When you suffer severe injuries in a car accident or other type of accident in New York, you can file a personal injury lawsuit to recover your financial losses caused by the negligent party. In car accident claims, many victims wonder what the personal injury claim average in New York is and what they can expect to receive.
Unfortunately, it is not easy to determine the average personal injury settlement in New York since many factors can impact that amount. You may hope to recover a million dollars, though the amount you receive will depend on your injuries and losses which, in some cases, may only amount to a few thousand dollars.
Mazzu Law is a New York personal injury law firm committed to helping every accident victim get the fair compensation they deserve. You can learn more about our services as well as read about New York personal injury laws on our blog. In this informative article, we focus on New York car accident claims, the factors that can affect the average car accident settlement, and how New York law may limit the average settlement you receive.
Understanding Personal Injury Settlements in New York
When it comes to personal injury trials, you should know that the injured person is responsible for proving that the other party is liable for their injuries. Most of the time, these cases will not see the inside of a courtroom. Rather, they are resolved through a car accident settlement.
Known as damages, the compensation you receive is broken down into economic and non-economic damages.
Economic Damages
In a car accident lawsuit, economic damages are the tangible losses you have endured as the accident victim. These direct financial losses are easy to prove for your car accident settlement. You will typically receive economic damages for lost wages, medical bills related to your medical treatment for bodily injury, property damage, reduced earning capacity, and future medical expenses.
Non-Economic Damages
Non-economic damages are trickier to quantify as they are intangible. It is difficult to prove these types of damages without a New York car accident attorney helping you fight for them. With intangible losses, you may be able to recover pain and suffering damages, emotional distress, loss of enjoyment of life, disfigurement, and permanent disability.
The insurance company will likely use a multiplier formula as they often do for New York car accident settlements. They will assess the multiplier based on the injury severity and multiply it by the economic damages to determine the full amount for the settlement.
This is why there is no specific average settlement. The key factors used to determine an average car accident settlement will vary widely between cases, and to ensure fairness, those with car accident claims should speak with a New York personal injury attorney.
Punitive Damages
As a car accident victim, you may have heard about punitive damages and wonder if they will apply in your case. New York’s legal system rarely applies punitive damages, but in a serious car crash, it may occur.
Punitive damages are reserved as a way of punishing the at-fault driver or defendant for their excessively reckless or intentional acts. it is not likely that someone with minor injuries would see this awarded in their case. However, if a T-bone accident or a head-on collision caused by a drunk driver resulted in the wrongful death of a loved one, a New York judge or jury may find it justifiable.
Factors that Influence the Settlements Amount for a Personal Injury Lawsuit
To determine a car accident settlement, the insurance company will need to examine all the factors that make each case unique. Some injury victims may receive more than others based on the evidence presented and the relation to these factors.
Who Is At Fault?
One thing that comes up in personal injury is fault, and determining it is the key to who should be held liable. In New York, the no-fault insurance law will apply in a car accident, which requires all drivers to go through their own insurance company, even if they are not at fault.
Even though your own personal injury protection is designed to cover you after a car accident, those who have serious injuries can seek justice under personal injury law. However, with the pure comparative fault rule, there may be a chance that you are partially blamed for your injuries. If this occurs, you can expect that it will reduce the amount of your car accident settlement.
Type and Severity of Injury
Perhaps the most important factor considered for settlements in a car accident, or any personal injury case for that matter, is injury severity and type. More severe injuries will generally result in a higher settlement, especially if the injuries sustained are permanent.
For example, spinal cord injuries in a car accident are often permanent. If you do not fully recover from them, you may suffer more lost income than anticipated. You may never be able to work in your former capacity again and require a higher settlement to make up for your lost wages.
Additionally, traumatic brain injuries are often serious—though milder forms, like concussions, often see a fairly speedy recovery. In this instance, you may get a lower settlement from the insurance company than someone who has to undergo physical therapy and occupational therapy to relearn basic skills.
These are only a few examples of how the median compensatory damages award could be impacted by the type of injury. In short, someone with a severe neck injury could expect a much higher settlement from the at-fault driver than someone with only minor injuries who will recover quickly.
Medical Expenses
Medical expenses, like lost wages, are part of the damages you can seek after a car accident. A medically determined injury is likely to result in a mountain of medical bills. Depending on the cost of medical treatment, you may have a higher settlement.
The party who was negligent will need to cover medical expenses for the victim. Medical expenses that may be covered include:
- Ambulance rides
- Hospital stays
- Surgeries
- Visits to specialists
- Prescriptions
- Assistive devices
Extent of Insurance Coverage
New York has a no-fault insurance law that requires you to use your own insurance coverage for bodily injury, even if you were not at fault. When your coverage is exhausted and you have serious injuries, you can use the coverage of the at-fault driver.
