Damages in Southlake Truck Accident Cases
Because collisions between commercial trucks and commuter cars tend to cause especially serious injuries compared to most other types of auto accidents, civil claims built around truck wrecks tend to be especially valuable. It is worth emphasizing, though, that the extra money playing into this sort of claim is not just a matter of courtesy—it is meant to address debilitating and potentially life-altering trauma sustained by the person filing the claim.
With that in mind, damages in Southlake truck accident cases can vary significantly from person to person, depending on exactly what injuries they sustained and how those injuries will impact their life in the short- and long-term. No matter what, though, support from a capable truck crash lawyer can be vital to identifying, accurately valuing, and proactively demanding fair compensation for all the losses suffered by an injured person.
Economic Versus Non-Economic Losses
In legal terms, the value of a Southlake truck accident claim is based almost entirely around the value of “compensatory damages”—in other words, money meant to “compensate” an injured person for specific losses they have already suffered and are likely to suffer in the future because of their wreck. Compensatory damages can be broadly split into two categories—economic and non-economic—depending on whether they have objective or subjective financial values.
The value of economic damages can be established through quantitative evidence like bills, receipts, and pay stubs, and they typically center around but are not strictly limited to:
- Medical bills
- Lost work earnings
- Personal property damage
Non-economic damages, on the other hand, must be valued based on the personal experiences of the injured person as well as what amount of money people injured in similar ways got from past cases. Archetypal examples of this type of loss include physical pain, emotional anguish, and lost overall quality of life due to long-term disability.
Are Punitive Damages Available in Truck Crash Claims?
In addition to compensatory damages, courts overseeing personal injury claims in Texas also have the authority to impose “punitive damages” against a defendant. As the name suggests, these damages are meant specifically to punish a defendant for extremely egregious negligence or intentionally malicious conduct. While the money the defendant pays would then be awarded to the injured person filing suit, it is not meant to reimburse that person for any specific loss they suffered due to the defendant’s actions.
That said, it is rare for courts to award punitive damages in Southlake truck accident cases since an injured person must prove extreme negligence, malice, or fraud through “clear and convincing evidence” to receive them. On top of that, even if a court does award punitive damages to an injured party, the “cap”—or maximum limit—on punitive damages in a typical claim is the higher of $750,000 or the amount of non-economic damages plus two times the amount of economic damages.
A Southlake Attorney Could Help Maximize Truck Accident Damages
Even comparatively minor truck crashes can cause long-lasting harm to everyone involved, and severe wrecks can end up having life-altering and even life-threatening effects. While money alone cannot completely erase the trauma stemming from an experience like this, it can still do a lot to address specific forms of harm you have had to deal with because of a crash that was not your fault.
Maximizing damages in Southlake truck accident cases is almost always easier with an experienced truck accident lawyer by your side. Call today to schedule an initial consultation.