What counts as pain and suffering
Pain and suffering covers the physical pain of an injury and what comes with it: anxiety, sleep loss, depression, scarring, and the loss of activities you used to enjoy. These are non-economic damages, so there is no bill to add up. Insurers and juries estimate them, usually in one of two ways.
The multiplier method
Add up economic damages, mainly medical bills and lost income, then multiply by a number from about 1.5 to 5. The multiplier rises with the seriousness of the injury, how long recovery takes, whether there is permanent harm, and how well your records document it. On $20,000 of bills and lost income, a 2× to 3× multiplier gives $40,000 to $60,000.
The per-diem method
Pick a daily rate and multiply by the number of days you were in pain or recovering. Many people use a day’s take-home pay as the rate, on the reasoning that living with the injury was at least as hard as a day’s work. At $150 a day for 120 days, that is $18,000. The method works best for injuries with a clear recovery date.
What pushes the number up
- Surgery, imaging or other objective proof of injury
- A permanent limitation, scarring or disfigurement
- Consistent treatment without gaps
- A journal and statements from family or co-workers about the change in your life
State caps
A few states cap non-economic damages in ordinary injury cases. Maryland, Mississippi, Tennessee, Colorado, Alaska and Ohio do; most states do not. The calculator applies the cap when your estimate passes it.
Questions people ask
What multiplier should I use?
About 1.5× to 2× for minor injuries that heal in months, 2× to 3× for fractures or longer treatment, 3× to 4× for surgery or permanent impairment, and up to 5× for catastrophic injuries.
Do insurers really use a multiplier?
Many use claims software that weighs injury codes and treatment rather than a single multiplier, but the result usually lands in the same range. The multiplier is a useful way to check an offer.
Is pain and suffering taxable?
Not when it comes from a physical injury or illness. Emotional distress damages without a physical injury generally are taxable.