Friedman Simon - May 2020

Know the Full Cost of Your Accident

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention are encouraging communities across the U.S. to practice social distancing. While this will help prevent the spread of the coronavirus, or COVID-19, it also means that social interactions will be minimal. In addition to impeding many industries and businesses, this has significant impacts on families and friends who can no longer visit each other in person. Luckily, the technology we have today allows us to stay in touch while still practicing social responsibility. SPRUCE UP EVERYDAY ACTIVITIES. Hopping on the phone or your laptop to video chat is a great way to reach out and catch up with loved ones. While folding laundry or doing other mundane chores, give a friend or your parents a call to idly chat; it can make your tedious tasks much more enjoyable. Video calls are also beneficial if, for example, you’re missing out on your daily workouts with a friend. Hop on a video chat to practice yoga, cardio, or other simple exercise routines together. LET YOUR KIDS CHATWITH FRIENDS. Kids can benefit from video chatting by staying in touch with their friends while school and other activities are canceled. Letting your kids connect to social media is a pretty big step, so consider signing them up for Yoursphere or Kidzworld, kid-friendly networks that let them keep in touch with their friends while you can monitor their activity. Get in touch with other parents to set up virtual play dates over video chats for your kids. They can even watch a movie or TV show together. HOST A MOVIE NIGHT. Speaking of movies, Netflix developed a unique way for people to watch movies and shows together: Netflix Party. If you have a desktop or laptop with a Chrome browser, visit NetflixParty.com to download the application. Once downloaded, open the movie or TV series you’d like to watch, create or join a “party,” then relax and enjoy the show while chatting with friends. These are only a few examples of how we can stay in touch during these concerning times. Talk with your family and friends and see what other creative ideas you can come up with together. Even though you may be apart from loved ones right now, virtual communication has never been easier or more plentiful. HOW TO STAY IN TOUCH WITH FAMILY AND FRIENDS While Following Social Distancing Guidelines

Under personal injury law, you are able to recover more than just medical expenses and lost wages caused by an accident. While it’s important to be compensated for both of these, they don’t capture the full scope of the life-altering harm associated with most accidents. That’s why you are allowed to pursue damages for pain and suffering. DEFINING PAIN AND SUFFERING The basic legal definition of pain and suffering is “the physical and mental distress suffered from an injury.” Thus, the term takes more into account than just visible wounds. Depression, loss of quality of life, embarrassment caused by scarring — these damages are given as much weight as broken bones. There are dollar values associated with surgeries and casts, but how do you begin to put a price on something like losing your ability to run around with your kids? CALCULATING THE INCALCULABLE Putting a price tag on traumatic life events is a difficult task, yet insurance companies will attempt to use impersonal formulas to try and arrive at a “fair” compensation. Typically, they’ll add up the measurable expenses of the accident then apply a multiplier to that number. There are several ethical problems with this approach. After all, the individual experiences and struggles of injury victims can’t be lumped together into a single equation. That’s why our personal injury lawyers at Friedman & Simon prefer to take what we believe is a more realistic and just approach. A BETTER PATH In contrast to the insurance companies’ formulas, we embrace the fact that pain and suffering is subjective, always keeping our client’s humanity at the forefront of our minds. Our experienced and compassionate lawyers will take the time to get to know you and your unique situation, so they can fight for your maximum compensation. If you’ve been injured and want a firm that will fight for your humanity, give us a call at 516-800-8000.

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