Your Rights To Punitive Damages In A Naples Personal Injury Claim

Accidents often happen due to the recklessness and negligence of others involved. As personal injuries could have been avoided but for the at-fault party’s actions, you have the right to hold them accountable for medical expenses, lost wages, and other costs you incur as a result. In cases where they were particularly willful and negligent, our Naples personal injury lawyer explains how you may be entitled to punitive damages.

What Are Punitive Damages?

Under the Florida Statutes, you have the right to hold others accountable for actions that cause you to suffer personal injuries. In some cases, you may be entitled to compensation through an insurance claim. In others, filing a personal injury lawsuit is the best course of action.

A personal injury lawsuit allows you to request three different types of compensation, which are referred to as damages:

• Economic damages, which cover tangible costs. This includes property damages, medical expenses, lost wages, and future losses in earnings and benefits due to long-term disabilities.
• Non-economic damages, which cover intangible losses. This includes pain, suffering, scarring, disfigurement, and lost enjoyment in life your injuries cause.
• Punitive damages, which is an additional amount. This serves to punish the at-fault party for particularly willful and negligent actions while sending a message to others to discourage similar behavior.

The amount of a punitive damage award depends on the total amount of other compensation you receive. Generally, it is two or three times the total of your other costs.

When Punitive Damages In Naples May Be Awarded

You may be entitled to punitive damages d in a personal injury lawsuit filed through the Collier County Court if the at-fault party’s actions can be considered grossly negligent. This typically means their behavior goes above and beyond general reckless conduct. Examples of when punitive damages in Naples may be awarded include:

• In cases where a drunk driver is responsible for a car accident and has a particularly high blood alcohol content (BAC) level;
• In a pedestrian accident, where a driver was traveling at a high rate of speed in a school zone;
• In a premises liability claim, in which the property owner received numerous citations warning them about dangerous conditions and still failed to take action;
• In a product liability claim, where manufacturers knowingly distributed defective products or failed to warn consumers about obvious dangers.

Request A Consultation With Our Naples Personal Injury Lawyer

Punitive damages provide a sense of justice for victims in cases where they or someone they love is injured due to the particularly willful and negligent actions of others. These types of awards generally represent significant amounts of money, but there are only limited circumstances where punitive damages are available.

To discuss your rights in filing a claim and the types of compensation you may be entitled to in a personal injury lawsuit, reach out to Cardinal Law, P.A. Give us a call or contact our Naples personal injury lawyer online and request a consultation today.

Sources:

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