Damages

Posted by admin on Jun 17th, 2009 | no comments

Damages is a legal term for the money you receive in compensation for your personal injury claim. It is an old, tried and tested method of putting you into the position you were in before the accident, by giving you money. Lawyers use a latin term restitutio in integrum.

Damges are simply split up into two main heads of damage. General damages and Special damages. General damages cover PSLA. Pain, suffering and loss of amenity. Pain and suffering is self explanatory. Loss of amenity means all the things that you could not do while recovering or will not be able to do again. For example if you broke your leg, then you would not be able to tend your garden, or go cycling with your family………..Strictly speaking, general damages are not quantifiable in the sense that the loss cannot be accurately worked out . How could you put a value on not being able to play golf when you had  broken arm?

Special damages, on the other hand are those that are qualifiable. For example your loss of earnings can be worked out to within a few pounds, by making a simple calculation of weekly pay times the number of weeks off work. Similarly, the number of miles you travelled to receive physiotherapy can be calculated and a loss arrived at.

There are other calculations such as a Smith v Manchester award. This refers to the lump sum paid to the claimant for disadvantage in the workplace. For example, if you were a carpenter and lost a thumb, then an employer would not favour you when another carpenter (with both thumbs) was available to undertake work.

If you are considering making a personal injury claim, telephone us now for free advice and help. We’ll pay for the call too! Ring freephone 0800 169 3683. Compensation advice is only a call away.

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