After you are injured and suffer personal injuries caused by someone else, you must fight to be fairly compensated for your damages. Your NJ personal injury attorney needs to calculate how much money you are owed by the party responsible for your injuries. Some people unfamiliar with the claims process mistakenly believe they will only be reimbursed for their expenses for repairs and medical bills. This is not the case.
Insurance companies want you to believe you will only be compensated for your out of pocket expenses. They do not want you to know there is a formula that adjusters use to determine how much your claim may actually be worth.
How is My New Jersey Personal Injury Claim Valued?
Even though all cases are different, most insurance companies use the same basic formula to determine the value of your claim. Please note that this formula is for informational purposes only, and you should consult with a personal injury attorney for complete details for your claim.
There are two components to the formula to calculate the value of the claim:
- medical specials; and
- general damages multiplier
Your claim is evaluated by calculating the amount of your medical specials and multiplying it by the general damages multiplier.
Medical Specials. The first number used in the formula is medical specials, which is the amount of the expenses occurred in your injury claim. This takes into account your expenses, including:
- Medical Expenses
- Property Damage
- Lost Earnings/Wages
- Future Lost Earnings/WagesFuture Medical Expenses
This value is calculated and will represent the medical specials.
General Damages Multiplier. This value represents your “pain and suffering” and is a number between 1.5 and 5. The more serious your injury, the higher the multiplier will be. General damages are subjective and are open to interpretation since they are not a black and white value for medical specials. Because the multiplier cannot be easily quantified, and greatly impacts the value of your claim, you need an experienced attorney to fight for you on this front.
Factors that are taken into consideration for the general damages multiplier include the extent of your pain and suffering, the extent of your permanent injuries, the impact your injury has on your daily living and work activities, emotional and physical trauma, impact on your family and spouse, and overall stress and anxiety. Higher pain and suffering equates to a higher general damages multiplier, and a higher value for your claim.
TIP: Never admit any fault when discussing your accident with an insurance adjuster. New Jersey has a legal concept called “comparative negligence” which reduces the value of claim based upon the percentage of fault assigned to you for causing the accident. And, if it is determined that you are more than 50% responsible for the accident, you will not be able to make a claim in NJ for your personal injuries.
Contact a Skilled Trial Attorney
If you or a loved one was injured due to someone else’s negligence, you should contact a seasoned litigator to discuss the value of your claim. Please contact NJ Injury Lawyer Howard Lesnik, Esq., immediately to discuss the value of your claim. I personally handle NJ personal injury cases on a regular basis. Please contact me now by email, by phoning 908.264.7701, or by completing the form to the right to schedule your complimentary 30-minute strategy session.