How Much Can I Get in a Personal Injury Settlement

When you have been involved in an accident caused by someone else, and have suffered injuries, you may be entitled to pursue compensatory damages from the at-fault party. This can be achieved through one of two ways. One of these ways is to file a personal injury lawsuit where you can seek compensation in court. This is usually the method reserved for parties that are not willing to cooperate.

Settlements – The Most Common Outcomes in Personal Injury Claims

The other route is the negotiation of a settlement with the at-fault party and their insurance company. This route allows both parties to avoid the lengthy and costly court involvement process. This is usually in the best interests of both parties, which is why around 70% of all personal injury cases conclude in settlement payments outside of court.

You may be wondering, “How much can I get in a personal injury settlement?”. Every personal injury case is complex and varied, with each case being unique to the people involved. This means that the amount you can achieve in the settlement will depend upon a wide variety of factors, from the severity of your injuries to the quality of your legal representation.

There are no average personal injury settlement amounts because each case will need to be evaluated by your attorney. For example, if we compare two car accident cases involving two cars and two parties, the damages that each party could suffer may be vastly different. One individual may suffer an injury that means they can never return to work again, whereas the other party may walk away with minor whiplash injuries.

Put your trust in Abraham Watkins – The Personal Injury Attorneys You Can Rely On

Here at Abraham Watkins, our team provides skilled legal counsel and representation for injury victims, helping them secure the compensation they deserve. With over seven decades of experience and a commitment to justice, we are your go-to law firm for any personal injury matter.

Call us today at 713-535-9319

Factors That Determine Personal Injury Settlement Amount

When it comes to negotiating a personal injury settlement, your attorney will need to consider a wide range of different factors. In a personal injury claim, it will be down to your personal injury attorney to calculate your damages in the most accurate manner possible. This will give them a figure to work with when it comes to negotiation.

The damages they will look at will include:

Medical Expenses

Your settlement should account for your medical expenses following any injury caused by another party. This means that the compensation you are offered should be enough to cover all of your past medical expenses and, if your injuries are going to require further treatment in the future, it should cover the cost of those future medical bills too.

Loss of Wages

If you had to take any time off work or you will need to take time off work in the future, your settlement should include compensation for the loss of wages you have suffered. If you were injured in a way that means you will not be able to return to work, your attorney may look to pursue a lifetime of lost earning potential.

Pain and Suffering

In most personal injury cases, pain and suffering damages are usually the most substantial damages that will be considered. This is why it is important to seek legal representation from an experienced personal injury attorney, one who has won cases similar to yours in the past. This will ensure that they are best equipped to handle your case and calculate your pain and suffering damages in the most accurate way.

Your pain and suffering damages are subjective, meaning your attorney will need to place a value on them. Compared to your economic damages, such as your medical expenses and lost wages, which have clear price or costs attached, your pain and suffering, which compensates you for the pain you have been through and the emotional distress you have suffered, is much more difficult to calculate.

Many attorneys will use a multiplier-based system to calculate the total value of your economic damages, such as your lost wages and medical bills, and apply a multiplier between 1-5x to that total, depending on how severe they classify your pain and suffering to have been.

Things that will influence the severity of your pain and suffering include:

Type of Injury

Certain types of injuries are more traumatic than others. For example, losing a limb, spinal cord injuries, suffering a traumatic brain injury, or serious burns that disfigure the victim will affect the victim a lot more than if they suffered a small amount of bruising.

Severity of Injuries

Severe injuries that require a long period of treatment and leave the victim with a high amount of pain or disfigurement will result in a much higher multiplier. For example, if a victim has suffered burns all over their body, they may not ever return to work, and they will suffer a lot of emotional trauma as well as a lot of pain. In this case, the multiplier may be the maximum 5x.

Loss of Enjoyment

Another thing that your personal injury lawyers will consider is whether you have suffered, or will suffer, any loss of enjoyment of life due to the injury. Personal injury victims who can no longer do things they loved before the accident, such as playing with their children, riding their bike, or any other hobbies or tasks, deserve compensation for their loss of enjoyment of life in any good personal injury settlement.

