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If someone else’s negligence has recently caused you injury, you may be entitled to compensation for medical expenses, lost wages, and more. The exact amount received depends mostly on two variables: the severity of the accident and the state in which the accident occurred.
In this blog, we’ll unpack the numerous factors that influence compensation and the related laws governing your state.
You can think of compensation as the law's way of resetting your life after an accident. It seeks to correct the wrongdoing by paying for the expenses incurred, and in some cases, the pain and suffering experienced. Compensation falls into three main categories: economic damages, noneconomic damages, and punitive damages. By understanding these three types, you’ll have a better idea of what compensation you qualify for.
Note: Be sure to document anything that verifies the damage you’ve sustained. Bills, work communication threads, and even recordings of the damage could be instrumental in proving your losses.
Economic damages are the most straightforward type of compensation. They simply pay you back any financial loss caused by the accident.
As one might expect, medical expenses are the most common type of economic damage. Not only is the cost of care high, but accident injuries often require ongoing treatment. Fortunately, insurance will cover those costs, which is why it is important to get treatment. Ongoing treatment also means the documentation of your injuries, which will serve as strong evidence in your case should you decide to seek additional compensation from the at-fault party.
If your property is damaged in an accident, you have suffered a loss of monetary value. This is true regardless of whether you decide to replace it, repair it, or carry on without it.
To pursue compensation for property damage, you’ll need to know the actual value of the damage. Your insurance will most likely provide you with an initial estimate when you file a claim.
You can negotiate with insurance if you disagree with their assessment. Hold onto receipts from repairs and other evidence of the damage/loss. If you cannot reach an agreement with your insurer, many policies allow you to initiate a more complex appraisal process.
For those seeking compensation with Senft Legal, your personal injury lawyer handles all aspects of your case including compensation for property damage.
Sometimes, an injury can prevent you from carrying out your job. Required time off work, pay cuts, and other types of deductions are all economic damages that you may be compensated for.
Determining lost wages is often complex. For that reason, people often rely on personal injury attorneys to negotiate effectively on their behalf. So, hold onto any evidence that relates to your employment and earnings.
In severe cases, you may be eligible for compensation for future financial loss. Suffering from a traumatic brain injury, for example, could permanently limit your ability to work. In such instances, you may qualify for something called “loss of future earning capacity” — compensation for a reduction in income.
Noneconomic damages are a little more complicated. Rather than paying back financial loss, they pay you back for intangible losses. Although harder to quantify, noneconomic damages can be evidenced by mental health treatment, journals detailing your experiences and new challenges you face, and the severity of the injury in extreme cases.
Some accident victims must bear significant and long-lasting pain, justifying additional compensation. It is not just about anguish experienced in the moment, but lingering feelings that affect everyday life. This can include both physical and emotional suffering.
A notable example is the case of Grady Dillon, a Los Angeles motorcyclist. Dillon was seriously injured in a crash caused by a government vehicle. Even after multiple surgeries, he was expected to endure pain for the rest of his life. Therefore, out of the $11.045 million verdict awarded, Dillon’s pain and suffering compensation accounted for $9.5 million.
Some injuries or traumatic events can leave lasting or even permanent effects on daily life. Losing certain physical or mental faculties can render someone unable to enjoy their normal leisure activities.
For instance, when an accident results in disability, this can affect quality of life. It is certainly possible for someone disabled by an accident to still live a fulfilling life. However, they will have to face a great many challenges, which may cause extreme frustration or depression.
The loss of a loved one is also a common source of emotional pain which goes far beyond the financial consequences. As such, it is also a common factor in noneconomic damages.
Punitive damages differ from the other two types in that they are not strictly based on how the victim was harmed. Instead, punitive damages serve as a punishment for particularly egregious actions, and a warning against future misconduct.
In 2024, the family of Theresa Donahue sued a California elder care facility for elder neglect and wrongful death. During her stay at Muir Woods Memory Care, Donahue reportedly suffered multiple falls, one of which left her with a broken hip. Within a year of leaving the facility, Donahue passed away.
Allegedly, the facility had severely neglected Donahue. The court ruled that this treatment directly led to her declining health and eventual death. Due to Muir Woods’ habitual neglect of Donahue, $17 million was awarded in punitive damages alone.
Many states implement limits, or caps, on how much compensation you can receive.
The table below shows some examples of compensation caps. If you are unsure how such limits apply to you, consult with a lawyer to understand how your compensation might be affected.
State | Economic Damages Cap | Noneconomic Damages Cap | Punitive Damages Cap |
Florida | No caps | Normally, no caps In medical malpractice cases, $500,000 per claimant/per defendant | Normally, 3x compensatory (economic + noneconomic) damages or $500,000 In cases of willful harm motivated by financial gain, 4x compensatory damages or $2,000,000 |
Georgia | No caps | Normally, no caps In medical malpractice cases, $350,000 per defendant and $1,050,000 total | Normally, $250,000 In cases of product liability, no caps, 75% goes to state In cases of harm done willfully or under-the-influence, no caps |
Montana | No caps | Normally, no caps | $10 million or 3% of defendant’s net worth, except in class action lawsuits |
Ohio | No caps | Normally, $250,000 or 3x economic damages up to $350,000 per plaintiff or $500,000 total In cases of severe and permanent injury, no caps | If defendant is an individual or small business, 2x compensatory damages or 10% of defendant’s net worth |
Oregon | No caps | Normally, no caps In wrongful death cases, $500,000 | Normally, no caps, 70% goes to state |
Texas | No caps | Normally, no caps In medical malpractice cases, $250,000 per facility up to $500,000 | 2x economic damages plus 1x noneconomic damages up to $750,000, or a total of $200,000 |
Your state’s negligence law can also have a sizable impact on your compensation. Depending on how much fault you hold, most states will adjust the amount you can receive, or even prevent you from receiving any at all. The table below outlines the different types of negligence laws for all states.
Negligence Type | Description | State(s) |
Pure Comparative Negligence | You can recover compensation from the at-fault party even if you are 99% at fault. The amount you recover is reduced by your percentage of fault. | Alaska, Arizona, California, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, New Mexico, New York, Rhode Island, Washington |
Modified Comparative Negligence | You can only recover compensation from the other party if you are less than 50% at fault, or 51% in some cases. If you hold any fault when seeking compensation, your compensation may be reduced by your percentage of fault. For example, if the court awarded you $110,000 dollars, but you are found 30% at fault, you would only receive $77,000 — 30% less than the total amount. | Arkansas, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, District of Colombia, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Vermont, West Virginia, Wisconsin, Wyoming |
Slight / Gross Comparative Negligence | In South Dakota, negligence may be considered either “slight” (minor) or “gross” (excessive). To recover compensation, the other person’s negligence must be considered “gross.” In addition, you must either not be found negligent, or your negligence must be “slight.” | |
Contributory Negligence | You cannot recover compensation if you hold even 1% of fault. |
There are a few different types of torts, which can lead to different sources of compensation. But in many cases, you will not recover compensation from the at-fault person themselves. Instead, you’ll be seeking compensation from their insurance provider, making it essential to understand how your policy works to navigate the claims process.
This is relevant because insurance has policy limits. These limits dictate the maximum amount the insurer can spend on their client for a single incident.
If seeking compensation from the insurance company alone, you cannot recover any more than the policy limit allows. A personal injury attorney can help you determine whether you can recover sufficient compensation from an insurance company.
To learn how much your case is worth, consult an attorney today – free of charge.