Transform Your Understanding Of Specific Damages Categories Now

Personal injury damages usually fall into 2 categories: special damages and general damages. Special damages cover documented economic losses like medical bills and lost wages, while general damages cover pain and suffering. This article explains what counts in each category and how reimbursement is evaluated.

Ray Hrdlicka – Host – Attorneys.Media

“So, let me ask you this question. He mentioned earlier that if people have the medical appointments, the medical reports, the cost of medical care and all of that adds up…is that the scope of the case…that they will be reimbursed?”

Andrew Dósa – Personal Injury Lawyer – Oakland, CA

“The way things work is that there are two components to an injured person’s claim for damages. There are general damages and special damages. Why they are described that way is not very important. Special damage is the actual number of damage. If you have $2,000 in medical bills, $2,000 is your number, and that’s special damage and specific identifiable damage. There is no dispute that that is billing. There may be a dispute as to whether all that treatment was related to the injury, but that’s a side fight that the insurance company will undoubtedly give me.

The second most common special damage is lost wages. So a client who missed four days of work because she was too uncomfortable or didn’t have time or was miserable or whatever, I can identify what her lost wages was. They worked four shifts, had six hours each shift, and earned $27 per hour. 27 times every number of hours, every number of shifts, gives you a return on a specific wage loss.”

Ray Hrdlicka – Host – Attorneys.Media

“Right. Specific data, it is very objective. I can’t argue about that.”