Were you injured in an accident in South Carolina? If you’re considering filing a personal injury claim, you may have some questions about economic vs noneconomic damages. What is the difference between economic damages and noneconomic damages? What are some examples of each, and which one is worth more toward the total value of your claim?
Economic vs. Noneconomic Damages
When you’ve been injured in an accident that wasn’t your fault, you can pursue two types of compensation: economic damages and noneconomic damages.
Economic damages are compensation for money you have lost because of an accident caused by someone else that injured you. Noneconomic damages are compensation for the intangible losses that result from that same kind of accident.
For example, the cost of your medical expenses after an accident is an economic loss. You can add up all your medical bills and determine how much money you have lost. Even in the case of future or hypothetical expenses, you can still put a number on it. For instance, if you can’t work due to an injury, you can calculate how much money you will lose by not working. You can even calculate the likely effect on your income of losing the opportunity to get a promotion at work or continue developing your career. These are economic losses, and the compensation for those losses is called “economic damages.”
The pain and suffering you experience because of your injury is a noneconomic loss. You can suffer terrible pain every day without necessarily losing any money at all. However, if you’re experiencing pain and suffering, you may see that experience as more significant harm than any economic loss. The impact of pain on your quality of life could be much more significant than a loss of income. The compensation for these types of losses is called “noneconomic damages.”
Economic losses are more straightforward to assess in personal injury cases, but noneconomic losses can sometimes make up the greater share of settlements or jury awards.
What Are Economic Damages?
The South Carolina Noneconomic Damage Awards Act of 2005 defines economic damages as pecuniary damages or damages involving the loss of money. These damages arise from:
- Medical expenses
- Rehabilitation services
- Educational expenses
- Custodial care expenses
- Loss of income
- Loss of earning capacity
- Burial expenses
- Loss of use of property
- Costs of repairing or replacing property
- Costs of domestic services
- Loss of spousal services
- Loss of employment
- Loss of business opportunities
- Loss of employment opportunities
- Loss of retirement income
Although these are typical examples, you can sue for economic damages for other monetary losses as well. Anything that results in the loss of money could be covered by economic damages.
What Are Noneconomic Damages?
The South Carolina Noneconomic Damage Awards Act of 2005 defines noneconomic damages as nonpecuniary, which means that you have lost something other than money. These damages are compensation for:
- Pain and suffering
- Inconvenience
- Physical impairment
- Disfigurement
- Mental anguish
- Emotional distress
- Loss of companionship
- Loss of consortium, which refers to the companionship of a spouse
- Injury to the reputation
- Humiliation
Noneconomic damages can also cover any other losses that don’t involve money.
The Value of Economic Damages vs Noneconomic Damages
According to the South Carolina Law Review, it is much more difficult to accurately assess the value of noneconomic damages than of economic damages because concepts like pain and suffering are inherently subjective and difficult to measure.
Despite this fact, noneconomic damages can significantly increase the value of a personal injury claim. The insurance company or your lawyer will likely calculate your damages using one of two methods:
- The multiplier method takes your total economic losses and multiplies that by another number between 1.5 and 5. The higher the number, the more severe your injury. For instance, your demand for noneconomic damages might be three times the amount of your economic damages.
- The per diem method assigns a value for one day’s worth of your noneconomic losses and then multiplies that number by the total number of days you will experience those losses. The number chosen is often equivalent to the wages you would earn in one day.
Juries are not bound by these methods of calculation and can assign a value to your noneconomic losses that is in line with the jury instructions they are given.
South Carolina does not cap noneconomic damages except in cases of medical malpractice or lawsuits against the government. Under South Carolina law, noneconomic damages were capped in 2005 at $350,000 per claimant in cases of medical malpractice. This amount is adjusted each year for inflation. In 2024, the cap for non-economic damages was $564,168 per healthcare provider.
Contact a South Carolina Personal Injury and Victims’ Rights Law Firm
An experienced South Carolina personal injury lawyer can help you pursue the full compensation you deserve for your injuries, both economic and noneconomic.
Evans Moore, LLC is a personal injury law firm with a national reputation. Since 2010, we have collected more than $100 million for our clients. We have won multiple Super Lawyers and Best Lawyers in America designations. Contact Evans Moore, LLC through our online form or at (843) 995-5000 for your free consultation today.