Because of the size and weight of a commercial truck, you are much more likely to suffer from broken bones after an accident. However, you might wonder if the damages you suffer are limited to your medical bills and non-economic damages. In cases where the behavior of the commercial truck driver is particularly egregious, you may be entitled to even more damages if the courts decide they want to send a message by awarding punitive damages.
How You Might Receive Punitive Damages for Broken Bones
While less severe fractures might heal on their own, more severe fractures can lead to you being required to wear a cast or boot for a very long time. You will also likely need to spend weeks or months engaged in physical therapy before you are able to fully recover. To some extent, your bones might never fully heal and you will need to make changes to your life in light of your injuries.
If you are permanently left with a disability, you may find that you are not able to work in the same profession as you might have worked in prior to becoming injured. You might also discover that you are not able to enjoy the activities that you previously enjoyed. Therefore, you may deserve compensation for your injuries.
Economic and Non-Economic Damages Pale in Comparison to Punitive Damages
If your injuries are the result of gross negligence on the part of the commercial truck driver, you may be entitled to punitive damages for your injuries. The purpose of punitive damages is for the damages to be so extreme that they attract the attention of the general public to act as a deterrent against similar actions.
Punitive damages are most often pursued when the damages that you have suffered are severe and permanent. When this is the case, and the other party was malicious, reckless, or fraudulent, you may be able to be awarded punitive damages. However, a trucking accidents attorney will need to prove the intent of the driver.
What Constitutes Punitive Damages
The other party might be malicious and may show ill-will toward you and this might be primarily what causes your injuries such as if they are motivated by hatred. There might be evidence that they intended to hurt you. Or, they might have taken risks that a reasonable person would not have taken. Any of these actions can be used as justification to pursue punitive damages.
Share23 February 2021
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