If my landlord was negligent and it caused me injury, how much is reasonable to ask for not sueing?

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If my landlord was negligent and it caused me injury, how much is reasonable to ask for not sueing?

I know I can sue my apartment building for negligence because after asking them to fix a wooden covert that fell off the wall, it fell once again 2 weeks later fractured 2 toes and broke 1, crutches for a week, still lumping. The covert wasn’t correctly fixed, had nails completely crooked and everything was the same. Pictures were taken. The apartment building insurance is about to call me tomorrow to pay for all medical expenses but I also want to receive an amount of free rent at least knowing I could sue for a much bigger amount of money. What would you say is reasonable?

Asked on April 25, 2012 under Personal Injury, Texas

Answers:

S.L,. Member, California Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney

Answered 11 years ago | Contributor

It is unlikely that you would get free rent because that is not related to your injury.

Compensation for your injury would include the medical bills, pain and suffering and wage loss.  Compensation for the medical bills is straight reimbursement.  Compensation for pain and suffering is an amount in addition to the medical bills, which is determined by the medical reports which document the nature and extent of your injury.  Compensation for documentation of wage loss is straight reimbursement.

There isn't any mathematical formula for determining compenation for pain and suffering.  It just depends on the facts of the case.  If you are having residual problems such as pain after completing your medical treatment, that would mean additional compensation when compared to someone, who is not having residual complaints of pain.  If the medical reports state that you will need future treatment, then an estimate of the cost of that future treatment discounted to present value should be included in compensation for pain and suffering.  Once you accept a settlement, you won't be able to go back to the insurance company in the future and ask for more money.

I would usually ask for quadruple the medical bills to compensate for pain and suffering, but NOT expecting to get that amount.  This would be a starting point in negotiations and the insurance company will respond with a much lower offer.  You can then continue negotiating to try to get the insurance company to increase its settlement offer.  If the case is settled with the insurance company, NO lawsuit is filed.  If you are dissatisfied with settlement offers from the insurance company, reject the settlement offers and file your lawsuit for negligence against the landlord.  If the case is NOT settled with the insurance company, you will need to file your lawsuit for negligence against the landlord prior to the expiration of the applicable statute of limitations or you will lose your rights forever in the matter.


IMPORTANT NOTICE: The Answer(s) provided above are for general information only. The attorney providing the answer was not serving as the attorney for the person submitting the question or in any attorney-client relationship with such person. Laws may vary from state to state, and sometimes change. Tiny variations in the facts, or a fact not set forth in a question, often can change a legal outcome or an attorney's conclusion. Although AttorneyPages.com has verified the attorney was admitted to practice law in at least one jurisdiction, he or she may not be authorized to practice law in the jurisdiction referred to in the question, nor is he or she necessarily experienced in the area of the law involved. Unlike the information in the Answer(s) above, upon which you should NOT rely, for personal advice you can rely upon we suggest you retain an attorney to represent you.

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