The sheer enormity of trucks can cause devastating damage during a collision, including totaled vehicles and catastrophic if not fatal injuries. If the truck is a commercial vehicle as is often the case, the business that owns the vehicle may have sufficient funds and insurance to pay out six-, seven-, or eight-figure settlements in Nevada trucking accident lawsuits. Recently in Texas, a victim in a trucking crash was awarded $101 million.[1]
There is no way to precisely predict a trucking accident settlement amount in a Nevada negligence lawsuit. But there is a formula Nevada personal injury attorneys use to calculate a rough estimate: Medical bills + property damage + lost income + pain and suffering = value of trucking accident settlement. This is sometimes called the auto accident settlement formula.
Medical bills (past and future)
Medical expenses comprise every bill related to the victim’s injuries and recoveries, including:
- hospital bills
- ambulance rides
- home health care bills
- outpatient visit bills
- medication costs
- rehab bills
Note that medical expenses should cover both past bills as well as future ones that the victim can reasonably expect to pay due to the injury.
Also note that if the victim died, the victim’s family can bring a wrongful death lawsuit in pursuit of compensation for past medical bills (if any) and funeral expenses.
Property damage
18-wheelers and similar-sized vehicles cause the greatest property damage of any vehicle on the road. Plaintiff’s attorneys rely on professionals and industry guides (such as Kelley Blue Book) to estimate the costs to repair or replace a damaged vehicle.
Lost income (past and future)
Victims of trucking accidents may be out of work for months or longer while they are healing. And if the injury is severe enough, they may not be able to work again.
Plaintiff’s attorneys use records of the victim’s salary, bonuses, tips, etc., to calculate lost wages as well as to estimate lost future earnings. If the victim died, the family can use his/her most recent salary amount and age to calculate loss of future support.
Pain and suffering
Pain and suffering is the most difficult expense to calculate. Depending on the severity of the case, pain and suffering is usually the sum of the aforementioned expenses multiplied by a number between 1.5 and 5. Obviously, plaintiff’s attorneys fight for the highest multiplier possible.
Learn more about our Henderson trucking accident attorneys. See our related article, Is there a statute of limitations for truck accidents in Nevada?
Legal References
- Record setting $101 million-dollar verdict awarded for trucking crash, CDL Life (July 25, 2018).