Car crashes, tractor-trailer wrecks, dog bite attacks, burns, and other traumatic incidents caused by negligent conduct can result in severe injuries. Many of those wounds will ultimately turn into permanent physical scars. Insurance adjusters regularly undervalue the physical pain, mental suffering, annoyance, embarrassment, and frustration of long-term scars and disfigurement. Maginnis Howard’s attorneys have proven successful in representing North Carolinians who have sustained permanent scarring and disfigurement as a consequence of someone else’s negligence.
Under North Carolina law, a plaintiff seeking compensation for bodily injury negligence is entitled to various jury instructions by the trial judge that pertain to the particular harms that he or she has suffered. Some examples of the topics include jury instructions related to medical expenses and lost wages. There is also an instruction that is specific to permanent scarring. Along with this permanent scarring and disfigurement instruction, a victim who has suffered permanent scarring may also ask the judge for instructions about physical pain, mental suffering, and future medical expenses related to any necessary plastic surgery procedures. Insurance companies should consider all of these elements of harm when making a settlement offer. Oftentimes, however, they do not consider the full consequences of severe scarring.
Jury Instructions and Insurance Misrepresentations
North Carolina’s pattern jury instruction on permanent scarring and disfigurement is found at N.C.P.I. – Civil 810.10. The instruction states, in part, as follows:
“Damages for personal injury also include fair compensation for [scarring] [disfigurement] of the plaintiff as a [proximate result of the negligence] of the defendant. There is no fixed formula for placing a value on [scarring] [disfigurement]. You must determine what is fair compensation by applying logic and common sense to the evidence. You may consider: [the extent of any [past] [present] [future] alteration of the plaintiff’s physical appearance [proximately caused by the negligence] of the defendant . . . [and] [the extent of any [past] [present] [future] embarrassment and mental suffering [proximately caused by the negligence of the defendant].”
This instruction gives the jury wide latitude in determining appropriate compensation for permanent scarring. The insurance company does not just get to pick some low, inadequate number arbitrarily. The case goes to the jury if the parties cannot settle. Insurance companies have a difficult time estimating precisely what the jury will award. No one can predict with 100% certainty what amount a particular group of 12 people will allow as its verdict. Nevertheless, insurance companies usually make artificially low offers in the hope that the victim will think the insurer has some special formula and will, as a result, accept the offer. This is an area where good legal work can make a difference.
Documentation
Maginnis Howard tries to ensure that each of our clients with permanent scars is fairly compensated by evaluating them by a plastic surgeon who can describe in detail the nature of any scars and estimate future plastic surgery costs. These evaluations have proven helpful in negotiating a more favorable settlement for a client. Adequate photography and video of scars and any painful physical therapy or other treatment is also essential.
Representation for Permanent Scarring Injuries
If you have suffered any permanent scarring and disfigurement due to someone else’s negligence, Maginnis Howard may be able to assist you in recovering full and fair compensation, not simply the first offer made by the insurance company. Our firm offers free consultations to prospective personal injury clients. If we can assist you, we will offer to handle your case on a contingency fee basis. If you have suffered injuries due to another person’s negligence, contact our experienced injury attorneys today. We serve clients across the Carolinas from our Raleigh, Charlotte, and Fayetteville offices. We offer free consultations, and you pay no attorney’s fees unless and until we recover your compensation.