To fully understand the average car accident settlement that you may be able to expect in your case, you should speak with a New York personal injury attorney.
New York Personal Injury Laws That May Affect Your Settlement
Under New York law, certain things could affect your settlement:
New York’s No-Fault Insurance System
New York’s no-fault law can factor into your case in a couple of ways. First, this no-fault insurance system requires an injured party to seek financial recovery through their own insurance carrier. No-fault insurance takes care of property damage, injuries, and lost wages.
However, when you have serious injuries or catastrophic injuries that go beyond the injury threshold, you can seek compensation from the other party. Generally, this would be defined as death, dismemberment, significant disfigurement, loss of a fetus, or permanent loss of function of a body organ or system. Additionally, New York has a pure comparative fault rule that allows you to seek financial recovery, even if you shared fault in the incident.
As long as you are not solely to blame, you will be able to fight for compensation. It will not be easy though as insurers will look for ways to minimize your settlement. You may have not been wearing your seatbelt or on a phone call at the time of the crash, and insurance adjusters will be ready to pounce on these facts to lower the amount of your claim.
This is why it is wise to have an attorney represent you for your personal injuries in New York. They will know how to stand up to the insurers to get you what is fair.
Damage Caps
Many states impose damage caps for pain and suffering on certain types of personal injury cases. Most commonly, it is done for medical malpractice. New York is one of the few states that does not have damage caps in place. They are only restricted by the decision of the jury rather than state law.
Wrongful Death
When the negligent actions or inactions of another person or entity cause the untimely death of a loved one, you have the right to file this type of lawsuit. New York specifies that only certain parties may seek damages including the spouse, children, parents, or the personal representative of the decedent’s estate.
Compensation could take the form of lost wages or financial support your loved one would have provided over the years had their life not been truncated, the expenses for their medical care before their passing, and funeral and burial expenses. Interstate law in New York requires that all compensation in this type of case be distributed to all eligible parties in proportion to their loss.
The Role of Legal Representation in Getting Fair Payouts for Injury Cases in New York
Lost income, medical costs, and property damage may be easy to prove on your own. However, every injured party should consider discussing the particulars of their personal injury with an attorney.
The emotional distress this event has caused you can add even more stress as you try to recover from your injuries. You may also encounter issues with the insurer of the other party who may argue that you are not at the injury threshold to be permitted to seek damages from their policyholder.
This is why hiring a lawyer right after your accident is recommended. Their role is instrumental and may be extremely pivotal in helping you recover what you deserve.
Investigation and Gathering Evidence
Your health and well-being should be your biggest concern when you are badly hurt on the scene of an accident, whether in an auto accident or in some other way. Getting medical care immediately is the first step, and this may mean that you were transported by ambulance to the nearest emergency room without taking photos or videos of the scene.
An attorney can help by launching a deep investigation and gathering evidence that you were unable to get at the time. This may include traffic camera footage or surveillance videos from nearby businesses. They can also track down witnesses and get their statements to help support your claim.
Hiring Expert Witnesses
Expert witnesses can be brought in to recreate the accident scene to show fault. They can also testify about the extent of your injuries or how your injuries will impact your future earnings.
Negotiations
Negotiating can be an exhausting experience when you are trying to recover from painful injuries. Insurers hope you will represent yourself so that they can walk all over you. They will find ways to minimize their payouts and convince you that this is as much as you can get. Lawyers know about all of these tricks and are prepared to fight for you.
What to Do After You Have Been Injured by a Negligent Party in New York
Every person should know what to do after they have been in an accident of any kind. These simple steps can help you stay on the right track and serve to maximize your settlement.
Report the Accident
If you were in an auto accident, you should notify the police. Officers will arrive at the scene to complete an accident report and help move your vehicle out of harm’s way. They may issue a citation to the other driver for violation of traffic laws.
You will need to fill out a report with management for accidents such as a slip and fall at a store or on someone’s property. Make sure you do not leave without a copy of this report.
Get Medical Care
You may be embarrassed about falling or be angry about the property damage done to your vehicle. However, do not overlook your need for medical attention. Not getting the care you need could cause your condition to worsen into something life-threatening. Medical care following the accident creates medical records that show you were hurt on the date of the accident, making it harder for insurers to claim something else caused your injuries.
Get a Free Consultation with a Lawyer
The laws in the state can make things much more complicated. Along with insurers that are trying to protect their bottom line, you should get the legal protection you need. Insurance companies have their own litigators, and when you hire a lawyer to stand up for you, you will have a better chance of getting the settlement you deserve. Contact Mazzu Law today to have someone fight for justice after your accident.