The amount of compensation a Philadelphia train accident victim has a right to receive will vary widely depending on the facts and circumstances of the individual case.
To get a rough idea of the amount of money you might recover, ask yourself the following questions:
- How big were your medical bills? The amount of medical expenses you face after a train accident will typically depend on the severity of your injuries. Catastrophic trauma like spinal cord injuries or brain damage can leave a victim facing hundreds of thousands, even millions, of dollars in medical expenses. Even injuries that may not cause permanent disability can run up huge healthcare costs. These costs commonly constitute a significant portion of any Philadelphia train accident injury claim.
- How much time did you miss at work? Serious injuries after a train accident can leave you missing a substantial amount of work. Broken bones, for example, may make it impossible for you to complete job responsibilities, while traumatic brain injury can interfere with your ability to focus and make work-related decisions. Victims of Philadelphia train accidents can typically seek to recover all of the wages they missed-out on earning, and may not earn in the future, as damages in a lawsuit.
- How did the injuries impact your life? The more serious an injury, the more physical pain, emotional suffering, and disruption to daily activities. In a lawsuit seeking damages after a Philadelphia train accident, the so-called non-economic harm a person has suffered also figures into the calculation of the amount of money a victim might receive.
- How many people suffered injuries in the accident? Some train accidents, such as the 2015 Amtrak derailment in Philadelphia, cause widespread injury to hundreds of people. In these and similar circumstances, the victims may all receive payments from a common fund that effectively caps the amount of damages any one of them might receive. Federal law, for example, caps the total amount of money that is available to passenger victims of a single Amtrak accident at $200 million.
The most reliable way to get an idea of how much money you may seek in a claim related to a Philadelphia train accident is to speak with an experienced Philadelphia train accident lawyer as soon as possible.