We are back again with the final part of our four-part series on quantum or how much is your claim worth.

As discussed in Part 1, Part 2 and Part 3, many factors influence the amount of compensation a person can receive.

In this article, we learn about the final factor (or head of damage in legal-speak), known as pain and suffering.

For the injured person, the suffering post-incident can feel like it has the most significant impact on their life.

The hardest part is quantifying that intangible pain left after an injury. While difficult, it shouldn’t be overlooked.

Pain and suffering damages (aka general damages) refer to an award given by the court to the plaintiff for physical and emotional pain due to injury, illness, or loss.

These damages are not the same as economic damages, which reimburse the injured person financially but are meant to assist them with the pain inflicted after an incident.

Typically, claims for pain and suffering are for such things as:

Unfortunately, just because you may have experienced pain and suffering does not mean you will necessarily be entitled to compensation for it.

In and of itself, the pain and suffering of an individual can be subjective and very difficult to prove.

Medical experts are typical witnesses in these cases and often pivotal to a cases success.

This is because they can determine the impact the injuries may have had on the injured person's livelihood. They can do this based on an Injury Scale Value (ISV) scale (see below).

However, the court takes into consideration other factors in its analysis, including:

Without getting to complex, the ISV scale is used to calculate Pain and Suffering Damages in Queensland.

The scale regulates the award given for the areas of compensation based on the individual's level of injury.

Each injury has a corresponding ISV range. For example, a minor injury such as whiplash might have an ISV range of 5 – 10. Whereas, a severe injury such as quadriplegia may be at the top of the scale at 100.

Medical experts can help determine where a person might sit on this range.

Once the ISV range is known, then that range corresponds to a monetary amount on the scale.

For general personal injury claims (i.e. motor vehicle, pedestrian, slip & fall, product defects), your ISV range can be determined from the civil liabilities act Schedule 4.

However, if the incident occurred at work, your ISV range can be determined from the Worker’s Compensation and Rehabilitation Regulation at Schedule 9.

These can be very subjective and confusing, so we recommend seeking expert advice before lodging any claim.

When filing a claim that involves pain and suffering damages, you may wish to follow these guidelines:

Be sure to read up on the other areas of compensation available to you to maximise your overall settlement amount. Click the links below to read them all.