Suppose you’re involved in a personal injury case where you’re seeking damages as compensation for pain and suffering. In that case, it can be really challenging to prove your injuries and your resulting pain and suffering.
Personal injury cases are often complex, expensive, sensitive, and high-stakes. Compensating the victim in a personal injury case is always the priority, but this can’t be done without convincing evidence to prove pain and suffering.
Get the help you need here with this blog about how to prove your pain and suffering in a personal injury case when you read on.
To prove your injuries and related consequences, you’ll typically need:
- Medical records
All the reports from the doctor who treated you (a medical record of the diagnosis and treatment will serve as evidence. Records from multiple doctors may be necessary. You can also request records from physical therapists or other healthcare providers that show how often they treated you, what treatments they gave you, how often they saw you for treatment, or any services they provided like prescription medication refills (and why), or a medical chart of your injury.
- Expenses
Receipts or credit card statements for your medical bills, your mileage to and from medical appointments, the cost of prescriptions, bandages, and other supplies needed for treatment, documentation of all out-of-pocket expenses related to your injuries and treatment, etc.
- Hospital reports
If you’ve been hospitalized due to the injuries stemming from the accident in question, hospital discharge information or a letter from a doctor describing your stay is critical (hospital records showing the reason for admission and how long you stayed).
- Protect your medical records
If you receive a letter from the insurance company asking for copies of your medical records, make sure you keep the original copy. Keep all letters you receive. If an adjuster or investigator wants to interview you or your doctor about your injuries, the same is true.
- Interview your doctor
Prepare a brief questionnaire and ask your doctor to fill it out describing your injuries and pain. You can also ask the doctor to discuss how the medical treatment has affected you. (documentation of your injuries and ways to treat them).
If you’ve been in an accident, the chances are good that your pain and suffering are only just beginning. You may be eager to try and prove that pain, suffering, or other injuries you experienced were caused by accident with the hopes of receiving appropriate compensation for your medical bills, time lost from work, emotional distress, etc.
