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If you’ve been in an accident with a commercial trucker, you likely have suffered some costly injuries and property damage. If that’s the case, you’re going to need an exceptional trucking accident law firm on your side to help you recover compensatory damages you incurred from the accident. There are multiple types of damages that can be recovered and they are grouped into a few different categories to make it simpler. These categories are economic damages, non-economic damages and exemplary damages. Below we will go into the details of each type of damage category and give some examples of what qualifies as each type of damage.
Economic damages refer to the costs that were incurred by the injured party after an accident that have an actual dollar value tied to them. If there is a specific price tag for the costs and the costs are a result of being in the accident in question, then these are economic damages and can be recovered with a qualified truck accident lawyer.
Medical Bills – The costs of your medical treatment from the injuries you sustained are recoverable in your claim. This includes medical expenses for treatment after the accident, as well as ongoing treatments that may happen in the future to get you back to maximum medical improvement.
Past And Future Lost Wages – If you had financial losses because of your inability to go to work after the accident, those lost wages can be claimed. This means wages that you have already lost from missed work and any wages that you will miss in the future while you are recovering.
Lost Earning Capacity – If your injuries affect your ability to perform your job to your previous ability and this prevents you from making as much money as before, then you may claim this in your request for compensation to ensure that the defendant is paying for the losses you will continue to accrue due to your injuries.
Property Damage – If your property, such as your car, home, belongings or anything else was damaged or broken due to the accident, then the at fault party will be responsible for covering the costs to replace those items.
Rehabilitation – Many injuries require regular physical therapy sessions to fully recover from. If you need ongoing medical care to get back to 100%, then these costs will be included in your demands to the at-fault party for compensation.
Household Services – During your time of recovery, if you were unable to perform regular, everyday tasks such as cleaning the house or watching your children, you may claim these costs in your compensation demands to ensure that those costs are not your burden, but the burden of the person who caused the accident.
Out Of Pocket Expenses – Miscellaneous expenses related to your accident and injuries are also recoverable. These include things such as Uber rides to get to your lawyer’s office or to look at new vehicles. It can also be to cover related expenses like food delivery if you are unable to cook or go to the grocery store on your own.
Disfigurement – Loss of limbs, fingers, toes, ears or any other part of the body due to the accident is a legitimate reason for extra payment in your lawsuit. This is a lifelong injury and nobody should have to deal with that for the rest of their life without getting paid for it by the person responsible for it happening.
Permanent Disabilities – Permanent disabilities such as loss of motor skills, paralysis, or anything that leaves you with a disability that will not go away has a major impact on your life and your quality of life. These damages will be accounted for in your settlement and typically have a larger number than most injuries due to their lifelong affect.
Non-economic damages are costs that were incurred by the truck accident victims after an accident that do not have a specific price tag associated with them. These are harder to calculate and their values will be decided upon via various different calculation methods that your attorney and the insurance companies use.
Pain & Suffering – After an injury, you are very likely experiencing pain on a regular basis until your injuries are fully healed, if that ever happens. Due to the fact that you have to suffer through this pain because of the accident, you are able to get compensation for your pain and suffering during your time of recovery.
Loss Of Quality Of Life – If you break a leg during the truck accident and can no longer walk normally, this is a loss of quality of life and you will be compensated for this. Any type of injury that prevents you from being able to live your life like normal is eligible for fair compensation.
Emotional Stress & Mental Anguish – Your mental health is also one to be considered as every tragic accident leaves scars on the mind and can affect your mental health for years. You also have to deal with all of the stress of paying medical bills, trying to recover and trying to pay your normal bills all while injured. This can be very emotionally stressful and should be reconciled in your lawsuit demands.
Scarring – Large and obvious scarring due to the accident is something that you will have to deal with for the rest of your life. Since you only have to deal with this because a truck driver acted negligently, the at fault party(truck driver, trucking company, insurance company, etc.) will be responsible for paying you for having to deal with this.
Exemplary or punitive damages are a type of damage that is awarded in very select situations where the at fault party acted with wanton and willful misconduct. In most cases, this is something like a truck driver hitting the other vehicle on purpose due to road rage or, or driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs. If the truck driver willingly caused the accident or was knowingly acting in a very dangerous manner that ended up causing the accident, then the judge may decide to tack on some extra compensation as a means of punishing the person who is at fault for the truck accident.
There are many different things that can affect the amount that your truck accident claim is worth. To start, the economic and non-economic damages mentioned above play a large role. The worse the damages and the worse the injuries are, the more the compensation will be. Especially if those injuries were permanent or majorly affect the quality of life for that person. Exemplary damages can also play a role in the value of your claim if those are awarded, but again, that is rare.
Luckily in accidents involving big trucks, recovery is not the main issue as the trucks are generally well insured. But like in any other case, you should have an experienced attorney conduct a thorough investigation regarding the available recovery before considering any offers to settle.
The other large factors are contributory and comparative negligence. This can be described as mutual fault, where the person injured was partially at fault for the accident happening. So let’s say that you were the one injured and it was due to another person running a red light. If you were pulled out into the intersection too far which contributed to the other person hitting you when they ran the red light, this could make the accident partially your fault since you also were not following the laws and it played a part in causing the accident. Other possible examples would be in which both parties are speeding but one also drove recklessly. In these cases, both parties’ fault will be calculated on a percentage basis and then the percentage that you were at fault will be removed from your total compensation package.
At Rector Stuzynski LLC, we have been fighting semi truck accident claims for decades and have won many cases for our clients over the years. From helping you recover to filing the lawsuit and following up on every piece until you get the compensation you deserve, our law firm is there for you every step of the way. We have an extensive list of 5 star reviews from our happy clients that will show you exactly the type of business that we run. We care about your well being and we strive to hold negligent parties accountable for their actions by using the law to keep people honest. If you’ve been in a truck accident and need help getting compensation for your injuries, do not hesitate to reach out to us. We offer free case consultations 24/7 over the phone or you can stop by our office in Colorado Springs, CO to speak with one of our lawyers in person.
We serve clients injured anywhere throughout the state of Colorado, but we focus on residents of these areas: Colorado Springs, Manitou Springs, Fountain, Briargate, Monument, Black Forest, Pueblo, Canon City, Larkspur, Security-Widefield, Peyton, Castle Rock, Teller County, El Paso County, Elbert County, Park County, Douglas County and beyond.
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