Traumatic brain injuries can happen in car collisions, sports accidents, slip and fall incidents, and many other accidents. When these accidents happen because of the carelessness of someone else, the injured party can file a claim and cover the costs of their brain injury. Understanding the factors that affect the average settlement for traumatic brain injury in Louisiana can help injured parties know what they can recover in a claim.
The damages you can recover in a TBI claim are unique to your circumstances. Some of the factors that influence the value of your settlement include:
A traumatic brain injury (TBI) can range in severity. Minor injuries, like concussions, may result in less severe symptoms and for a shorter period of time. More severe TBIs can permanently affect a person’s mobility, speech, or ability to take care of themselves. The severity of your injuries tends to directly impact the cost of your medical expenses, as well as many other damages in your claim.
Minor TBIs, while they can affect your life, typically require less medical care and physical therapy and may have no long-term complications. Because you don’t have to cover as many medical expenses, your settlement will not need to be as high.
If you have been permanently disabled because of your TBI, you may need medical care and treatment for the rest of your life. This significantly increases the medical expenses that need to be addressed in your settlement.
A settlement can recover the total cost of wages, benefits, and earning capacity you have suffered. Minor TBIs may require you to take days or weeks off of work to recover or to attend doctor’s visits. Severe injuries may mean you can’t work again. The settlement value will rely on your income, your expected income, and how that is affected by your injuries.
Noneconomic damages are also included in a settlement, which are intangible damages like pain and suffering, emotional trauma, post-traumatic stress disorder, and reduced quality of life. A severe TBI is more likely to alter multiple aspects of your life, limiting your independence, mobility, and more. This increases the value of a settlement.
Traumatic brain injuries have contributed to about one million deaths in the two decades prior to 2021. In 2018, they were responsible for 14,000 emergency visits and 3,500 hospitalizations in Louisiana. Unintentional falls were responsible for 1,859 hospitalizations for a non-fatal TBI in the state.
When there is significant documentation of your injury, its connection to the accident, and proof of the party at fault for the accident, your claim is more likely to secure maximum compensation. Ample evidence means that negotiations will likely be easier with the insurance company, and the company may more quickly settle for full and fair compensation.
Recovering the maximum available compensation is easiest when you have knowledgeable and experienced legal representation. An attorney investigates the accident, gathering evidence to support your claim. They assess the value of your damages, from your medical bills to your lost income. If you are partially to blame for the accident that caused your injury, your attorney will advocate for your interests and try to minimize the effect this has on your claim.
The most important thing to do if you suspect you suffered a TBI is to receive medical care. You may have been in a car accident, a workplace injury, or another incident. No matter the circumstances, medical care is crucial for your own well-being and the future of any claim you are able to make.
If you are injured in Baton Rouge or any of the nearby cities like Gonzales, Prairieville, Zachary, or Denham Springs, there are several options for medical care that have significant experience with TBIs and their treatment and rehabilitative care. This includes:
A good settlement offer for a traumatic brain injury is an amount that covers the total of your damages, including economic and noneconomic damages. Assessing the value of these costs is easier with the resources and experience of a dedicated personal injury attorney. It may be straightforward for you to calculate the cost of your medical bills, but an attorney is better equipped to consider the future costs of your injury and your intangible losses.
How much compensation you can get for a traumatic brain injury mostly relies on the severity of your injury. Minor brain injuries may need less treatment and less costly treatment and may not affect your life in the long term.
Because a settlement recovers your losses from the injury, its amount will be less when the injury is minor. More serious injuries may permanently disable you and prevent you from working. This leads to much higher damages and a higher settlement.
Pain and suffering damages are intangible, and there are numerous ways they can be calculated in Louisiana. Pain and suffering damages may be calculated by considering:
The time a traumatic brain injury case takes in Louisiana is not one set answer. Each claim is unique. The timeline for your case may be affected by:
It is wise to set up a consultation with an experienced traumatic brain injury law firm to discuss how long your case might take to settle.
There are many other factors that can affect the value of your settlement. Let our firm help you get the financial recovery that you are owed. Contact Day Law Group today.
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