Legal Question in Personal Injury in Louisiana
Determination of Pain & Suffering & Punitive Damages from Auto Accident
19 yr old daughter suffered neck injuries from rear-end collision. Physical therapy and other medicals exceed $7200, auto damage $1900, lost wages for medical appointments/travel to/from. She was also intimidated repeatedly by other driver's auto ins. carrier with calls to her job, letters refusing to pay because she would not sign release and accept their offer of $2000 and auto repair payment, etc.
1. How is amount of Pain/Suffering determined?
2. Should we ask for any compensation for the harrassment/intimidation?
1 Answer from Attorneys
Re: Determination of Pain & Suffering & Punitive Damages from Auto Accident
Determining the value of a personal injury is usually accomplished by looking at awards in similar cases.
It is subjective and varies between parishes, judges and juries. The Louisiana Supreme court and other Appellate courts
review cases to see if the awards are excessive or inadequate but give a lot of credence to the judge or jury hearing the case.
The offer you received seemed to not give you full value for your medical expenses. If the carrier is admitting liability they
should offer the full amount of the medicals plus your pain and suffering and any other expenses
such as lost wages. Not knowing more about the injuries I can't give you a value for pain and suffering.
Were any of the injuries permanent? How long did the pain last? What
parts of the body were hurt? What was the treatment like? I would be happy to discuss this matter
with you further. For a free consultation please call at 504-569-0380.
Related Questions & Answers
Looking for something else?
10,200 active attorneys ready to answer your legal questions today.
Featured Attorneys
Earn additional revenue and grow your business.
