How Pain and Suffering Is Calculated in Texas Personal Injury Cases
If you have been injured as a result of someone else’s negligence, the pain and suffering you endure can be overwhelming. It can also, however, be difficult to calculate its extent in relation to dollars and cents. While your medical bills and lost wages are fairly easy to put a price tag on, the same is not true of your pain and suffering. These damages, however, remain just as real, which makes accurately calculating their worth essential.
Your Pain and Suffering
The pain and suffering you suffer as a result of being injured in an accident that was caused by someone else's negligence are more difficult to quantify than your other damages, but it generally includes the following factors (as applicable):
Your physical pain and discomfort, including any chronic pain
Your emotional pain, anguish, distress, and/or grief
Any permanent disability you endure, including permanent disfigurement from scarring
The permanent loss of an important bodily function
Your psychological trauma (PTSD-like symptoms, for example)
Bouts of depression and/or increased anxiety
Any humiliation or embarrassment endured
Any decrease in your quality of life or a loss of enjoyment in life
Awards for pain and suffering tend to be highest in cases involving catastrophic injuries or that stem from wrongful death claims. Usually, damages related to pain and suffering are filed in conjunction with damages for economic losses (lost wages, property loss, and/or medical expenses).
Calculating Your Damages
The jury in your case can calculate your damages using wide-ranging calculation methods (or none at all), but most courts implement one of two calculation methods for coming up with awards that are considered fair and reasonable.
The Multiplier Method
The multiplier method involves starting with the total value of your economic damages, including the cost of all of the following:
Property damage (to your car in a car accident, for example)
Lost earnings
Medical expenses
Once these are added together, the amount will be multiplied by a number that ranges from 1.5 to 5, with 1.5 representing less extreme damages as they relate to pain and suffering and 5 representing more-serious damages as they relate to pain and suffering.
The Per Diem Method
If your injuries involve an estimated recovery date, the court may calculate your damages according to the per diem calculation method. This involves determining an amount that you will receive each day while you heal from the physical injuries you have sustained. Typically, the daily dollar amount is predicated on what you earn on a daily basis from your working wages, and this amount will be multiplied by the number of days it takes you to reach your maximum recovery.
Reach out to an Experienced Killeen Personal Injury Lawyer Today
Brett Pritchard at The Law Office of Brett H. Pritchard – proudly serving Killeen, Texas – is a trusted personal injury lawyer who has reserves of experience successfully guiding cases that are much like yours toward beneficial resolutions. Your rights are important, so please do not hesitate to contact or call us at 254-501-4040 for more information about how we can help you today.