How Are Pain and Suffering Damages Calculated?

Insurance Coverage Limitations

California requires its drivers to carry $15,000 per person in bodily injury liability insurance. This insurance must cover at least $30,000 per accident (in which more than one person is injured). In a serious car accident, this much might not even cover the cost of medical treatment. Add to that the 16.6% of California motorists who were uninsured in 2019, and the likelihood is high that you will receive little or nothing in pain and suffering damages for a car accident.

There are ways around these limitations, however, in certain cases. Your lawyer might, for example, identify a third-party defendant who is either able to pay your claim or who is better insured than the first defendant. 

These possibilities include:

• The defendant’s employer, if the defendant was on-duty at the time of the accident;
• The manufacturer of a defective product, if the defect contributed to your injuries;
• A commercial truck driver, who is likely to be very well-insured; or
• An on-duty Uber or Lyft driver, who is also likely to be well-insured.

Other third-party defendants may be available as well, depending on the facts of your case.