When someone runs into your automobile, your world seems to stop. The second most costly thing you own behind your home is damaged and may never look or function the same. When it is a bad accident, on top of the destruction of your car, you now have to contend with income loss, pain, suffering and injuries that may last a lifetime.

Fortunately the law is written in every state that a victim in a car accident can hire a reputable car accident lawyer like Christensen and Hymas and sue for damages and potentially receive compensation for their injuries, loss of income and several other things resulting from the accident.

The suffering resulting from a car accident can be slight or extensive physical, mental, or psychological injuries that can be temporary or last for a long period requiring medical care from professionals. When this occurs, the victim’s life is interrupted. If that person is the family breadwinner, this can have devastating effects on the well-being of the entire family. Additionally, the circumstances surrounding the car accident can also factor into any damages awarded to the victim. Was it an accident, was the driver negligent, or was it done intentionally? These factors can greatly vary the amount of compensation a victim receives.

There are two types of damages that may be assessed during a car accident claim case; compensatory and punitive damages.

Compensatory Damages

Compensatory damages will cover physical, mental and emotional injuries, lost wages, medical bills, and. loss of enjoyment, and loss of future earnings ability. The goal of this compensation is to restore victims to the status they were in before the accident. Most compensatory damages are easy to determine using invoices, bank records and paychecks. Several however like pain and suffering, loss of enjoyment and others that are more subjective. These damages are awarded by a judge or jury that follow guidelines supplied by the state where the case occurs.

Medical Bills

A victim can claim their medical bills in a car accident lawsuit: Medical injuries include:

Soft tissue injuries – Perhaps the most common soft tissue injury is whiplash which is a neck injury that occurs from the sudden stop of the vehicle. But there are many others that can occur all around the body including in the tendons, ligaments and the muscles. Typical soft tissue injuries from a car accident are tears, sprains, strains and acute soreness.

Internal Injuries – Internal injuries are injuries to the internal organs that might get compressed or hit during a car accident. These will include damage to the spleen, liver, lungs and kidneys. These types of injuries have a severity that is impossible to determine by sight and require hospital equipment to assess.

Broken Bones – Car accident impacts can happen at high speeds and these invariably will cause broken bones. Breaks can be to any bones in the body and often include the ribs, hands, arms and legs. Although some broken bones can be very serious, these injuries will usually heal with time.

Emotional and mental injuries – This refers to trauma that you suffer during and after the car accident. These types of injuries can last much longer and be more damaging than physical injuries.

Pain and Suffering:

Pain and suffering refers to the states the victim can go through as a result of having to suffer through the healing process. Included under this area is also loss of enjoyment where a person can no longer enjoy things that he or she did regularly because of the car accident. This may be recognized as a short term process or in the case of severe injuries may be assessed to occur over a lifetime.

Lost Wages / Loss of Income

Refers to any income a victim loses due to an inability to work because of the injuries suffered. These are typically determined using pay stubs or hourly wage records. In the event the victim is severely injured, the court may award damages for lost or diminished of future income.

Punitive Damages

If the court finds that the person who caused the accident acted irresponsibly and this behavior contributed to the accident or it severity, it can elect to award the victims with punitive damages. They are typically awarded for deliberate, vindictive, hateful, or otherwise cruel behavior that resulted in the injuries. Punitive damages are famous because they are sometimes many times what the victim receives in compensatory damages.

There is no guarantee of either punitive or compensatory damages but with a good attorney you can make a great case.