
In This Article
Reading time: 7 minutes
- Defining “Emotional Distress”
- Proving Emotional Distress
- Supporting an Emotional Distress Claim
- Calculating the Value of Your Emotional Distress
- Causes of Emotional Distress
- Contact Our Law Firm to Hire a New York Personal Injury Attorney
Defining “Emotional Distress”
For the most part, emotional distress falls under the umbrella of pain and suffering that you wind up suffering due to a car accident or other type of accident. Emotional distress occurs when the negligent actions of another person cause you to suffer some form of mental harm on top of a physical injury. Mental harm can include:- Insomnia
- Anxiety
- Depression
- Anguish
- Torment
- Humiliation
Negligent vs. Intentional Infliction of Emotional Distress
According to the Legal Information Institute (LII), emotional distress can also factor in the cause behind its infliction, as in, whether another party negligently or intentionally inflicted emotional distress on you. Intentional infliction of emotional distress (IIED) may occur if another party makes efforts to cause you mental harm, such as through threats, verbal abuse, taunting, or other malicious actions. Negligent infliction of emotional distress (NIED), however, occurs unintentionally. It may be more of an effect of psychological trauma or fear of harmful events repeating again.For a free legal consultation, call (516) 932-0400
Proving Emotional Distress
When you pursue an emotional distress claim following a car accident in New York, establishing the following factors will play an important part in proving the claim:- Showing the court that your distress is not fleeting
- Proving that the distress was caused by the actions of the defendant
- Establishing that the distress has some form of significant medical impact on your life
- The duration of your pain
- The intensity of the distress you are suffering
- Any related harm to your body
- Records from your doctor documenting your psychological symptoms as well as the treatment prescribed (for example, talk therapy, mental health counseling, medications, etc.)
- The underlying cause of the pain
Other Ways “Emotional Distress” Can Be Labeled
Emotional distress is quite often categorized as pain and suffering, but it can also be labeled as the following when filing a claim:- Emotional distress inflicted negligently: The negligent actions of another person directly led to your emotional distress.
- Loss of consortium: This occurs when the victim of a car accident loses some or all of the benefits of being married or being a parent because of someone else’s actions.
- “Zone of Danger”: This form of claim can be made for the trauma of witnessing death or serious harm to an immediate family member.
Supporting an Emotional Distress Claim
A great deal of evidential and documented support is needed in order to be successful with an emotional distress claim. The first step in suing for pain and suffering damages for emotional distress is collecting evidence. Evidence can include:- Medical records: We may refer to your medical records if you had to be referred to psychiatric care or other specialists to address symptoms of your emotional distress.
- Reports from your treating physician(s): If you sought out medical or psychiatric care for your emotional distress, we may ask for their expert opinion on how your accident has affected you both emotionally and mentally.
- Accident scene photos: Claims about witnessing or experiencing significant trauma can be backed up through photos of the accident. This can show the extent of injury you suffered or witnessed another person suffer.
- Videos: Videos may also be used to showcase your response to the accident, both immediately and days or months after.
Using Witness and Expert Testimony
In addition to documentary evidence, you might be able to strengthen your case with corroborating statements from:- Eyewitnesses who saw the accident happen, who arrived in the immediate aftermath, or who tried to provide assistance after the fact
- Experts in the medical field who will examine you and confirm that you suffered serious emotional and physical injuries due to the accident
- Experts in the field of economics or vocational training who will explain how your emotional or physical suffering prevents you from going to work
- Experts in accident reconstruction who will confirm that the party you are suing is responsible for the accident and, therefore, the injuries you sustained
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Calculating the Value of Your Emotional Distress
Emotional distress, much like the overall category of pain and suffering, is not easy to calculate. It is not a physical or visible injury like a broken bone that can be clearly seen on an X-ray box or a monetary loss that can be calculated, such as loss of income due to a disability. A few factors play a role in calculating the value of your emotional distress claim. Some of these factors include:- If your testimony is credible
- If you were a sympathetic witness
- If your diagnosis, injuries, and prognosis are clear to the jury
- If the testimony you provided was consistent
- If your doctor supports the claims of emotional distress
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Causes of Emotional Distress
Any traumatic event has the potential to inflict psychological damage on survivors . For instance, the Mayo Clinic lists “traumatic or stressful events” as one of many potential risk factors for depression. As such, it is possible for accident victims to recover damages for emotional and physical pain after almost any type of accident. You could be entitled to such damages if you:- Were hit by a car, truck, or another vehicle
- Were attacked by a vicious dog
- Experienced an adverse medical event, such as complications during childbirth (especially if it resulted in permanent injury to you or your child)
- Had a bad fall on someone else’s property
- Were injured while on the job
Physical Pain Causes Emotional Pain
Even if you do not exhibit psychological symptoms right away, having to live with a painful, disabling injury often leads to mental health problems. As the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) explains, feeling sad or overwhelmed is to be expected after a major change in your physical health. While this temporary sadness is difficult to deal with, people with chronic pain or other serious conditions are at an increased risk for clinical depression. If you are experiencing symptoms of depression, get a diagnosis from a qualified medical professional and include that diagnosis as part of your lawsuit. Your mental health challenges are all the more reason to seek financial compensation from the liable party. Getting justice after a negligence-related accident could provide a sense of closure, and you could use the money you receive to pay for mental health treatments that will improve your quality of life.Contact Our Law Firm to Hire a New York Personal Injury Attorney
While emotional distress is not the same as pain and suffering, it certainly falls into that category. Emotional distress, pain and suffering, and other psychological injuries deserve to be compensated just like your physical injuries after a car accident. If you or a loved one was injured in a car accident, you can contact our law firm to hire a New York personal injury lawyer at Friedman & Simon, L.L.P. that serves New York and Long Island. Don’t miss out on the chance to file a claim. Speak to one of our team representatives today.Call or text (516) 932-0400 or complete a Free Case Evaluation form