Personal injury law is a complex subject. If negligence caused their suffering, injured victims have the right to sue the parties responsible, but many claimants are unsure how much compensation they are eligible for.
Severe injuries that require surgery can impact your settlement. Surgery is a type of medical treatment that may be necessary for the injured victim after the incident, and you should consider its impact on the compensation you can receive from the lawsuit.
How Personal Injury Settlements Are Calculated
First, let’s start with how a personal injury settlement is calculated. These cases frequently involve economic and non-economic damages.
Economic damages include medical bills, future medical costs, lost wages, and property damage. Non-economic damages are more challenging to quantify and may include emotional distress, physical pain and suffering, and loss of quality of life.
Generally, the more severe your injury is, the higher the cost of your losses is. This means you can claim more compensation in the settlement to ensure all legal damages are covered, so long as you can prove their existence with evidence.
The Role of Surgery in Personal Injury Cases
Depending on the severity of your injury, you may be forced to undergo surgery to heal the damaged area or minimize the damage. If a doctor recommends surgery, this indicates a severe injury, which means your legal damages will likely increase.
The impact of surgical procedures can include higher medical expenses, longer recovery periods, and increased pain and suffering. These effects can change the value of your personal injury settlement claim.
Medical Expenses Post-Surgery
Surgical procedures cost a significant amount of money. The medical professionals who perform it, the equipment used, medications that facilitate the process, and other elements must be paid for, and your insurance company may not provide enough coverage.
The cost of surgery and post-surgical care would fall under the category of medical treatments, which is included in legal damages. If your personal injury claim includes surgery costs and medical care after the procedure, the total compensation eligible for a settlement will increase.
Long-Term Impact of Surgery on Recovery
Undergoing invasive medical procedures will impact your recovery. For less severe injuries, victims may recover quickly and be able to return to work soon. However, if you require surgery after the incident, your recovery will take longer.
As a result, you will miss more work or be unable to perform the same duties. The extended recovery timeline will increase your potential settlement amount.
Will Surgery Automatically Increase My Settlement?
A personal injury victim will not automatically receive a higher settlement if they undergo surgery. This common misconception often leads to disappointment when personal injury claims are settled.
Several elements must be true for a surgery to increase the compensation amount. First, the injury must be severe enough to require surgical procedures. Second, the procedure must be considered necessary to help the victim achieve maximum recovery. Finally, the long-term prognosis of the injury and surgery outcome will be considered.
For example, if the victim chooses to have surgery done that is not medically necessary, the cost of that procedure may not be eligible for compensation. If you are unsure whether surgery can increase your settlement, speak with an experienced lawyer.
Pain and Suffering After Surgery
Pain and suffering are considered non-economic damages in a personal injury case. Suffering from physical or emotional pain because of your injury can increase the settlement amount. If you must undergo surgery, this could also lead to pain and suffering. Your personal injury lawyer can assess this as part of your legal damages, increasing your potential compensation.
Scarring and Disfigurement
Disfigurement is another element of personal injury damages. It is a non-economic damage because it is difficult to quantify but still has a negative impact on the victim’s life. Scarring or disfigurement can be side effects of a major surgery.
Even if the pain or suffering from the injury is diminished, the victim may now suffer from difficulties or embarrassment due to disfigurement or scarring from the procedure.
The Impact of Surgery on Future Medical Needs
Future medical costs are factored into economic damages in a personal injury compensation claim. Often, a doctor’s testimony is required to estimate the value of future medical care, but this amount can increase the total settlement.
Surgery may fix the root problem of the injury, but it can cause long-term complications. You may need ongoing medical intervention to maintain the outcome of the procedure. Pain medications may be necessary during the healing process.
The initial surgery could be the first stage of future medical procedures. All these extra costs can be factored into your injury claim and covered by the final settlement.
How the Type of Surgery Matters in Settlement Value
Not all surgeries will affect the value of your personal injury settlement. A more invasive or complex surgery that is medically necessary will likely cause a higher settlement. On the other hand, a minor surgery may have little impact on your expenses unless there are ongoing costs associated with the aftermath of the procedure.
