Damages in Prince William County Survival Actions

Damages in Prince William County survival actions are determined by considering how the decedent ultimately died, how he or she was damaged, and how he or she was forced to endure the last moments of their life as a result of the negligence of another. Maybe they lived for a significant period of time following the injury that occurred, and as a result of someone else’s negligence, their quality of life was lowered. These damages are meant to compensate the injured individual for what they had to endure and compensate the family for everything else that went along with what they suffered. An attorney can help extensively by focusing on maximizing compensation, as well as helping the family of the decedent through the grieving process.

Non-economic Damages

Survivors deserve compensation for the pain and suffering of the decedent because they did not ask to be put in a situation that they were put in. Unfortunately, there is no way to undo the suffering that loved ones endured. Monetary compensation is the only thing that our justice system allows in this kind of circumstances, so that is what is used.

Pain and Suffering

Constant pain and suffering is a very important damage in survival action. It is typically the place that the fact finder has the most discretion in awarding damages. Evidence that will be presented to prove constant pain and suffering might include videos, audios, pictures, or similar things of that nature that help the fact finder to understand what the injured decedent went through during the last moments of his or her life. An experienced wrongful death attorney will often work with a life counselor or grief counselor to quantify this in best way possible so that the judge or jury or settlement negotiator can understand the extent of the pain and suffering.

Measuring Pain and Suffering

There is no pain and suffering scale. There is no number that can be stuck on that makes it okay for someone to have suffered. Pain and suffering is one of the most difficult damages to quantify; it is not quantifiable. As experienced wrongful death attorneys that handle survival actions, it is our role to help the fact finder quantify these damages in the best way possible. Certainly nothing can make up for someone going through pain and suffering caused by someone else’s negligence, but attorney’s do our best to put a number on that to help the family move on and help the beneficiaries of the victim be comforted.

Economic Damages

Economic damages are quantifiable amounts that can be paid to a decedent and their family. These damages often include medical bills and funeral expenses.

Medical Bills

Medical bills are the most quantifiable type of damage in any personal injury case. Medical bills are typically the charges that are incurred, whether insurance is involved or not. These medical charges and medical bills give us a view of how seriously the person was injured and what type of treatment they had to receive. Reasonable medical bills are something that fact finders consider and under Virginia law if a medical bill is admitted as reasonable and necessary and costs related to the injury then the at fault party must compensate the injured party completely for that bill.

Commonly incurred medical bills include hospital bills, doctor bills, physical therapy, emergency room bills, and emergency transportation bills.

Funeral Bills

Funeral bills are reasonable funeral expenses and are by statute something that can be compensated for in wrongful death cases. Survival action typically does not allow the recovery of funeral bills because the survival action covers only the time up until the death of the decedent.

Depending on the type of funeral, whether it is a funeral in a casket or cremation, there may be a variety of bills involved, including transportation, actual preparation of the body, casket, the funeral ceremony itself, even foreign travel expenses if the decedent is a foreign citizen and must be transported to their country for burial.

Funerals can be very expensive. It is not uncommon for funerals to be over several thousand dollars, and even $10,000 funerals are not uncommon and can be considered a reasonable funeral expense.

Contacting a Local Prince William County Attorney

The party that is involved in survival action will be going through a great amount of grief and it can be difficult for them to come to grips with what they are facing and what is fair given the loss of their loved one. An experienced lawyer in Prince William County who handles survival actions can help the family focus on their recovery while the attorney focuses on maximizing the compensation as a result of untimely loss of their loved ones.

Attorneys that handle wrongful death cases and survival actions are experienced in these matters and are experienced in dealing with families who are in grief, as well as in calculating damages for the loss of a loved one. The statute is amazingly complex and the defenses are many, so it is not something family members want to try to do on their own. Insurance companies or defense counsel will vigorously fight to keep their damages and losses to a minimum, making it especially difficult for family members to handle by themselves without an attorney.