How to Find a Personal Injury Lawyer in Your Area

If you have been involved in an accident, the very first thing you need to do is to focus on your well-being and prioritize your health above all else. Once you have received immediate medical treatment and have the space, you should contact a personal injury lawyer if you have not done so already.

Your best option is to find an attorney that handles cases similar to yours, with a full understanding of the state-specific personal injury law that applies to your case.

We recommend checking out your local attorneys on AVVO, which is an independent review site that places a rating out of 10.00 on attorneys based on their years of service, past victories, peer reviews, accolades, and accreditations.

Here at Abraham Watkins, we have served the state of Texas for over 70 years, making us the ideal choice if your accident occurred in Texas.

What Happens When You Contact Abraham Watkins?

The second you decide to contact our team, we will schedule a free case evaluation and initial consultation. This meeting gives you the proper space to ask any questions you need to ask and allows us to have a look at your case before either party has agreed to anything.

If we think your case is a valid one and is worth pursuing, we will tell you so, and we can discuss our payment structure. We believe all victims should be able to pursue compensation, regardless of their financial situation. You should not have to forgo representation because you cannot afford up-front fees or because you fear that if you lose, you will be left worse off.

Contingency fee basis work means that we take your work on for no up-front cost, and you only have to pay our fees if we win you a settlement or succeed in a court case. If we lose, or cannot negotiate a settlement with you, you do not have to pay us a penny.

As soon as you have agreed to representation,we can get to work. We may send our own investigation team to the scene of the accident, look for CCTV footage, speak to witnesses and we will obtain any accident reports filed by the emergency services who attended the scene.

By thoroughly investigating, we will collect as much evidence as possible, using what we find to build a bullet-proof case on your behalf. We will assign liability and will ensure that it is hard to dispute who was really at fault.

With over seven decades of experience, we have handled countless cases, and our long history of success speaks for itself. We have likely won cases just like yours before, and this gives us an unrivaled advantage as we have a huge pool of experience to draw from. When it comes to tailoring a strategy to your unique case, this experience is invaluable.

When it comes to fighting for our clients, we will employ every resource in our arsenal to secure a victory. This may include utilizing our vast network of expert witnesses, such as our medical experts, crash accident reconstruction team, and financial experts, who can assist us when it comes to valuing your damages. When it comes to a typical personal injury settlement, this additional testimonial may be enough to ensure your victory.

Do I Really Need an Attorney to Handle Texas Personal Injury Issues?

There is no law in place that states that you must pursue compensation with legal representation at your side. However, in most cases, you stand a much higher chance of success when you have legal representation. Not only this, but victims who pursue a case with a skilled attorney will usually walk away with more compensation, even with the fees for representation deducted.

When it comes to fighting against the other party and their insurance company legal team, you must remember that while 70% of cases end in settlement, the settlement amount may not always be fair to the victim. Insurance companies will fight you every step of the way to lower their eventual payment, which means that you should always approach settlement negotiations with a fierce attorney.

At Abraham Watkins, our attorneys have a reputation for fierce advocacy and successful cases. This makes it much more likely that the insurance company will play ball when it comes to offering a fair and reasonable settlement for your damage.

FAQ

Every state has its own statute of limitations that is put in place to prevent victims from waiting for many years before pursuing a case. This is in place because, after a certain period of time, it is unlikely that there will be substantial evidence that can be used in the case. For example, if you tried to raise a personal injury case against a party for a car accident 10 years ago, there will likely be no evidence that you can use to substantiate your claims.

In Texas, you have two years from the date of the injury to raise a claim. After that point, you will no longer be able to bring a claim against the at-fault party.

There are rare exceptions to this rule, such as in the event that your injuries were not discovered for some time after the incident.

Speak to One of Our Experienced Attorneys at Abraham Watkins Today

At Abraham Watkins, we have been protecting the rights of personal injury victims in Texas for over 70 years. We believe that everyone deserves access to high-quality legal representation, which is why we offer free consultations and work on a no-win no-fee basis.

Our team of personal injury lawyers has an outstanding reputation which helps us to secure fair and just compensation for our clients.

We are dedicated to advocating fiercely on your behalf and will do everything in our power to help you achieve the results you deserve.

Don’t hesitate to contact our law office today at 713-535-9319 to arrange a free consultation.