General Damages Vs Special Damages

General Damages

There are different laws in different countries, but more or less, they implement the same idea except for some exceptions. In law language, damages are the compensation for the victim to restore his/her old comfortable life.

But firstly, the supposed victim party needs to prove that the accused party is liable for the accident. If they are found guilty for their negligence, they are supposed to pay the victim for the expanse to get better.

In this article, we will discuss general damage vs special damage with a brief discussion as an overview.

General damages vs special damages

There are different types of damages such as-

  1. General damages
  2. Special damages
  3. Aggravated damages
  4. Compensatory damages
  5. Nominal damages
  6. Non-pecuniary damages
  7. Pecuniary Damages
  8. Punitive damages etc

But we will only discuss the general damages and special damages here.

What is the general damage?

This is called the non-monetary damages suffered by the victim party. Here, money cannot bring the old comfortable life of the victim.

There are different types of general damages to the suffering that can be paid by money, for example, mental and physical trauma and pain, suffering, disfigurement, etc.

What are special damages?

Damages that can be compensated by the monetary amount that means the victim can be assisted to go with their normal life again by having money fixed considering the case. For example, lost wages, medical and therapy bills, repairers cost of a specific property, etc.

Consequences of General damages

There may be severel consequences after injuries occurred.

1. Physical pain

Physical pain, for example, bleeding, bumping head, simple injuries, cannot be measured and compensated by money. The victim only experiences the suffering and recovery part. So, this is general damage because here you can be paid for the expanse, but your suffering is only yours.

2. Impairment

Suppose for some other people’s negligence, you lose an eye, a hand, a leg, or something more critical than that. It can be accidental or medical malpractice, but the impairment is your suffering. And if the replacement is not possible, then the whole life you will be the burden of the impairment.

3. Mental trauma and PTSD

Now, a medical emergency can be seen and supported through thick and thin by the surroundings. But many people fail to understand that mental trauma can also make the victim unable to process.

It may take time to recover, but the crucial part is the suffering and injury cannot be seen from the outside. Sometimes the victim keeps suffocated inside, and there is nothing they can do.

PTSD (Post-Traumatic Disorder) happens when someone meets some horrifying accident, and it still haunts them mentally.

4. Loss of a dearest one

Being a victim is one type of pain but losing someone is another kind of pain. In wrongful deaths, the family members are paid, but it is not enough to forget the death of a close family member.  

5. Loss of career

For the subsequent accident, someone could lose a career about which they were passionate, and it was the only earning option for them. For example, a pianist lost his fingers, or a footballer lost his legs. Then the career will come to an end, and there is nothing anyone can do about it.

Compensation for Special damages

In case of special damages there are some other compensations also. Some of the bills you can claim are as follows.

1. Medical bills

There are two types of medical bills- short-term and long-term expanse. For short time treatment such as transportation fees, doctor’s fees, hospital bills, diagnostic and medical test fees, etc. for long time treatment, there could an operation, broken leg or hand, spine injury, etc. in these cases, you need to follow medical bills, hospitals, and physiotherapy for a long time.

2. Therapy bills

For the accident, someone could require mental clearance; hence the help of therapy is compulsory. Mental health is equally important to come back in normal life in full swing. So, the therapy bill will also be included in special damages.

3. Loss of property

For the accident, you may lose your car or motorbike, or your house somehow got damaged. These types of damages are included for special damages. The property may need repair or replacement; the money will be taken from the fault party.

4. Loss of job

Losing a job is hard for not only the victim but also his/her family, who are financially dependent on his/her income. It mentally traumatizes the family, yet the financial matter can be considered.

The fault party will have to pay for the victim’s lost wages from the accident to the future until the victim can get into another job to bear his family fully.

Conclusion

The special damages are more calculated and easily be solved. But the general damages could be non-monetary, but it sometimes gets critical to handle. To claim the right amount of money for your loss, take the advice of a legal advisor.

Remember, it is your right as a victim to claim money for your loss, whether it is general or special.

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