How Do You Ask for Pain and Suffering Without a Lawyer?

In personal injury cases, victims often suffer a degree of pain and suffering in addition to certain monetary damages. Victims have a much better chance of receiving full compensation for pain and suffering and other damages with the help of an attorney.

Complex personal injury and accident claims benefit from a lawyer’s experience. In this blog, you’ll learn more about what pain and suffering entail and the best way to recover these damages in a claim or lawsuit.

What Is Pain and Suffering in a Personal Injury Case?

In personal injury cases, many types of damages may apply. First, there are economic or special damages, which result in financial losses to victims. Special damages could include a variety of damages, including medical bills, lost wages, lost earning capacity, and property damage. These damages come with a specific dollar amount attached to them.

Pain and suffering, on the other hand, are noneconomic or general damages that aren’t as easy to quantify. Pain and suffering refers to any physical or mental distress that victims suffer following an accident. The amount these damages are worth will depend on the severity and type of injury sustained.

Because of the subjective nature of pain and suffering and other non-economic damages, it’s often difficult to determine exactly how much victims should receive. This is why it’s often best to work with an attorney if you wish to ask for pain and suffering compensation in your claim.

What to Expect When Filing a Personal Injury Claim

If you sustain injuries in an accident and want to file a claim, the many elements to consider can be difficult to manage. To file a pain and suffering claim, you’ll need to draft and send a demand letter to the at-fault party’s insurance company.

This letter summarizes the claim and all damages resulting from the accident. Demand letters should include as much detail as possible about all damages, including pain and suffering, which you’ll need other documentation to support.

Collecting Documentation

You won’t be able to build a successful personal injury case without sufficient evidence. This evidence will need to prove the extent of your injuries and that the initial accident caused them. You or your attorney should obtain documentation such as medical records and police reports. Otherwise, relying on insurance companies to obtain these documents could lead them to only select documentation that works in their favor.

To support your demand letter, obtain the following documentation:

• Medical records and bills
• Police reports
• Doctor’s notes
• Photos or video footage of your injuries, other damages, and the scene of the accident
• Witness statements

A Statement on Pain and Suffering

The demand letter sent to insurers must also include a statement regarding how the victim calculated the total amount that pain and suffering damages are worth.

When discussing these damages, victims will need to cover:

• The seriousness of injuries sustained
• The time required to reach the maximum possible recovery
• The type and location of disfigurement or scarring
• The total amount claimed for economic damages
• The potential for ongoing consequences
• The state’s damage cap, if applicable
• Income, education level, and other socio-economic factors

If you’re not sure how to approach all of this and put together an effective demand letter to begin the claims process, work with an experienced personal injury lawyer who’s handled similar cases. The right attorney will help you calculate the total amount of compensation you deserve and help navigate the claims process.

When to Work with a Personal Injury Attorney

Although it’s possible for victims to represent themselves in personal injury and accident cases, they should have experience with these matters and understand what their case entails. Every case is different and features unique factors that can influence the outcome, and insurance companies will try to reach the lowest possible settlement agreement to help them save money.

You may want to believe that insurance adjusters are on your side, but the fact is that they’re loyal only to insurance companies. This is why you may want to reject the initial settlement offer, regardless of how high it may appear. An attorney who handles personal injury cases may negotiate a fair settlement based on the amount your damages are worth.

Working with an attorney is generally more likely to help you get the best results from your case if you sustained serious injuries. However, if you’re unsure about whether you need an attorney, there are some circumstances to consider that can help make this determination.

The Severity of Injuries Sustained

Some injuries may be minor enough for accidents to avoid the claims process entirely. For example, victims may slip and fall in a retail store and only sustain a few scrapes or bruises. In these cases, store owners or other parties may offer a settlement that covers any medical expenses and other minor damages.

Unfortunately, many accidents involve more serious injuries that take time to recover from and may lead to steep costs, along with pain and suffering. If your injuries are more serious or complex, discuss your case with a personal injury lawyer. An attorney with experience in personal injury law can determine if you have a valid claim and detail your options.

