Whether you believe it or not, someone’s age can affect the value of a personal injury claim. According to the most experienced personal injury lawyers, if a person’s negligence has caused your injury, your age may impact how much your case is worth. Typically, your age can influence other factors, such as loss of wage, earning capacity, pain, suffering, court approval, or guardianship of the property.
Additionally, when someone has been involved in an accident, it is not only the injured victim who is affected. Their wives, husbands, daughters, sons, or parents of the injury victim can also experience a change in their lives. For that reason, an accident can involve many claims.
Under Florida law, the loved ones and the accident victim can all have their own damages to assert against the person who has caused the accident. For this matter, insurance companies have prepared to address these claims, bringing us to the issue of age.
Effect of Age on Minor Children
Florida law states that children under six years of age can have their damages reduced by their negligence. The state of Florida recognizes pure comparative negligence. Still, instead of the child who generally cannot be found to be at fault, the damages can be reduced by the parent’s failure.
Separately, personal injury cases involving a child or a young person may receive a higher level of attention. As minor children are sympathetic claimants, the adjuster may offer more money for the pain and suffering to reflect this. When considering the overall value of a child’s case, one should not ignore the level of parents’ grief.
Effect of Age on Injury Victims in Their 30-40s
More than 90% of all accident claims end up being settled, while the rest is taken to trial. It is critical to understand that age can significantly differ in how many injury victims see their choice between paying a claim versus going to trial.
Suppose a Florida injury victim is someone of age 30 or 40. The victim is working, building a career, but doesn’t have the time to deal with all the time off for going to court to fight with defendants. So, the victim may be looking to get the quickest settlement possible, respectively, a lower payment. However, if the victim cannot work due to the injury, the personal injury case may have to go to trial if the offer is insufficient to compensate for lost wages.
Effect of Age on Injury Victims in Their 50-60s
When it comes to victims of 50 or 60, there is another situation. Most injury victims plan to retire soon in Florida so that every penny will count. Moreover, they may be more willing to fight in a courtroom than in the scenario. Victims over 70 years of age may have free time, as they are retirees, so there is no rush to settle their claim.
However, examining how someone’s age can influence the value of their personal injury claim, there are many reasons your case value could be tied to the year you were born.
Effect of Age on Loss of Wage or Earning Capacity
If you have been injured due to someone’s negligence in Florida, you may be entitled to seek compensation for loss of wage and earning capacity. Florida Supreme Court has announced criteria by which loss of earning capacity may be measured. These criteria include more elements such as but are not limited to the claimant’s age. When measuring the loss of wage-earning capacity, not a single factor is conclusive.
Effect of Age on Pain and Suffering
One of the most valuable portions of a personal injury claim is pain and suffering. For some, the age-related factor may be harder to accept when dealing with pain and suffering simply because pain is pain, no matter the victim’s age.
However, when examining a personal injury claim, it has been reported that younger people usually deserve a higher level of compensation because they will deal with the injury for a longer time. It is essential to understand that this is not an abiding rule. There are cases when a younger person can fully recover and may not receive a premium for their case.
Final Words
When thinking about whether your age will affect the value of your personal injury claim or not, no one can determine what exact role it will play until you consult a professional personal injury attorney.
