Once it is established that you do have a claim, you may wonder how much your claim is worth. While it is hard to assess the amount of damages to expect, factors that will impact a personal injury damage award include: Seriousness of Injury. In any personal injury case, the successful plaintiff will be awarded compensation to cover past, and in some cases, future medical expenses. The more severe the injury, the more you will be awarded for medical expenses. Your Job. Another common component to a damage award is lost wages. The higher your income was at the time of the injury, the higher your damage award for lost wages. If you are not able to continue work at the same type of job earning the same money, you may also receive compensation for loss of earning capacity. Type of Injury. Some injuries are particularly painful, incapacitating or disfiguring such that you may be awarded a significant sum for pain and suffering. For example, if your injury results in a limb being amputated or a permanent scar on your face, you will likely receive more for pain and suffering then if you broke your arm. Shocking Behavior. Your total award may also include punitive damages. Punitive damages are occasionally awarded in cases where the actions of the defendant that caused the victim’s injuries, were so shocking, so egregious that the court feels that defendant needs to be punished. Examples, of egregious or shocking behavior is drunk driving. Source of recovery. The amount of insurance or other resources available will impact the amount of award. If the pockets are deep, the award is likely to be higher. If an employee of a local superstore is negligent causing you to be injured, while you could sue that the minimum wage employee, it would be more lucrative to sue the superstore as you would be able to recover more money.