Loss of companionship damages in wrongful death case

Some personal injury damages are easy to quantify. For example, when a Kentucky resident is hurt in a car accident and requires medical treatment, the bills that they incur from hospitalizations, doctor visits, prescriptions and other accident-related care may be added up and included as losses in a claim for damages. Similarly, if the victim has to miss work in order to recover from their ordeal, they may claim their lost income as damages as well.

Other losses, though, may be more challenging to identify but this does not make them less important. Losses based on companionship and consortium may be alleged in certain personal injury cases when accident victims perish and survivors suffer the ill effects of losing loved ones.

Loss of companionship damages are based on the loss of the love and support that exists between individuals in families. When a person dies, their absence creates a vast void in the lives of their spouse, children and parents. Those who survive them must live their lives without the victim enriching their existences.

When survivors and victims experience close relationships prior to the victims’ deaths, it may be possible for the survivors to successfully claim loss of consortium in wrongful death pleadings. However, courts can look for discord in families as well as strained living conditions that may demonstrate the lack of consortium that existed prior to the decedent’s death.

Not all damages from an accident are identifiable through a bill or wages statement. In order to fully understand the scope of damages a person may be eligible to plead, individuals may want to discuss their wrongful death and personal injury cases with trusted Lexington injury attorneys.