible.
Secure the Compensatory Damages You Deserve
Compensatory damages restore your financial stability and acknowledge the non-tangible losses incurred by your injuries. Do not settle for less than you deserve. Connect with BDIW and schedule a free consultation with a compassionate, dedicated personal injury lawyer who will fight for your financial and emotional justice.
