The Cost of Future Care

In personal injury cases, a lump sum award is given to the plaintiff to provide compensation for "future care" for a period of time, sometimes for the rest of his or her life. The purpose of the award for costs of future care is to restore, as best as possible with a monetary award, the injured person to the position he or she would have been in had the accident not occurred. In order to receive a future cost of care award, it is important to ask if there is a medical justification for the care needed to promote the physical and mental health of the plaintiff.

In minor cases, it is not necessary to have an expert prepare a detailed cost of care report. However, unless the case is very simple, it will be necessary for the plaintiff to retain an economist report outlining the present cost of the future equipment and services identified by the consultant retained to prepare the cost of future care. There must be some evidentiary link between the physician’s assessment of pain, disability, and recommended treatment and the care recommended by a qualified health care professional.

Types of Future Care

The types of future care expenses include, but are not limited to medication, rehabilitation therapy, housekeeping services, home modifications, and personal care services. Particularly, some of the services that may be included in the calculation of future care costs are physiotherapy, chiropractor, and massage therapy.

If there is medical evidence indicating the need for future care and evidence that the plaintiff intends to pursue the treatment, then the court may award an amount for future care based on expert evidence. Keep in mind that courts do accept testimony from a variety of health care professionals as to necessary and reasonable costs of future care.

Additionally, consistent treatment helps with calculating the cost of future care expenses. For example, in the event the plaintiff does not regularly attend treatment, the experts may receive different instructions and varying information in terms of expert reports, witness statements and records, and or seen the plaintiff at different times and therefore assess the needs differently. These differences in instructions or assumptions may or may not be explicitly in their expert reports.  Therefore, try avoiding foreseeable potential pitfalls where possible.

Need help with a personal injury claim? Contact the team at Spraggs Law

Have you been in a motor vehicle accident and think you need help managing your claim? Spraggs Law can take this burden off your hands so you can focus on your recovery. Give us a call at 604-359-1618 for a free consultation to discuss getting you the compensation you deserve for loss of housekeeping capacity and more.