What Makes a Personal Injury Case High Value?

A personal injury case may have a high value when an accident causes serious, lasting losses that dramatically impact your quality of life. There are different types of damages available in each case, so the overall value of your claim depends on the extent of your losses. To truly be a high-value claim, you’ll also need strong evidence that supports your case for negligence against the other party.

Understanding these factors can help an injured person recognize why an attorney needs to investigate the entire case before estimating its potential value. Read on below as our attorneys explain what makes a personal injury case high value.

How Does the Severity of an Injury Affect the Value of a Personal Injury Case?

Serious injuries generally increase the potential value of a personal injury case because they create greater financial and personal losses. An injury that requires surgery, long-term treatment, or lifelong care can support substantially greater damages than an injury that heals completely within a few weeks.

Permanent injuries can have an especially significant effect on the value of an injury claim. Life-altering conditions like paralysis or amputation can impact every aspect of a person’s life, including their ability to earn a living. The cost of medical care alone can be overwhelming,

Even injuries that do not require lifelong medical care can lead to substantial compensation if they have a lasting impact. For example, a shoulder injury may prevent someone from returning to a physically demanding job, while a leg injury may make it difficult to walk, exercise, drive, or care for children. Your settlement should account for every way that your injury has altered your life.

Why Does Clear Liability Make a Personal Injury Case More Valuable?

No matter how extensive your damages might be, the value of your case hinges on the strength of your evidence. If your attorney can’t show that you were hurt due to someone else’s negligence, it doesn’t matter how extensive your losses have become.

Even if you can show you weren’t primarily at fault, Connecticut follows a modified comparative negligence rule. That means an injured person can generally recover damages if their share of negligence is not greater than the combined negligence of the defendants. However, the court reduces the recovery according to the injured person’s percentage of responsibility.

For example, if a jury awards $500,000 in damages but finds the injured person 20% responsible, the award may fall to $400,000. That means the issue of fault impacts the outcome of your case in more ways than one.

How Do Medical Expenses and Future Care Affect Case Value?

Past and future medical costs can represent a substantial part of a high-value personal injury claim. A claim should account not only for bills already incurred but also for reasonable medical care the injured person is expected to need as a result of the accident.

When it comes to past expenses, your claim may include losses like ambulance transportation, emergency treatment, hospitalization, and surgical procedures. Serious injuries can produce hundreds of thousands of dollars in medical costs before the injured person reaches maximum medical improvement.

Future expenses can become even more important in catastrophic injury cases. That’s because some serious conditions require a lifetime of care, and the cost of that treatment could be included in your claim.

Does Lost Income Increase the Value of a Personal Injury Claim?

Lost income and reduced earning ability can substantially increase the value of a personal injury claim. The more an injury interferes with a person’s ability to work and earn money, the greater the potential economic loss.

A person who misses several weeks of work may seek compensation for wages lost during recovery. Loss of earning capacity can become especially significant when a serious injury affects a younger person with many working years remaining. The right attorney can evaluate everything from your condition to your work history to determine what your diminished future earning claim might look like.

Why Does Available Insurance Coverage Matter?

Insurance coverage can impose a practical limit on the compensation available in many personal injury cases. A severely injured person may have damages worth far more than the at-fault party’s insurance policy provides, but the lack of coverage can serve as a hard cap on what they can recoup.

An attorney should identify every potentially responsible party and available source of coverage. The reality is that many catastrophic injury claims involve multiple parties who might be at fault. More defendants also means more potential insurance policies to help cover the cost of your claim.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is there an average settlement for a Connecticut personal injury case?

There is no useful average settlement that predicts what a specific case should be worth. Case value depends on the severity of the injuries, financial losses, evidence of liability, available insurance, and many other case-specific factors.

Does having surgery increase a personal injury settlement?

Surgery can increase the value of a claim because it often indicates a serious injury and creates additional medical expenses, pain, recovery time, and lost income. However, surgery does not automatically guarantee a particular settlement amount.

Can a case still have a high value if the injured person was partially at fault?

Yes, depending on the degree of fault. Connecticut’s modified comparative negligence rules may allow an injured person to recover damages despite sharing responsibility, although the person’s percentage of negligence can reduce the recovery.

Should an injured person accept the insurance company’s first settlement offer?

An injured person should understand the full extent of the injuries and losses before accepting a settlement. Once a claim settles and the appropriate release is signed, the injured person generally cannot later demand additional compensation because medical problems worsened or future expenses were higher than expected.

How long does it take to resolve a high-value personal injury case?

The timeline depends on the injuries, investigation, insurance coverage, disputed issues, and whether the case requires litigation. High-value cases can take longer because the parties may need to evaluate future medical costs and lost earning capacity, and insurers have more money at stake.

How Can a Connecticut Personal Injury Lawyer Help Maximize the Value of a Claim?

A personal injury lawyer can handle every aspect of your case, from the day you send your demand letter until the moment your case is resolved. Along the way, your attorney could do the following:

• Identify every category of damages
• Preserve evidence
• Investigate liability
• Locate available insurance coverage
• Document the long-term consequences of an injury
• File a lawsuit on your behalf
• Negotiate a fair settlement

Our attorneys are ready to guide you step-by-step through the legal system following your serious injury.

Reach Out to Slager Madry Today to Discuss the Value of Your Claim

If you still have questions about what goes into a high-value personal injury claim, now is a good time to explore your options with an attorney. At Slager Madry, we stand ready to help you maximize your recovery after a serious injury. Contact us today for a free consultation.