Personal Injury

Getting damages after a personal injury

By Ted Smith, Attorney · Originally published October 15, 2018. Updated July 16, 2026.

An ambulance ride, days in the hospital, months of outpatient care and physical therapy, lost income while you couldn’t work, and pain that hasn’t fully gone away. If that sounds familiar, the question that matters now is simple: what is the at-fault party actually responsible for paying? Under Texas law, compensatory damages include economic and non-economic losses. Exemplary damages are a separate category. Knowing the difference helps you understand what your claim needs to prove.

Economic damages: the losses you can put a number on

Economic damages are losses that can be calculated with receipts, bills, and pay records. Under the Texas Civil Practice and Remedies Code, economic damages are defined as compensatory damages meant to cover actual financial loss.

In practice, this typically includes:

Reasonable and necessary medical expenses, limited to amounts actually paid or incurred by or on behalf of the claimant
Future medical costs shown with reasonable probability to be reasonable and necessary
Lost wages or salary during your recovery
Loss of future earning capacity, if the injury affects your ability to work going forward
Property damage, such as vehicle repair or replacement costs

Because these losses can be documented with paperwork, they tend to be the most straightforward part of a claim, provided you keep your records organized.

Non-economic damages: harder to calculate, still real

Non-economic damages compensate for losses that don’t come with a receipt. Texas law defines these as damages awarded to compensate for things like physical pain and suffering, mental or emotional anguish, disfigurement, physical impairment, loss of companionship, and loss of enjoyment of life.

This is where the human cost of an injury shows up: the pain you experienced at the moment of impact, the pain you endured during recovery, and any pain you continue to live with. It also includes whether the injury left you with a visible scar or a lasting impairment, and whether it changed how you spend your time, whether that’s being unable to play with your kids, work in the yard, or get back to the activities you enjoyed before the accident.

There is no bill or invoice for this kind of loss. Instead, it is typically proven through your own testimony, testimony from people close to you, and medical documentation showing the severity and duration of your injury.

Household services and family impact

An injury does not just affect the person who was hurt. If you were doing the bulk of the cooking, childcare, home maintenance, or other household work before the accident and can no longer do it during recovery, that loss can factor into a claim, and in some cases a spouse can pursue a separate claim for the loss of those services or for loss of consortium. This is fact-specific and depends heavily on the details of your situation, so it is worth discussing directly with an attorney rather than assuming what applies.

Exemplary (punitive) damages, in rare cases

Texas law also allows for exemplary damages, sometimes called punitive damages, in a narrow set of circumstances. These are not meant to compensate you. They require clear and convincing proof of fraud, malice, or gross negligence. Chapter 41 generally caps them at the greater of two statutory alternatives, subject to statutory exceptions. Most personal injury claims, including typical car accident cases, do not involve exemplary damages. An attorney can tell you early on whether the facts of your case could support this kind of claim.

Comparative fault can reduce what you recover

Texas follows a proportionate responsibility rule. If you were partly at fault for the accident, your damages are reduced by your percentage of fault, and if you are found 51% or more responsible, you cannot recover damages at all. This is one more reason documentation and a clear account of how the accident happened matter from day one.

The role of a personal injury attorney

Sorting out what you are owed, and proving it to an insurance adjuster or a jury, is not something most people are equipped to do alone while they are also trying to recover physically. An attorney reviews your medical records, documents your economic losses, and builds the evidence needed to support non-economic damages, then negotiates with the insurance company or litigates the case if a fair settlement isn’t offered.

FAQ

What is the difference between economic and non-economic damages? Economic damages are financial losses you can document with bills, receipts, and pay stubs. Non-economic damages compensate for pain, suffering, and loss of enjoyment of life, which don’t have a paper trail but are still recoverable.

Do I need proof to get non-economic damages? Yes, but the proof looks different. It typically comes from medical records documenting your injury and recovery, and testimony about how the injury affected your daily life, from you and people close to you.

Can my spouse make a claim too? In some cases, a spouse can pursue a claim connected to the injury’s impact on the household or the marriage. Whether this applies depends on your specific facts, so ask your attorney directly.

What if I was partly at fault for the accident? Under Texas’s proportionate responsibility rule, your damages are reduced by your percentage of fault. If you are found 51% or more at fault, you cannot recover.

How long do I have to file a claim? Texas generally requires a personal injury lawsuit to be filed within two years of the accident date. Waiting can also make it harder to gather evidence, so it’s best to act sooner rather than later.

Sources

Understanding what you can recover is the first step. Proving it to an insurance company that doesn’t want to pay is the harder part. Ted Smith Law Group has represented injured Central Texans since 1976. Learn more about our personal injury representation, or call or text (254) 690-5688 for a free consultation.