It is hard to identify an “average” settlement for personal injury in Mississippi because every claim or case comprises multiple moving parts that make it unique. The variables that affect a personal injury settlement include:
- Your special damages
- The type and extent of your personal injuries
- Comparative liability
- The at-fault party’s insurance policy
- Statute of limitations
What Types of Special Damages Factor Into My Settlement Amount?
It stands to reason that your settlement for a personal injury claim would at least cover the costs associated with your medical treatment and any income you have lost while being treated or recovering from your injury.
Losses such as these, which can be validated and quantified, are called “special damages.” They include the following:
- Doctors’ and surgeons’ fees
- Prescription medications
- Hospital stay
- Emergency transportation
- Physical therapy/ rehabilitation
- Mobility devices
- Lost wages
These are just a few examples of the types of special damages that our personal injury attorneys will calculate and include in a demand letter to the at-fault party’s insurance company.
For a free legal consultation, call (800) 537-8185
How does the Type and Extent of Personal Injuries Affect Settlements?
Medical expenses and other special damages can quickly add up to a large settlement. They are somewhat simple to calculate and validate. However, injuries cause other types of damages, for which there is no real-world dollar value.
Damages like pain and suffering, emotional damages, and permanent disability are called “general damages.” Insurance companies adopt a formula wherein the special damages are multiplied by a number between 1.5 and 5. The more serious, painful, and long-lasting the injuries, the higher the multiplier.
Although insurance companies do not reveal their formulas, generally, the soft-tissue injuries are considered less serious and are assigned a multiplier of between 1.5 and 3, while hard injuries (broken bones, head injuries, spinal injuries, etc.) are deemed more serious and assigned higher multipliers.
How does Comparative Liability Affect Personal Injury Compensation in Mississippi?
Mississippi awards personal injury damages using the comparative liability system. This means that you and the at-fault party or parties could share the blame for an injury-causing accident. Consider a scenario in which Driver A stops abruptly when they spot a turtle on the road. At that same moment, Driver B is speeding and glancing down at their gas gauge and smashes into Driver A’s vehicle.
Both parties played a role in the collision. The police officer who shows up at the scene might identify Driver B as the at-fault party, and so Driver A files a claim against Driver B’s insurance company. The insurer, however, will investigate every detail of the crash to establish Driver A’s percentage of liability. The higher this percentage, the less the insurance company will pay you in a settlement.
Our car accident lawyers know how Mississippi insurance companies work. We also know how to challenge the percentage of liability an insurer has assigned you so you can receive a larger settlement than what the insurance company would otherwise try to get away with paying.
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How Can I Settle My Personal Injury Case If the T-fault Party does Not Have Insurance?
The State of Mississippi’s Compulsory Liability Law requires that all drivers carry liability insurance with the following minimum liability coverage:
- $25,000 per person (limited to a single accident)
- $50,000 per accident for bodily injury
- $25,000 per accident for property damage
This 25/50/25 minimum requirement might not be enough to cover your damages in a serious collision. If the at-fault party’s coverage is insufficient, the individual will be responsible for paying any damages beyond what their policy covers. For this reason, many Mississippi drivers purchase more liability coverage.
Uninsured/ Underinsured Motorist Protection
If the at-fault driver does not have liability insurance, or they do not have the financial means to cover your damages that exceed their policy, you still could receive compensation through your own insurance company. You could make a claim for your damages if you bought Uninsured/Underinsured Motorists (UM/UIM) protection when you bought your policy.
How Long do I Have to File a Personal Injury Lawsuit in Mississippi?
It is important to realize that Mississippi, like most states, restricts the amount of time you have to file a personal injury lawsuit. According to Miss. Code Ann. § 15-1-49, an injured party has three years from the date of the incident that caused their personal injuries in which to take legal action. Certain exceptions may shorten this deadline.
This statute does not apply to insurance claims. However, you should know that a personal injury lawsuit serves as a strong recourse for you if an insurance company denies your claim or refuses to agree to a fair settlement.
If you let the statute of limitations expire, you lose a key motivator for the insurance companies to cooperate toward a settlement that will cover your losses.
Contact Us Today to Learn How Our Personal Injury Lawyers will Fight to Get You a Fair Settlement
If you have suffered injury as the result of another person’s negligence, the Morris Bart law firm will fight to get you a fair settlement.
Call our firm today for a free consultation: (800) 537-8185.
Questions?Call (800) 537-8185
to find a Morris Bart office near you.
