Personal Injury Compensation Claim

Personal Injury Compensation Claim: what can I expect?

Personal injury compensation claims range from minor amounts to major sums. The sums awarded will be broken down into general damages-a sum o money for the injury itself (the pain, suffering and loss of amenity) and an additional payment for special damages. Special damages are paid to compensate for financial loss arising from the injury such as loss of earnings, future operations and adaptations to houses in the event of serous disability. If the case has been heard in a Civil Court reasonable legal costs will be awarded as well. If the case has involved the police and ended up in a Criminal Court then you could receive an award from the Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority.

In Civil Courts it is difficult to say in advance how much money you could expect from a claim as each case is assessed individually. In awarding damages the judge will take the claimants personal circumstances into account. If the claimant was a promising footballer who will never play again then damages could be substantial. Likewise if the claimant suffers a head injury that results in nursing care and the need to adapt their house then the compensation award could run into millions of dollars.

Judges will refer to Judicial Studies Board Guidelines when assessing the value of a claim and they will also look at similar cases in the past for help. When awarding special damages they may hear evidence from experts of various kinds; especially if they are making awards based on possible future scenarios. All of these factors make prediction in personal injury compensation claims an inexact science but it is possible to guestimate possible awards.

Personal injury cases can take a long time to resolve; especially in complex cases but in the case of head injuries can range from $1000 to $2 million. Elbow damage payments could reach $75,000 and compensation for shoulder problems can reach $15,000. One of the most common personal injuries is whiplash and although minor whiplash might only see you getting up to $2000 severe cases can rise to $20,000. Severe foot injuries might attract awards of up to $100,000 whilst massive hip and pelvic injuries could result in payments of $250,000.

This range of possible payments means that you need to get expert advice when making a claim as it is difficult to say in advance exactly what sum you could expect.