One of the common terms associated with a motorcycle accident injury claim is pain and suffering. Motorcycle riders are 9 times more likely to be injured in a bike crash than car drivers and 28 more times likely to die. But when it comes to trying to put a fixed dollar amount for that trauma, it can be extremely difficult.
What are non-economic damages?
Pain and suffering falls into one of two (main) categories of damages in a bike accident injury. There are economic/special damages (these are hard costs like medical bills, lost wages, and property damage and non-economic/general damages (these are damages associated with the physical and mental trauma of the accident).
Examples of non-economic damages are:
• Physical or emotional pain and suffering
• Mental anguish
• Loss of companionship (for family or spouse of a loved one who has died)
• Loss of consortium (for spouse of a victim who has died)
• Disfigurement
• Loss of reputation
• Loss or impairment of mental or physical capacity
• Loss of enjoyment of life
• Inconvenience
Pain and suffering is just one of many different types of non-economic damages after a bike crash that is connected to the mental or emotional trauma of the accident itself.
How do you get pain and suffering after a motorcycle accident?
If you are not injured, there will be no claim for pain and suffering. There must first be an injury that you can demonstrate by seeking medical care and having the doctor tie it to the accident. Similarly, if you are uninsured when riding your bike, California law prevents you from seeking pain and suffering after a motorcycle accident
Once an injury has been established, you will also need to demonstrate that the other party was in some way negligent in the crash. If you are found to be the at-fault party, you may not be able to collect for pain and suffering.
How is motorcycle accident pain and suffering calculated?
Unlike economic damages, which are fixed costs, non-economic damages have no set formula. This makes pain and suffering and its related damages after a motorcycle crash difficult to put an exact number on. This is because every bike crash will vary greatly based on the individual involved and the circumstances of the crash.
For example, if a crash victim is in their 20s and physically active but is impaired from doing physical activities the rest of their life, their non-economic damages will differ from someone who is in their 60s and not physically active. This is not to say that the older victim’s life hasn’t been affected as much, it is only to illustrate that there are different variables that will be considered in each individual case.
Some of the things taken into consideration in a motorcycle injury damages evaluation will be: the extent of the injury, what activities the victim can or can’t do any longer, if there was mental anguish associated with the crash, and if there was physical impairment or disfigurement. The more serious the injury, the higher the non-economic damages will be.
The common ways to calculate pain and suffering
The multiplier method is one way to calculate pain and suffering. To do this, add up all of the economic damages (medical bills, lost wages, and property damage) and then multiply that number between 1.5 and 5. This number can be higher or lower depending on the severity of the bike injury.
In many cases where the injuries aren’t extensive, this can be a fair and reasonable way to calculate pain and suffering. But ultimately, the biggest factor is the nature and extent of the injuries, not a numerical factor.
Another way to calculate pain and suffering damages is the daily rate method. This is calculated by determining a fair “daily rate” to live with your injuries and then multiplying it with the number of days spent recovering from this accident.
Calculating this number can be difficult, but the crash victim’s daily earnings are usually used as the daily rate. The argument is that recovering from injuries is at least as emotionally demanding as going to work each day (and obviously in many cases much more).
Considering just how many different variables can play into pain and suffering from a bike crash, it is easy to see how this number is so subjective. Ultimately, it may be up to the court or a jury to determine this number based on the facts of the given case.
If you have questions about pain and suffering from a bike crash, we offer free case evaluations and are happy to give you our honest opinion. Our phone number is (916) 619-5452 and we have a form online that you can fill out as well.
