Accidents can cause many different types of injuries, but scarring is common across a wide range of accidents. Whether you suffered cuts or burns or needed surgeries that left you with scars and disfigurement, your scarring itself might be taken into account in your damages.
Scarring always has some underlying injury, so when you sue for scarring, you are suing for a combination of the injuries and the scars. The fact that an injury left you with a scar is not by itself enough to justify extra damages, but serious scarring – especially in visible areas like your face – can often increase the pain and suffering damages. Reasonable medical costs for preventing scarring and treating scars may also be compensable, but it can be complicated.
Call our New York personal injury attorneys at The Carrion Law Firm today for help with your case: (718) 841-0083.
Suing for Injuries that Cause Scars
You can technically sue for any injury that you sustain in an accident, but it is not worth suing for small injuries. While we typically associate scarring with serious injuries, small cuts and scrapes can also cause unfortunate scarring.
This means that scars are not, by themselves, an indicator of serious injuries or injuries that are worth a lawsuit. It is important to consider the case as a whole and look into what damages you suffered. For example, if your injury was serious enough to take you out of work for a few weeks and it left you with a scar, that would probably be worth a lawsuit.
Injuries that cause serious scarring – like deep lacerations, facial cuts, and burns – are often serious enough to sue for. Especially if your injury is serious enough to be called “disfigurement,” it likely qualifies for a lawsuit.
The case our New York personal injury attorneys file will focus on the underlying injury and the scarring together.
How Scarring Affects Damages
Scarring is tied to an underlying injury, so the lawsuit you file will have to account for damages from both the injury and the scars:
Damages from the Underlying Injury
If you suffered serious scarring from an injury, the injury was probably pretty serious. You can get medical expenses for any treatment you needed, plus lost earnings if the injury kept you from working.
Injuries also come with pain and suffering, allowing you to sue for the mental and emotional effects of the injury, as well as the physical pain.
Damages from the Scarring/Disfigurement Itself
Scarring is typically incorporated into pain and suffering damages. These damages are paid to account for the physical, mental, and emotional effects of the injury, and scars and disfigurement usually play a big part in that.
The emotional distress of an injury is usually worse when you have a physical reminder in the form of a scar. On top of this, your appearance has changed because of the scars, and that can be distressing by itself. This is also common with serious burns or broken bones or other serious injuries that affect the way you look.
These effects are considered alongside other issues, like what abilities the injury caused you to lose. All things considered, scarring usually increases damages.
How Are Damages Valued for Scarring?
As mentioned, scarring is just one factor in your overall pain and suffering calculations. We can typically calculate pain and suffering damages either by applying a per-day value for your pain and suffering or by applying a multiplier to your other damages based on a rating from 1.5 to 5 of how serious your injuries are.
However, there are a few traditional factors that come into effect when judging the value of serious scarring:
- Scars in visible areas like the face, neck, and hands are often worth more than scars that will be covered anyway.
- Scars that more obviously change your appearance are worth more than minimal or invisible scars.
- Women often get higher damages for facial scars than men.
- Younger victims often get higher damages because they will live with the scars longer.
- Unmarried people may get higher damages for facial scars than married victims, given the effect it could have on future relationships.
- People who rely on their appearance for work could face higher damages – and lost wage damages – for scarring (e.g., actors, newscasters, influencers).
Can You Sue for Surgical Scars?
Whether the scars you face come from the injury itself or the treatment, the rules are basically the same. Any scarring that results from your injury – even if it results from the medical care – should be eligible for damages.
Most cases are going to involve scars at the location of the original injury, i.e., where you were sutured or stitched. Some surgeries do require additional or larger incisions and surgical sites, so the scarring might ultimately appear worse after your medical care.
Some injuries, like burns, might require skin grafts that also sometimes create scarring in a second location, causing more scarring and higher pain and suffering.
Can You Get Plastic Surgery for Scars Covered in an Injury Case?
When we think of “plastic surgery,” we often think of medical care that an insurance company might call “elective.” This stigmatization as “optional” might hurt your ability to get this care paid for.
Determining “Reasonable” Care
In reality, plastic surgeons are often the go-to doctors to treat some wounds, especially on the face and neck. Other doctors turn to their techniques and expertise to help prevent and minimize scarring as standard operating procedure in emergency rooms.
Medical care costs are usually part of your injury case, but only up to the “reasonable” cost of that care. If you were treated at the emergency room by a plastic surgeon so that your injuries would not create serious scars, this is probably considered “reasonable” and should probably be covered in full.
Additional Procedures
However, additional “elective” procedures that you get later to reduce or minimize scarring might not be covered in every case. This category might include plastic surgery care or laser treatment.
Our lawyers can argue that a procedure being “elective” says nothing about whether it was “reasonable” or not. Especially for young victims and very visible scars, these procedures are often perfectly reasonable and appropriate, and damages should likely be covered. However, it might ultimately be up to the judge and jury.
Call Our New York Personal Injury Lawyers for Help
Call our Brooklyn, NY personal injury attorneys at The Carrion Law Firm at (718) 841-0083 to get started on your case today.