What are Punitive Damages in a Personal Injury Case?

Punitive damages are different damages than what you traditionally think of with a personal injury case. Punitive damages are in place to do two main things: it’s to punish the wrongdoer, and it’s to send a message to the community that the behavior of this wrongdoer will not be tolerated. So those are the two main purposes of punitive damages. In Virginia, punitive damages are capped at a maximum of $350,000 so if a jury were to award a person more than $350,000, the amount of punitive damages they can actually collect or receive would be reduced to the $350,000 cap. Punitive damages claims are usually fairly rare in the personal injury claim context, and that’s because you can’t make a claim in Virginia for punitive damages for what we refer to as ordinary negligence, just an ordinary mistake someone made in causing an injury to another. You need to be able to show that the wrongdoer acted with willful and wanting negligence, which is a much higher degree of, of lack of care, is a way to put it. The most common context where you’ll see a punitive damage claim in a Virginia personal injury case is with drunk drivers. Drunk drivers with a very high BAC, the person who injured you happen to also be very drunk at the time of the accident, often times you can make a claim for punitive damages, which is extra money in addition to the money you’d receive for your injuries. [jingle] No need to worry, call Cooper Hurley. The car crash experts. 333-3333