If Online Calculators Were Actually Accurate, We Wouldn’t Have Lawsuits. But We Do, Because They’re Not.
Easy answers aren’t always the correct answers, and that is certainly the case for online personal injury settlement calculators. Often found on personal injury law firm websites, these calculators are promoted as a tool injury victims can use to find out how much their case is worth or how much they may recover in damages before deciding whether to pursue a personal injury claim.
But when it comes to determining the worth of your case for bodily injury, personal injury settlement calculators are notoriously inaccurate. That is because while there are common elements of damages involved in all personal injury cases, there is simply no mathematical formula that applies to all personal injury cases.
A calculator may be able to crunch numbers, but personal injury settlement calculators can’t quantify the strengths and weaknesses of a case. Neither can they add up all the unique facts and factors involved in determining compensation, or account for the unpredictability of judges and juries or the talents (or lack thereof) of the attorneys involved.
Although you may be tempted to plug numbers into an online personal injury settlement calculator to see what comes out, you should in no way rely on these gimmicky programs when deciding whether or not to file a lawsuit for your injuries. And you should definitely NOT use the numbers from a calculator when negotiating with an insurance company. In fact, you should never negotiate with an insurance company without an attorney. Ever.
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To understand why you should look skeptically at personal injury settlement calculators, you first need to understand the types of damages that can be included in a personal injury settlement.
Economic v. Non-Economic Losses
In Colorado Springs personal injury lawsuits, there are two main types of damages that a plaintiff can recover through settlement or trial: economic damages and non-economic damages. In addition, punitive damages are recoverable in rare cases, something most personal injury settlement calculators don’t take into account.
Economic Damages
Economic damages consist of those sums that an El Paso County judge or jury can calculate by reviewing bills, pay stubs, and receipts – money that the plaintiff has lost already and will spend or lose in the future because of the injuries caused by the defendant’s negligence or wilful conduct. This includes items such as:
- Medical bills
- Rehabilitation costs
- Past and future lost wages
- Property damage
Since these are “hard,” or fixed, numbers, you would think that plugging them into a personal injury settlement calculator would give you an accurate idea of how much you will recover, at least in economic damages. But that is deceptive reasoning. Do you really know the extent of your injuries and how much care, treatment, or rehabilitation you will require in the months and years ahead? You may know how much money you earn now, but do you know what you would have made in the years and decades to come but for your injuries?
These damages will depend on the nature and extent of your injuries, your work history and prospects, and many other factors that personal injury settlement calculators are unable to take into consideration. In many cases, expert witnesses are called upon to offer their opinions and testimony about such damages. Those opinions, which Colorado Springs juries will consider when calculating the amount of damages due to you, don’t fit into a line on a form.
Non-Economic Damages
Non-Economic DamagesSimilarly, other types of recoverable losses are even harder to put a dollar figure on. What is the value of being able to play with your child? How much is never-ending pain or embarrassment worth? What is the cost of the loss of intimacy with your spouse or the psychological impact of not being able to support your family?
These non-economic damages, including what is commonly known as “pain and suffering,” are just as real as economic ones, and are a significant factor in settlement negotiations, especially in cases involving catastrophic injuries such as traumatic brain injury, and lawsuits involving the wrongful death of a loved one.
The Problem With “Multipliers” In Personal Injury Settlement Calculators
Insurance companies often use a “multiplier” in a settlement offer to take non-economic damages into account, taking the actual economic damages and multiplying them anywhere from 1.5 to 4 times to come up with a personal injury settlement offer to present to victims.
But that multiplier isn’t a set number, nor is it an accurate reflection of the actual, provable value of your pain and suffering and other intangible losses. At best, it’s a guess. At worst, relying on the multiplier in a personal injury settlement may dramatically underestimate the amount you may be able to recover based on all the facts and evidence in your case.
If You Want To Get A Realistic Idea of What Your Case Is Worth, Contact King & Beaty Today.
If you want to get a real sense of how much your personal injury case is worth, leave the estimates of personal injury settlement calculators behind and arrange for a free consultation with the experienced Colorado Springs personal injury attorneys at King & Beaty. We have helped countless clients on the Front Range get the compensation they deserve and need to move forward with their lives. And, you pay nothing in attorneys’ unless we recover money for you. Please contact us today to arrange for your free initial consultation.
