An accident can happen instantly and that incident can take away the life of a loved one. In case an accident takes the life of your loved one, you can seek compensation through a wrongful death claim with the help of a wrongful death attorney. While money cannot replace the lost person, it can provide help to the family members to handle the financial burdens that come after an accident.
Types of Damages You Can Recover in Wrongful Death Case
Wrongful death compensation covers several damages. The list of the damages that you can recover in a wrongful death case includes
Damages Suffered from Accident to the Death of Victim
Family members might recover for damages that started from the date of the negligent act or accident to the date of death of the victim. The time frame varies from hours to a week. For instance, in case your loved one experienced severe pain and sufferings for 72 hours after an accident caused by a drunk driver, you might be able to recover from that suffering. You might also recover for the wages while the victim was fighting for life.
Medical Bills
The compensation covers all the medical expenses that are associated with fatal accidents. The expenses include the medications, surgery, ambulance transportation as well as other treatment that was performed to save the life of the victim. In some cases, when the victim dies days or weeks after the accident, the medical bills can be important.
Funeral and Burial Expenses
When the only income earner of the family dies, it becomes hard for the other family members to handle financial responsibilities. In wrongful death cases, the surviving family members are entitled to have a funeral as well as burial expenses. The common expense that could be recovered includes:
- Cost of transporting the body to funeral home and cemetery
- Funeral home
- Cost of death certificates
- Minister’s fees for burial or memorial services
- Casket or Urn
- Cost of Cremation
- Cost of memorial marker or small headstone
Pecuniary Value of Life
The pecuniary value of life refers to the amount of the lost future earning capacity minus the cost for daily living. It also includes the loss of the consortium that is the loss of love as well as affection from the loved one who died in the accident. The spouse as well as children of the deceased are entitled to claim the loss of the consortium damages from the at-fault person in a wrongful death case.
Punitive Damages
In the wrongful death case, the state laws allow the claims for punitive damages. These damages are additional damages for the situations where the at-fault party was particularly willful and wanton, reckless, or intentional in his/her acts. The sole purpose of these damages is to punish the at-fault party for his/her actions as well as to serve the warning to others who would consider similar actions.
Conclusion | Types of Damages You Can Recover in Wrongful Death Case
Calculating the damages in a wrongful death case can be complex and require legal and financial expertise. In case you lost a family member due to the negligent behavior of another party or a preventable medical error, consulting a reputed wrongful death law firm like MG Law can help.
