Even a minor motorcycle crash can leave a rider with months or longer of recovery time. For some, a more serious crash can have them down for years. While recovering or learning how to cope with life-altering conditions, a biker’s bills don’t cease. Other than the obvious bills for medical treatment, numerous other costs can take their toll on bikers and the families that depend on them.
Connecticut riders injured in a bike crash can speak with a new haven motorcycle accident lawyer. While injured bikers are receiving long-term medical treatment, their lawyer will be busy fighting for them to receive compensation for their damages.
What Are the True Costs of Connecticut Motorcycle Accidents?
Motorcycle accidents tend to cause catastrophic injuries. Broken bones, severe road rash, and internal injuries are common when a biker hits the unforgiving pavement. Even if wearing a full-face helmet and leather riding gear, motorcycle accident injuries can break even the toughest of bikers. Bike crash accidents can leave riders without a means of earning a living for months, years, or, unfortunately, even a lifetime.
Determining the true costs of motorcycle accidents goes much deeper than the obvious medical bills which can quickly pile up, leaving families close to broke. However, there are many other damages than mere medical expenses. First, look at the two categories of damages you can seek when filing a motorcycle accident claim.
Economic Damages
The most obvious types of claims for a personal injury motorcycle accident case are those that are easily calculated to cover the costs of your medical treatment. Although the cost of medical treatment may be obvious, there are other economic damages that an injured biker can claim. Fortunately, Connecticut doesn’t cap economic damages, so it’s crucial to ensure you seek all the damages you’re entitled to. They can include:
- Medical bills
- Future anticipated medical bills
- Hospital stays
- Physical therapy
- The cost of medications, both prescribed and over-the-counter
- Transportation costs to and from medical appointments
- The costs of necessary medical devices
- The cost of any home modifications to help with your mobility issues
- Past and current lost earnings and benefits
Economic damages are usually easily quantifiable and are difficult for the defendant to deny. These damages come with bills and receipts and are usually very easy to prove.
Non-Economic Damages
This is where the true costs of a motorcycle accident are. While most who are filing a motorcycle accident lawsuit are seeking to recover financial losses from never-ending medical bills, there are other damages that plaintiffs can seek.
These are more difficult to put a monetary value on but should be considered. A motorcycle crash can cause a lot more than just physical injuries.
Non-economic damages can include compensation for:
- Pain and suffering
- Scarring and disfigurement
- Emotional distress
- PTSD
- Loss of enjoyment of life
- Loss of consortium
- Lost future wages and benefits
Simply recovering monetary damages for medical bills doesn’t fully justify the life-changing injuries of many motorcycle accident victims. Along with the broken bones, aches, and pains come emotional traumas that could be more painful than physical injuries.
Nightmares, panic attacks, and overall diminished quality of life should also come with a monetary amount. Sometimes severe life-altering injuries are easy for others to see how it would affect the victim’s quality of life.
Proving non-economic damages can be done in several ways. Statements from friends and family can help to explain the differences in the victim’s life before and after the accident. Many motorcycle accident victims will seek out the help of mental health professionals, and their medical opinions can weigh heavily on seeking non-economic damages.
Punitive Damages
While not common in personal injury lawsuits, punitive damages can be claimed under certain circumstances. The victim could ask for punitive damages if the at-fault driver produced the accident due to a wanton or extremely negligent act.
These damages are used as a way to punish the negligent driver financially. However, in Connecticut, punitive damages are capped at whatever the victim’s attorney’s fees are. This could still be a lot of money since most personal injury attorneys charge a 30 to 33% contingency fee.
The True Costs of Connecticut Motorcycle Accidents Explained
The victims of motorcycle accidents can have their lives turned upside down in mere seconds. With severe injuries, they may be out of work for a lifetime. While their medical bills and other economic damages are easily calculated, the toll the accident can take on their mental health can be exponentially more damaging. Mounting medical bills can lead to worry, and fear of financial failure, and the thoughts of the accident can lead to a decline in mental health.
To ensure that all of your damages are covered and compensated, hiring a connected personal injury lawyer with a background in motorcycle accident claims is key. Not seeking legal representation is foolish and puts your family in harm’s way. Get all that you deserve. Speak to a knowledgeable attorney who can help you get justice and a fair settlement.