In either case, your personal injury attorney will help you understand how the type of surgery affects your injury settlement.
Emergency vs. Elective Surgery
There are two primary categories of surgeries after an injury: emergency and elective. An emergency surgery occurs immediately after the accident to address severe medical needs. This could involve an amputation to remove a crushed limb or a procedure to repair internal damage.
An elective surgery is a procedure that is planned later. Elective surgeries are not always considered necessary for maximum medical improvement. As a result, undergoing an elective surgery may impact your settlement less than an emergency procedure.
How Insurance Companies Evaluate Surgery in a Claim?
Insurance companies use numerous methods to evaluate surgeries in personal injury claims. In your claim, they may look at medical records, your quality of life before and after the procedure, the treatment plan from your physician, and the limits of their policy.
Insurance companies have a financial incentive to make smaller payouts to injury victims. As a result, they will use shady tactics to undermine your claim for higher compensation. The insurance company will likely try to minimize your injury or claim the surgery was unnecessary.
They could also downplay the significance of the surgery and its impact on your quality of life. This will lead to a lower settlement offer from the insurance company. Hiring personal injury attorneys is necessary to overcome these tactics and recover compensation for all your legal damages.
Evidence Needed to Support a Surgery-Related Settlement
You must provide evidence of the surgery’s necessity, cost, and impact to include it in your claim.
Some examples of evidence you may need include medical records, detailed documentation of medical attention, surgical notes, and expert testimony related to the injury. This evidence must support the idea that the procedure was medically necessary to support your recovery.
Legal experts know how to build a strong case and secure testimony from expert witnesses, so you can improve your chances of winning an injury case involving surgery by consulting experienced lawyers.
When Surgery Can Hurt Your Settlement
Surgery could reduce or hurt your settlement in several ways. First, if the procedure is not deemed medically necessary, you may incur that medical debt without receiving compensation to pay for it. Surgery can also cause potential complications that are unrelated to the accident that caused your injury, increasing your costs without leading to a higher settlement.
How Surgery Commonly Affects Settlements in Personal Injury Cases
If your accident required surgery, you have a better chance of acquiring more compensation from your injury claim. The surgery costs will fall under the category of medical expenses, which is a common legal damage. Additional pain and suffering from the surgery can also increase your settlement. Long-term care after surgery will mean more compensation from your claim.
Should You Wait for Surgery Before Settling Your Case?
There are pros and cons to undergoing surgery before you file your claim. First, if the surgery is medically necessary or an emergency procedure, you can include its costs in your legal damages and seek compensation to cover them. Second, the surgery documentation will strengthen your evidence profile and support your claim regarding the accident’s impact.
However, there is also an advantage to filing your injury claim before surgery. If the procedure is elective, you could recover compensation before the surgery to avoid going further into debt. You’ll have a consistent flow of up-to-date medical documentation to support your claim.
Ideally, you should consult your personal injury lawyer about maximizing your settlement to determine whether you should file your claim before or after the surgery.
How a Personal Injury Attorney Can Help You Get the Best Settlement After Surgery
If you want the best personal injury settlement possible, hiring a skilled personal injury attorney is essential. Attorneys understand the nuances of assessing damages and pursuing maximum compensation. If your injury requires surgery and ongoing physical therapy, your lawyer will know how to include those damages in your claim.
A personal injury lawyer will guide you through the claims process and protect your rights. They will assess all economic and non-economic damages to ensure your losses are covered. Your personal injury lawyer will negotiate if the liability insurance company does not offer enough for your settlement. Finally, they will represent you if your case goes to trial.
Secure Expert Legal Counsel!
If you aren’t sure whether surgery will increase your settlement amount, contact Rosenfeld Injury Lawyers. Our team knows the ins and outs of personal law and how surgery can impact your compensation.
You can ask questions about your accident and the impact of surgery on your claim outcome during a free consultation with Rosenfeld Injury Lawyers. Call our team today at 888-424-5757 or complete the online form to request your free case review with a Chicago personal injury attorney.