Many people are unaware of the difference between personal injury and bodily injury. In fact, in a lot of cases, the terms are used to mean the same thing. This might lead you to think they mean the same thing, but this is not the case. We’ll go over what the differences are between the two and why you might hire a personal injury insurance lawyer in Jacksonville.
Understanding Bodily Injury
Bodily injury is the term used when there is a specific injury to one person that was caused by someone else. The term refers to the specific injuries that were caused. While this is a term most often used in criminal cases, it can occasionally be important in cases related to insurance.
What Personal Injury Is
On the other hand, personal injury is used in civil law. When someone claims personal injury, they are asking for compensation based on being the victim of an accident. The person who is injured would be the plaintiff in a lawsuit related to personal injury.
The Main Difference Between the Two
With a personal injury, it is any sort of injury that occurs in an accident. This might be a car accident, wrongful death, slip ,and fall, or defective product claim. Bodily injury is a more limited term that refers to injuries to a person, most often in a vehicle accident. For most people, a personal injury insurance lawyer is the right fit provided a personal injury is involved.
With most personal injury cases, the injury was the result of an accident that was not intentional but resulted from negligence. Proving the case requires showing that the person at fault owed a duty of care, they failed in that duty, your injuries are based on that failure, and that damages are a result of the person at fault’s actions or lack of actions.
Damages may include both non-economic and economic damages. This includes pain and suffering, lost wages, medical bills, and similar damages. In some areas, there are limits to the damages you can be awarded, which your attorney will make you aware of.
