Negligence can take many different forms. In many cases, a person is not paying attention to the possible consequences of specific actions, or they may commit an act that inadvertently injures another party.
Examples of accidents caused by negligence include:
- Car accidents are usually the result of driver negligence. This could include speeding, distracted driving, drowsy driving, operating a vehicle while under the influence of alcohol or drugs, or many other reasons.
- Slip and fall accidents are often caused by a property owner’s failure to fix hazards or warn visitors of danger on their premises.
- People may also be injured by the defective design or manufacture of consumer products.
Injuries caused by negligence will need to be proven in most cases by a preponderance of the evidence, which generally means more than 50 percent of the evidence.
Injury Claims We Handle in Portsmouth
Ruloff, Swain, Haddad, Morecock, Talbert & Woodward, P.C. has experience with a large number of different injury claims. Our firm has handled several complex injuries, with some examples including:
- Traumatic brain injuries (TBIs)
Do not assume that your injury is not severe enough to justify a legal claim. Most injuries involve significant medical bills, and you deserve to have those costs covered by the party that caused your injuries.
Whenever you are involved in an accident, you should always seek medical attention. This is true even if you do not at first think you were hurt, as many serious injuries can involve delayed symptoms.
Types of Personal Injury Compensation
Most personal injury cases are resolved through settlements. A settlement is typically designed to cover all of a victim’s past, present, and future expenses. The settlements that are initially proposed by most insurance companies are rarely enough to cover the full lifetime of a victim’s needs.
A skilled personal injury attorney will be able to negotiate with an insurance company for a fair and full settlement to your case. If the insurer refuses to provide a satisfactory offer, our firm can file a lawsuit.
If a personal injury case goes to trial, the jury could award the victim several kinds of compensatory damages. Compensatory damages are a combination of economic damages and noneconomic damages.
Economic damages refer to tangible costs such as medical bills, lost income, and property damage. Noneconomic damages are much more subjective and cannot be easily quantified, such as pain and suffering, emotional distress, and disfigurement.
Punitive damages can also be awarded in cases in which defendants acted with actual malice or under the circumstances amounting to a willful or wanton disregard of the victim’s rights. Punitive damages cannot exceed $350,000.
