At Saffren and Weinberg, Marc Alan Weinberg, Attorney and Kenneth Scott Saffren, Attorney are partners. The firm’s tagline is “The People’s Voice In Court.” They make themselves available via phone at (215) 576-0100 or by email on the Saffren and Weinberg website. Saffren and Weinberg provides a no-charge, complimentary case review and answers questions for prospective clients.
How Are My Personal Injury Claim Damages Calculated?
How do you calculate the damages incurred as a result of your work injury? It is not only just the doctor visits that you need to pay for when you are injured. Many other things require money and are considered as damages when you file for work injury compensation.
When you get injured, you will most likely be examined by a doctor who is authorized by the employer or insurance company. This is to avoid any false medical claims. If it is determined that your injuries are serious and require multiple doctor visits, then your payments increase accordingly. You are most likely to be out of work for a long period for serious injuries; this is considered serious damage due to a work injury.
You have the responsibility to mitigate or reduce your damages (like find reasonable medical treatment and/or find alternate work) even if the injury was caused due to the negligence of a third party. As a plaintiff, if you do not mitigate or reduce the damages, the defendant can reduce the amount they have to pay you. A personal injury attorney will help you calculate your damages.
Here is a list of damages that is calculated in case of a work-related injury:
Medical Expenses: Your initial visits to the doctor, hospitals, and purchasing medicines are considered medical expenses. In case you didn’t seek medical treatment but have still suffered, then insurance companies have a formula to calculate your damages. A personal injury lawyer will help you with the calculation.
Property Damage: This is applicable only in case of damages sustained as a result of automotive damages, such as being injured in a car accident.
Lost Earnings: You are most likely to miss work if you have suffered an injury. Minor injuries will result in a small loss of pay while major injuries will most likely keep you away from work for a longer duration. The amount is decided after your benefits (if you have claimed any) are subtracted from your total wages during the period of absence. In the case of unpaid benefits, the amount of the benefit is added to your loss of wages.
Loss of income in the future: If you have suffered a severe injury then it is likely that you will have further treatments which will result in you missing work for long periods. As a result, you will have no income for that period. This is considered damage and is taken into consideration when your benefits are calculated.
Estimated future medical expenses: A slipped disc, a nerve injury or something similar will likely take longer to heal and keep you away from work for a considerable amount of time. It also means that you will require further medical treatment and will have additional medical expenses. This is added as part of damages when you file for benefits.
General damages: Emotional pain and suffering are also considered damages. The more serious the pain and suffering the higher the damage multiplier.
The final total damage estimate is based on two categories of damages that are a result of your injury:
Special damages: Medical expenses, loss of pay, and not being able to work fall under this category and are easy to quantify and calculate since they have a specific number that can be assigned to them.
General damages: Emotional pain and suffering, mental anxiety, stress, and negative effects due to an injury fall under this category and are harder to quantify since a number cannot be assigned to them.
If you or your loved ones have suffered a work-related injury, understandably you’re worried about a lot including your current and future pay. A work injury lawyer can help you navigate through the complex process of filing a claim and make sure that you get what you rightly deserve.
Contact the dedicated team of attorneys of Saffren & Weinberg at (215) 576-0100 to find out if your case qualifies and the amount you can claim as compensation.
