Calculating wrongful death damages involves examining the economic and non-economic losses that surviving family members have endured because of the loss of their loved one.
Damages may include financial support that would have been provided to the family, the loss of emotional support, and anguish endured by the family.
How Do You Calculate Damages in a Wrongful Death Claim?
To calculate damages in a wrongful death claim, take the following steps:
- Identify the beneficiaries
- Outline the total financial losses related to the last expenses, such as medical bills and funeral costs, paid by the family
- Value lost financial support like income and benefits that would have been provided by the family member
- Consider the anguish of losing a loved one
- Include an amount for lost care and companionship
- Determine this amount for each family member
The amount of compensation that you receive may or may not be the total of calculated damages. Other things may affect the strength of the legal case and the likelihood of recovery.
An experienced attorney can explain all the factors that may affect what you recover for your claim.
What Are Wrongful Death Damages?
Wrongful death damages are compensation payable due to the loss of a loved one. Damages are the compensable losses that a person sustains because of the death of a close family member. Eligible family members may seek an award of damages by bringing a wrongful death claim.
Understanding Wrongful Death Damages
- In personal injury law, when a person is injured, they may claim damages for their losses.
- A spouse may have a loss of consortium claim for an injury, but generally, personal injury damages are the losses of the injured person.
- In a wrongful death claim, the focus is on the loss sustained by family members.
- A separate action, called a survival action, covers losses of the deceased person from injury to death.
- Wrongful death damages reflect the loss to the family of losing their loved one.
- The loss of a family member is both a financial loss and an emotional loss.
- Damages for wrongful death may include both economic losses and an amount that reflects the personal loss of the family member.
Economic Damages: Funeral Costs, Lost Income, and Medical Bills
Losing a family member typically involves some level of financial loss. This may include:
- Funeral and burial expenses
- Medical bills
- Lost income and support
To the extent the family pays funeral bills and medical expenses, those expenses can be a part of the wrongful death claim.
If these expenses are paid by the estate, they may be a part of the survival action.
Lost income and support may make up a significant part of wrongful death compensation. The value of benefits may be included in a calculation at present-day value.
Non-Economic Damages: Pain and Suffering for Loved Ones
Family members may receive significant compensation for the mental and emotional anguish of losing a loved one. The family members won’t be there each day or for special occasions. The amount awarded can reflect the grief and sorrow that family members experience. It can also reflect the personal support that family members provide each other that is now missing.
Factors Courts Consider When Calculating Damages
- What family members survive the victim
- How close the relationship is between the victim and each survivor
- Evidence of anguish and mental distress, grief of the family
- Care, companionship, and guidance provided by the family member
- How family relationships would have changed with time
- Health of the person before their death, life expectancy, and age
- Position in the family as a caregiver or financial provider
- Other circumstances that may impact the appropriate amount
Damages are a personal, individual inquiry
Wrongful death damages in South Carolina are specific to the situation. While any loss of life is significant, each case is assessed individually.
For example, a parent may have a close relationship with minor children. Children may have relied on their parent directly for support and personal guidance. There may be evidence of the closeness of the relationship. In other circumstances, family members may be more distant. The family member may not have shared expenses.
How State Laws Affect Wrongful Death Compensation
Wrongful death claims fall under state law. There isn’t one law for wrongful death that applies nationwide. Instead, each state has its own law.
There are significant variations in state law when it comes to wrongful death compensation.
These differences can impact how to proceed with a case and the outcome of a case.
Significant variations among states include:
- Who can file the case? In South Carolina, the executor or administrator files. In other states, survivors may file directly.
- The timeline to file the case. Deadlines to start a wrongful death case vary among states.
- Damages awarded. Generally, wrongful death damages are an amount that reflects the financial and emotional loss of the family member. There are variations in how statutes are worded when it comes to damage and some differences in how damages are calculated in various states.
- How damages are divided? In South Carolina, damages are divided as though the person didn’t have a will. In other states, damages are divided equally, or they are awarded to each person individually.
The Role of Expert Testimony in Determining Damages
Expert testimony may play a role in determining damages in a wrongful death claim. Economists may explain the financial contributions of a family member and the present-day value of expected contributions. Psychologists may speak about grief and emotional loss. These experts can verify and support a claim for damages.
Remember that any compensation claim begins with proving the legal fault of the defense and the right to payment. You may rely on experts in accident reconstruction and causation in addition to damages. An attorney can help you determine what experts to use and how they may assist with your case.
Contact an Experienced Greenville Wrongful Death Lawyer
If you have lost a loved one, we are truly sorry. Contact an experienced Greenville wrongful death lawyer at Bobby Jones Law. Get a personalized consultation about how to calculate wrongful death damages in your case. Call or message us now.