A traumatic incident such as a car accident can result in more than just physical injuries. It can also cause emotional distress that significantly affects a survivor’s daily life. Texas law allows the filing of a personal injury claim in pursuit of financial compensation for emotional distress. Learn the parameters of these claims with help from a San Antonio personal injury attorney.
How Is Emotional Distress Defined in Personal Injury Law?
In Texas, the legal definition of emotional distress is any type of mental suffering that occurs as a response to a particular event or occurrence. It is an invisible type of injury that can result in feelings of fear, anxiety, hopelessness and depression. Things that can be encompassed by the term “emotional distress” in personal injury law include:
- Mental anguish
- Psychological trauma
- Post-traumatic stress disorder
- Chronic anxiety
- Depression
- Mental health disorders
- Humiliation
- Loss of enjoyment of life
- New fears or phobias
- Personality or behavioral changes
- Irritability or mood swings
- Grief or mourning
- Panic attacks
In some cases, emotional distress can result in physical symptoms and ailments, such as insomnia, chronic pain, headaches, eating disorders, gastrointestinal issues, weight loss or gain, and high blood pressure. If an individual experiences emotional distress due to the fault of another person, the victim may be eligible for financial compensation in Texas.
Common Causes of Emotional Distress
Emotional distress can arise in reaction to many different harmful or traumatic events in San Antonio. Common examples include:
- Car accidents
- Truck accidents
- Motorcycle accidents
- Bicycle and pedestrian accidents
- Slip and fall accidents
- Workplace accidents
- Dog bite injuries
- Medical malpractice
- Fires and explosions
- Defective product incidence
- Acts of violence
Emotional distress can occur as a result of getting directly involved in an incident, physically being injured in an accident, or witnessing a loved one get injured or killed in an accident (the bystander effect).
How Much Compensation Is Available for Emotional Distress?
Emotional distress falls under the category of “noneconomic damages” in a personal injury claim. This is also known as pain and suffering, intangible losses, and general damages. Texas law may or may not allow an individual to sue for emotional distress, depending on the circumstances.
Financial compensation for emotional distress can be included in a claim involving physical injuries or sexual abuse. If the emotional distress is severe enough to interfere with an individual’s daily life, such as causing the inability to work or sleep, a claim can be brought even without physical injury.
Emotional distress must be proven with evidence such as mental health records, the victim’s injury journal, eyewitness testimony and expert opinions. How much financial compensation an individual is awarded for emotional distress will depend on the circumstances, such as the level of distress and its effect on the victim’s life.
How a Personal Injury Lawyer in San Antonio Can Help
If you are dealing with emotional distress after an incident that was caused by someone else’s careless, reckless or wrongful acts in San Antonio, Texas, contact a personal injury lawyer near you to discuss the possibility of pursuing financial compensation for your pain and suffering.
A lawyer can help you understand and protect your legal rights as an accident victim, which may include the right to seek compensation for these invisible injuries – making it a little easier to move forward. Contact Hill Law Firm Accident & Injury Attorneys to discuss a particular case during a free consultation.