Maybe your spouse is suffering in the hospital after a serious car crash. Maybe your spouse is at home and permanently disabled after a catastrophic slip-and-fall event. Regardless of the situations, if your spouse was seriously hurt in an accident due to no fault of his or her own, your spouse probably isn’t the only one who’s suffering.
As the husband or wife of an injured spouse, you have probably lost numerous spousal benefits, like loss of affection, loss of companionship, loss of spousal services and other types of losses. Having suffered these losses of spousal benefits, you may have the right to pursue financial claims against the party at fault for the accident.
Proving loss of consortium in a personal injury claim
In order to receive financial compensation for your losses of spousal benefit, you will probably include your name in the personal injury claim that your spouse files. Your name will be included as an extra plaintiff, and in the legal pleadings, you will make various demands relating the spousal benefits you’ve lost. As a part of the suit, you will also need to prove your loss of consortium.
Here is how you prove loss of consortium in a personal injury claim:
- Provide evidence that your marriage was loving and stable.
- Provide evidence that you and your spouse lived with one another full time.
- Provide evidence that your spouse provided you with care and companionship.
- Provide medical documentation and expert evidence that offers an estimated life expectancy for both you and your spouse.
- Include evidence of the various household services that your spouse performed.
- Include evidence of the various activities that you and your spouse enjoyed with one another.
Don’t miss out on your potential loss of consortium claims
Filing a claim for loss of consortium as a part of your spouse’s personal injury claims means that you honor your right to receive compensation in addition to your spouse’s right to compensation. Indeed, the negative effects of a injurious accident extend beyond the individual victims to impact the entire family in most cases.