Every car accident is unique and will offer different opportunities for receiving compensation. Your lawyer can look over your specific situation to help you determine which damages to seek so you end up with the largest compensation possible to help you combat the expensive bills that will come your way in the following weeks, months and years. If you were in an accident, the following are a few types of compensation you might be able to recover.
Health Care Costs
Depending on the accident, you could have a lot of bills related to the health care you receive. This might include an ambulance ride, emergency room visit, follow up appointments, surgeries, hospital stays, medication and therapy. If your injuries are severe enough, you may need medical care in the future, and compensation could cover those as well. You should also consider modifications that may need to be made, such as building a ramp to accommodate a wheelchair and other similar necessities.
Lost Wages
While you are recovering from your injuries, you may miss a certain amount of time at work. Seeking lost wages could cover the gap between the time you were injured and stopped working and the time you are able to get back to work. If you can’t continue in the job you were in at the time of your accident, you may be able to seek compensation for loss of future income.
For example, a seamstress may have been in a car accident that severed his or her fingers from the hand. Without fingers, the seamstress would not be able to continue in his or her current employment. If a lower-paying job is the only employment he or she could secure, that’s when compensation for loss of future income would come in.
Pain and Suffering
There are a lot of ways someone could suffer and experience pain after a car accident. After explaining to your lawyer everything you’ve gone through, he or she can help you determine an amount to seek for pain and suffering. This could include compensation for loss of consortium, loss of companionship and other similar losses.
Punitive Damages
If the at-fault driver was particularly negligent, such as driving under the influence of alcohol, a judge may award punitive damages to the victim. This is a way to punish the guilty party and drive a point home that the behavior was negligent, but the victim receives a financial benefit for it.
Learning More by Contacting a Lawyer
Being in a car accident can result in injury and financial hardship, but you can sometimes recover some of the costs associated with your accident. Learn more about compensation by contacting a car accident lawyer in Northeast Philadelphia today.
Thanks to Wieand Law Firm for their insight into personal injury claims and types of compensation from a car accident.