What Are "Money Damages" in an Injury Case?
The purpose of money damages in a personal injury case is to compensate the injured party for the damages they have suffered so as “put the plaintiff in as good a position” (not better) as they would have been if the accident or injury had never occurred. Money damages may be recovered for different types of personal injury cases (i.e. negligence) like car accidents, truck accidents, or slip and fall cases.
Types of Money Damages That May Be Recovered
There are two types of money damages that a plaintiff in a personal injury case can recover for economic damages and non-economic damages.
- Non-economic damages refer to non-monetary losses. They are things like, injury to reputation, mental distress, fear, humiliation, loss of sleep, loss of consortium. “Pain and suffering” often refers to non-economic damages.
- Economic damages, on the other hand, are monetary losses. Things like lost wages, medical bills, and property damage come within this category.
Recovery for Economic Loss in a Personal Injury Action
Economic loss arising out of an injury or accident is generally easier to prove and easier to get. Quite often there are documents that can be used to prove a person’s economic loss because there will be things like medical bills and repair bills. You can generally recover for the following economic damages in a personal injury case:
- Medical Bills
- Lost Wages
- Car repairs
- Money to pay for household services you can no longer perform
- Lost future wages (future income).
Certain personal injury cases like those that involve catastrophic injuries such as spinal injuries, or brain injuries, or serious illnesses like mesothelioma, can have significant medically-related damages. Recovering against the at-fault party for these economic damages cannot put the injured person’s life back together, but it can help ease the financial burden.
Hire Personal Injury Counsel
At the Day Law Group, we handle personal injury cases including car accidents, trucking accidents, mesothelioma cases, and more. We offer FREE consultations, and we don’t get paid unless you win your case. We have offices in Baton Rouge and we serve Baker, Denham, Gonzales, Port Allen, Prairieville, New Orleans, and Zachary. Call (225) 465-1232 ToDay to schedule your free consultation or contact us here.