Suing for Money Damages in a Motor Vehicle Accident Case - Non-Economic Damages
Damages in an accident lawsuit could take two forms, non-economic damages (also known as non-economic loss) and economic damages (also known as economic loss). Economic damages are fairly straitforward. They include elements such as medical bills and lost wages. Those can be fairly straightforward to substantiate. Medical bills, paystubs, or other records serve as proof of those things.
But what about the forms of damage that it isn't so simple to place a dollar figure on. We call these non-economic damages. These include:
Pain and Suffering - This is often the largest component of a car accident award. It encompasses all the physical and psychological suffering brought by injuries. It could be difficult to quantify in terms of dollars and cents because it isn't merely substantiated by medical bills or pay stubs, as is the case with economic damages.
In addition to physical manifestations of accident-related injuries, such as disfigurement, scarring, palpable pain from muscle sprain, strain, tears, etc., accident injuries include the psychological consequences. These can include post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), loss of speep, loss of appetite, anxiety, phobias, depression, impaired memory, cognitive deficits, among other findings.
Non-economic losses also include loss of consortium, companionship, and diminished quality of life. This can range from the inability to particapate in ordinary family activities, such as camping or fishing with children. These elements also extends to limitations in romantic aspects of life with a partner (consortium, companionship).
In addition to physical manifestations of accident-related injuries, such as disfigurement, scarring, palpable pain from muscle sprain, strain, tears, etc., accident injuries include the psychological consequences. These can include post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), loss of speep, loss of appetite, anxiety, phobias, depression, impaired memory, cognitive deficits, among other findings.
Non-economic losses also include loss of consortium, companionship, and diminished quality of life. This can range from the inability to particapate in ordinary family activities, such as camping or fishing with children. These elements also extends to limitations in romantic aspects of life with a partner (consortium, companionship).