A Wilmington resident’s life can change in the blink of an eye if they are involved in a damaging accident. Car and truck accidents are sometimes unavoidable and often involve being in the wrong place at the wrong time, through no fault of one’s own. At times, these accidents are the fault of someone else, however. A negligent driver’s action or inaction can either claim the life of a person or it can alter that person’s life indefinitely through brain injuries, spinal cord injuries or other forms of very serious injury.
After a person is injured in an accident, he or she generally will receive medical treatment either immediately or shortly after the incident. Once the victim’s most pressing needs are taken care of, that person will likely need to figure out how they are going to pay for their medical bills. In many accidents, a victim may have medical expenses from right after the accident, as well as present and future bills due to ongoing appointments and rehabilitation.
In general, personal injury accident compensation can go toward the injured party and his or her medical expenses, but it can also address the ways in which the victim’s non-physical health and relationships have suffered due to the accident. For example, accident compensation can sometimes address the mental anguish of a disfiguring injury, or it may compensate a victim’s family member for the loss of care and companionship that a marriage often entails.
Economic recovery in personal injury cases can also address other losses, such as the accident victim’s lost earning potential. In a brain injury case, a victim may become severely or permanently disabled as the result of another person’s negligence. Thus, accident compensation may involve calculations of that person’s sudden inability to earn a living and support themselves or other family members.
There may be many different areas of loss to address when a person has suffered an injury as serious as brain trauma. After obtaining immediate medical help, it may be an ideal next step to visit an attorney for help assessing the need for compensation and pursuing recovery.
Source: FindLaw, “Economic Recovery for Accidents and Injuries,” accessed Sept. 18, 2016
