As long as the victim of an accident has saved the bills received, following an injury’s treatment, the insurance company should not question a claim for compensation of medical expenses. Yet any request for compensation of damages related to pain and suffering might cause an adjuster to raise some questions.
Noteworthy aspects of pain and suffering
Physical pain
Physical discomfort: This usually relates to feelings that might be experienced during treatment
Mental and emotional issues
—Anxiety
—Fear
—Grief
—Anger
—Embarrassment
—Sleeplessness
—Stress
Measures of pain and suffering
Length of recovery
Entries in a journal or diary
Progress made during recovery, as mentioned in medical report: The victim/patient must attend the scheduled visits, in order for such mentions to appear in the report.
Requests for medication, especially pain meds
Evidence of an interruption to the daily activities of the victim, or the victim’s family
Photographs that show some aspect of the healing process
—Could show slow rate of progress
—Could show how the experience affected the patient/victim, as demonstrated by the photographed expression
—Might show weight gain or loss, as result of taking prescribed medication
Ways that a lawyer might suggest reasons for adding to list of damages that could qualify as pain and suffering
Personal injury lawyers in Monterey Park can study the comments in a client’s medical report. If any doctor had mentioned likelihood for the necessity of scheduling more treatments in the future, then that fact would deserve consideration. If a past treatment had caused some discomfort, one attempted in the future might have the same effect.
An attorney would also want to watch for any mention about likelihood for performance of some invasive procedure, such as an operation, at some point in the future. If such a procedure did have to be scheduled, then that could cause an interruption to an existing work schedule.
Depending on an employer’s readiness to accommodate such an interruption, the planned procedure could create problems for an employee that had appeared to be in full recovery. An attorney could underscore the potential effects of such possible problems.
Those are the sorts of problems that might add to any existing stress or anxiety. In other words, any one of them could belong on a listing of damages caused by the victim’s pain and suffering. That fact explains lawyers’ attention to the comments in a medical report.
Their attention highlights their awareness of the role that pains and related issues can have in determination of a claim’s value. Good lawyers work closely with their clients, in order to gain a firm grasp of the challenges facing a given client. Their efforts should increase a client’s chances for winning a fair and generous compensation package.