What Happens After a Personal Injury Claim Is Over?

If a person, product or business causes you to become injured, you may find yourself struggling to move forward in life. Issues other than medical bills and time lost from work could lie ahead, even after accepting a settlement. 

An injury may change your life and prohibit your return to the way things were prior to the accident. In deciding what is just and fair, however, a court’s response to a legal action may consider the full extent of a preventable accident’s continuing effects after the case ends. 

Insurance Claim Limitations

Although a commercial, vehicle or workers’ comp insurance carrier may cover medical expenses and lost income, the injury could cause you to give up a meaningful activity, profession or hobby. An injury could also cause harm to your marriage or family life. An insurance company or a workers’ comp claim may not consider these long-term issues. 

Obtaining financial compensation for your full extent of damages through a successful personal injury suit may help you adjust to an altered life. This typically requires extended monetary relief and a strong sense of achieving justice regarding the other party’s fault. 

Justifiable Punitive Damages

Punitive damages are how courts punish liable parties for causing preventable harm. The mandate to pay a monetary award substantially greater than the actual financial losses sends a message: There exists a duty of care to avoid causing harm to others. This is a primary factor in how courts award damages and assign liability. 

Receiving a significantly large settlement may provide a sense of vindication allowing you to achieve closure and move on. While a personal injury claim cannot undo an accident, once the process is over, you can gain the financial and emotional relief of compensation.