Personal Injury Claims Involving Amputation or Loss of a Limb

 Posted on August 12, 2021 in Personal Injury

Losing a hand, foot, arm, or leg impacts nearly every aspect of a person’s life. If you or a loved one suffered an amputation or limb loss, you know this firsthand. When another party’s irresponsible or unlawful actions result in dismemberment or amputation, that party may be liable for damages through a personal injury claim. The injured person may be entitled to compensation for both the financial impact of the limb loss and the non-financial consequences of the injury.

Understanding Negligence in an Amputation Injury Claim

Most personal injury cases are based on an allegation of negligence. In the legal sense, negligence is defined as a party’s failure to uphold a duty. For example, amputations may be a result of:

• A car accident caused by a negligent driver

• A workplace accident involving heavy machinery

• Medical negligence that leads to a preventable surgical amputation

• A collision caused by a trucking company’s negligence

• An accident caused by dangerous conditions on a residential or commercial property

• An accident caused by a defective consumer product

Seeking Monetary Compensation for Damages

If you asked the average person to put a monetary value on the use of their arm or their ability to walk, they would probably struggle to come up with a number. This is because there is no amount of money that could truly make up for a catastrophic injury like losing a limb. Compensation through a personal injury claim cannot remove the physical and emotional pain that results from an amputation injury. However, payment through a personal injury claim may help the injured person and his or her family cover medical costs and other expenses. It may also serve as a means of holding the at-fault party accountable for the devastating injury.

The damages awarded in an amputation injury claim often include compensation for:

• Medical costs including surgery, hospital bills, prosthetics, assistive devices, and ongoing medical needs like physical therapy and medication

• Lost wages and the value of lost work benefits

• Harm to the injured person’s earning capacity or employability

• Non-financial harm caused by the amputation including the injured person’s lost quality of life, physical pain, and mental suffering

In some cases, an injured person may also be entitled to punitive damages. Punitive damages exceed the damages intended to compensate the victim for financial and non-financial harm and act as a financial penalty for grossly negligent or malicious actions.

Contact a Bloomington Amputation Injury Lawyer

If you or someone you care about experienced a preventable amputation, contact a Springfield personal injury lawyer at Kanoski Bresney to learn more about holding the liable party responsible and seeking compensation for damages. Call us at 888-826-8682 today for a free, confidential consultation. 

Source:

https://ilcourtsaudio.blob.core.windows.net/antilles-resources/resources/95659d58-d1eb-40f4-8d0f-64c6588a169d/30.00.pdf