Keep in mind that when damages are significant, the stakes will be considerably higher for both the claimant and the defendant in these cases. While victims will want to recover the full amount of compensation they deserve, defendants will want to do everything they can to avoid paying a large settlement.

The increased stakes will subsequently make both sides work harder to reach a settlement in their favor, which can lead to more aggressive motions that put the claimant at risk. This is why it’s often best to work with an attorney who can help negotiate claims on behalf of the claimant.

The Ability to Determine Fault

If there’s little doubt who’s at fault for an accident, and the claimant has witnesses who can support their claims, victims may be able to prove fault more easily. However, if fault isn’t as obvious, the defendant will likely fight harder to avoid paying full compensation. Defendants in these cases may claim that the victim was at fault.

For instance, store owners may claim that victims slipped and fell in their store because they failed to look where they were stepping. In a car accident case, a defendant may argue that the victim was speeding or violating other traffic laws, contributing to the accident. In cases where fault isn’t as clear, you need an attorney who can paint a clearer picture of the accident.

A reliable personal injury attorney can obtain all necessary supporting documents to help prove fault and the extent of injuries. They may also be able to hire professionals such as experts who can recreate the circumstances of the accident and pinpoint who was at fault.

The Availability of Evidence

Every claim needs plenty of supporting evidence to make it successful. This evidence will include supporting documents and witness testimony, along with other obtainable evidence. If this evidence doesn’t prove your pain and suffering or other damages, insurers or courts may conclude that you didn’t experience the damages you’re claiming to have sustained. In turn, you may not recover the compensation you actually deserve.

If you need assistance with obtaining evidence to support your claim, a personal injury attorney may be able to help. A good attorney will have access to all the resources needed to recover as much evidence as possible. This will likely increase your chances of reaching a favorable settlement in your case.

Calculating Pain and Suffering

If you want to ask for compensation for pain and suffering, you will need to provide insurers or courts with a specific dollar amount. Calculating these damages can get complicated because no universal formula can make these calculations.

If you’re not sure how much your pain and suffering are worth and don’t know how to calculate the specific amount, a personal injury attorney may be able to help. An experienced lawyer will know how to determine the total amount of compensation for these and other non-economic damages.

Ultimately, working with a personal injury lawyer is often the best choice if injury victims want to recover full compensation for all damages sustained after an accident. Without legal representation, victims may not gather or present all the evidence needed to file a successful claim or may experience other setbacks.

What to Do Following an Accident

Regardless of the specific circumstances of your accident, take the right steps immediately afterward to maximize the chances of removing total compensation.

The following are some specific steps to take if you are involved in an accident that results in pain and suffering and other damages.

Try to Remain Calm

If you are involved in a car accident or any other accident, your first instinct may be to panic. By calming down and objectively assessing the situation, you can better determine what took place and who was at fault. Check to see if you or anyone has sustained injuries and determine whether anyone needs immediate treatment.

Contact the Authorities

If an accident is serious enough and people are injured, contact the police and other emergency services if needed. Police will arrive at the scene and create a report that may support your claim. Be sure to obtain this report before submitting a demand letter.

Seek Treatment

If you require treatment for injuries following an accident, seek it as soon as possible. Even if injuries appear minor at first, they may develop symptoms later and could even turn into life-threatening conditions. Not only will seeking professional care help put you on the road to recovery, but it will also help you generate medical records that prove the extent of your pain and suffering. You should also obtain any medical bills and receipts.

Avoid Discussions of Fault or Saying the Wrong Thing

After an accident, victims should never admit fault or provide a recorded statement to the at-fault party’s insurance companies. Saying the wrong thing could compromise a case and prevent you from recovering the compensation you’re eligible to receive. Additionally, don’t discuss the case on social media.

Consult a Personal Injury Attorney to Increase Your Chances of Success

Before drafting and submitting a demand letter for pain and suffering, speak with a knowledgeable and experienced personal injury lawyer.

The right attorney will provide a free consultation to discuss the nature of your case and determine what types of damages you may be able to recover. This will include discussions around pain and suffering. An attorney can negotiate with insurers and may represent you in court if the case goes to trial.