A serious personal injury accident can significantly alter your day-to-day life. Your injuries may prevent you from participating in the activities you previously enjoyed or working in the career you spent years building. You may no longer enjoy your life as much as you once did.

Can you sue someone for loss of enjoyment of life? This may be a non-economic damage you can seek in a personal injury case. An experienced personal injury lawyer can advise you on your rights and options.

Loss of Enjoyment of Life and Other Non-Economic Damages

Loss of enjoyment of life is often included as a type of non-economic damages in personal injury cases. These are the costs of the accident that do not have a monetary price tag, instead representing the physical and emotional impact the accident has had on your life. Other examples of non-economic damages might include:

Calculating Loss of Enjoyment of Life

When you sue someone for loss of enjoyment of life and other non-economic damages, you seek financial compensation for these emotional costs. So, how do you determine the monetary value of the loss of quality of life?

There are two common methods of calculating non-economic damages:

  • The multiplier method involves taking the total of your economic damages (medical bills, lost wages, etc.) and multiplying them by a factor between 1 and 5. The factor depends on the severity of your injuries and the impact on your life.
  • The per diem method involves assigning a monetary value to your non-economic losses for one day, then multiplying that number by the days you will experience loss of enjoyment of life and other emotional costs.

Calculating personal injury damages often involves grouping all of your non-economic damages together, whether you are seeking just loss of enjoyment of life or other damages as well.

How To Prove Loss of Enjoyment of Life

How do you prove that the accident led to a loss of enjoyment of life that is significant enough to warrant financial compensation? Several types of evidence can help demonstrate how the accident and your injuries have impacted your life, such as:

  • Medical records detailing the nature and severity of injuries
  • Expert testimony explaining how your injuries would impact your lifestyle and well-being
  • Journal entries and personal testimony explaining how your injuries prevent you from participating in once-loved activities
  • Descriptions of the medical treatments, therapeutic devices, or accommodations you currently need to perform tasks independently or take care of yourself
  • A psychological evaluation showing your mental state after the accident
  • Other evidence of lifestyle changes, such as photos, videos, and testimonies from family members or friends

Seek Legal Assistance From Yale Haymond Law PLLC

Can you sue someone for loss of enjoyment of life? This may be one of the damages in personal injury cases that you can seek to account for the physical and emotional toll the accident took on your life.

Working with an experienced attorney from Yale Haymond Law PLLC can help you understand the damages that might be available in your compensation claim. Call 704-800-4357 for a consultation.