Personal injury and bodily injury are terms likely to come up during an after-accident discussion with insurance or your Las Vegas personal injury attorney. While some might use these terms interchangeably, they have different definitions and applications. Generally, personal injury is an element of civil law, while the term bodily injury is mostly applied in criminal cases. Still, there are in-depth differences, as we will discuss below.
Understanding Personal Injury
Personal injury is a broad area of civil law, which allows an injured party to recover financial compensation for injuries that result from another person’s negligence. A personal injury claim will provide compensation for economic and non-economic damages that arise from an accident.
A personal injury arises from accidents such as:
- Medical malpractice
- Auto accidents
- Truck accidents
- Workplace accidents
- Pedestrian accidents
- Product defect accidents
- Premises liability lawsuits
Personal injury claims have a set of principles that you must fulfill to ensure a successful claim. These include:
- Proving negligence and liability. Liability is a significant factor in these lawsuits as the plaintiff files a claim stating that the defendant caused the accident. Establishing liability is often the first step when you take your case to a Las Vegas personal injury attorney
- Proving causation
- Proving that you suffered the said damages
- Filing the claim within the specified statute of limitations. The statute of limitations for personal injury cases is two years in Nevada. If you fail to file a claim within this period, you can no longer sue the responsible party for the accident
These claims have a lower standard of proof compared to criminal cases, meaning that you only need to prove that the accident was more likely the effect of another person’s negligence.
Negligence is the fulcrum in personal injury claims. It dictates where the fault in an accident falls.
Negligence is the principle where different people have different responsibilities towards each other. For example, a driver has the duty of care to other motorists and pedestrians while a business owner has a duty of care to every person on the business premises.
Under the laws of Nevada, negligence consists of several elements, including:
- The at-fault party owes a duty of care
- He or she breached this duty of care towards you
- The breach caused your injuries
- Your injuries led to financial loss
Filing a personal injury claim allows you to recover a broader range of compensatory damages, including:
- Medical costs
- Lost wages
- Lost earning capacity
- Pain and suffering
Nevada is a comparative negligence state meaning that the court will reduce the damages in a personal injury settlement by your percentage fault. However, the defendant must be at least 50% at fault.
Since it might take time before you can recover damages from the responsible party, you might purchase a personal injury protection insurance to cover your injuries, even if you are at fault for the accident.
Understanding Bodily Injury
Bodily injury is more specific compared to personal injury. It deals with the specific physical injury that you suffered from the accident, for example, cuts, head injuries, or broken bones. You are more likely to hear the term ‘bodily injury’ in a criminal case or an insurance context.
Nevada requires that all motorists carry a minimum bodily injury liability insurance to cover the financial losses (to other people) due to an accident they cause. The minimum coverage is 25/50, meaning that your insurance company will pay up to $25,000 to a single person injured in the accident and a maximum of $50,000 for any accident (regardless of the number of injured parties).
If the losses exceed the minimum coverage, then the defendant has to raise the balance. Compensation for bodily injuries works on similar principles as those of personal injury. For example, if you were 25% at-fault for the accident, you can only recover 75% from the defendant.
Bodily injury compensates you for:
- Medical costs
- Equipment to facilitate recovery or life after the accident (for example a wheelchair if you lost your limbs)
- Ambulance charges
- Lost earning capacity
- Lost wages
- Wrongful death damages
You might also recover pain and suffering damages from bodily injury, but the process is often complicated.
Personal Injury vs Bodily Injury
Personal injury and bodily injury are important terms in recovering damages. Personal injury has a broader scope and more recovery options compared to bodily injury, but both can be the best option depending on the type of accident and injury.
The close relationship between personal injury and bodily injury might be confusing. Therefore, always consult with a Las Vegas personal injury attorney to help you navigate through the complex process of seeking fair compensation after an accident.