Nevertheless, many clients are worried that they shouldn’t even pursue a lawsuit because they won’t receive enough money.
This belief is misguided. Below, we will outline some of the considerations that go into determining how much your injuries are worth.
How Severe are Your Injuries?
Personal injury settlements are meant to make you “whole.” This means that you should be in the same position financially that you would have been in had your slip and fall never happened. For example, you can receive compensation for the following economic losses:
- The cost of medical treatment. This includes the cost of transportation to the hospital, surgery, doctor’s visits, equipment, rehabilitation, and prescription drugs. If your injuries are serious, you can receive future medical expenses as well.
- Lost wages. Were your injuries so bad you couldn’t go to work? If so, you can receive compensation to make up for lost income. You can also receive lost future wages if your injuries are so serious you can’t return to your job.
- Property damage. You might have broken your eyeglasses or smartphone after falling. You can receive money to replace these items.
Hold onto medical bills and pay stubs that show how much money you have lost. Your personal injury lawyer will rely on this information to help determine the amount you can receive.
Calculate Intangible Injuries
In a successful slip-and-fall case, you can also receive compensation for injuries like pain and suffering or emotional distress. It’s harder to put a price tag on these injuries, but they are very real nevertheless. In general, clients often receive 1.5-5 times the amount of their economic losses in pain and suffering damages.
In settlement negotiations regarding damages, most of the dispute centers around these non-economic injuries. There really isn’t a dispute about the amount of medical bills or lost wages, but non-economic injuries don’t have a bill or receipt attached to them. An experienced personal injury lawyer can maximize your settlement by convincing an insurance adjuster to take your pain and suffering seriously. In one case, our firm settled a case for $34,000 although medical expenses were less than $3,400!
Speak with a Long Beach Slip and Fall Lawyer
The road to recovery begins with obtaining the necessary compensation for your injuries. At the Beliz Law Firm, we have experience in handling slip-and-fall clients. Reach out today to schedule a free case review.
Michael Beliz
Michael A. Beliz, Esq., established The Beliz Law Firm in the spring of 2011. Michael has been a practicing attorney since 2006 and worked for two of the most prominent plaintiff’s personal injury law firms in Southern California. He has worked on and handled hundreds of cases as an attorney in all types of personal injury cases, including vehicle accidents, pedestrian accidents and dog bites, and successfully recovered millions of dollars for his clients.
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