Data from the United States Courts says that personal injury claims increased by 97%. At the heart of every personal injury claim is negligence.
When a person or an entity causes harm to another person as a result of negligence, the victim can seek compensation for their damages. Websites like https://wilshirelawfirm.com/ provide more information on how victims can recover the losses they have suffered.
The amount of compensation that is allowed is significantly impacted by which form of negligence was at play, whether ordinary or gross negligence.
This article focuses on gross negligence and how it affects the compensation a victim receives.
What is Gross Negligence?
Negligence is a fundamental principle in personal injury law, which means failure to exercise reasonable care in a given situation. Gross negligence goes beyond just being careless to being reckless. As a result, its consequences are very severe.
Examples of Gross Negligence
It is important to understand the subject of gross negligence. Given below are some examples that might qualify for gross negligence, depending on the severity and recklessness of the actions involved:
Drunk Driving
Drunk driving behavior shows a high disregard for the safety of others. A person driving while intoxicated could be found grossly negligent and held responsible for all the damages they cause.
Medical Errors
When a surgeon leaves a surgical instrument inside the body of a patient, they could be found grossly negligent too. Another instance is operating on the wrong part of the body. These actions are not as per their expected standard of care and will be categorized as grossly negligent.
Premises Liability
Property owners and managers can be held guilty of gross negligence if they ignore evident hazards on their premises.
Product Liability
When a manufacturer knowingly sells hazardous and defective products, that is gross negligence at play. This can lead to severe injuries and even deaths.
Characteristics of Gross Negligence
In a personal injury case, gross negligence requires a higher standard of proof. The plaintiff is required to provide evidence fulfilling the basic elements of negligence. These elements are:
- The defendant owed a legal duty of care
- The defendant intentionally breached the duty
- The plaintiff sustained injuries
- Damages were caused by injuries
To accomplish this, it is important to understand the characteristics of this concept.
Wanton and Willful: Gross negligence goes beyond mere negligence. It includes willful and wanton actions such as intentional disregard for safety precautions, drunk driving, and so on.
Reckless: More than just willful, a grossly negligent action is reckless. This means that the action is taken with total disregard for the consequences and potential risks to human safety.
Severe Compensation: The consequences resulting from grossly negligent actions are usually more serious. In addition to compensatory damages, there are punitive damages.
Consequences of Gross Negligence
Both ordinary negligence and gross negligence involve a failure to meet the standard of care. This therefore presents a thin line between ordinary negligence and gross negligence. However, gross negligence is characterized by a more intentional and severe disregard for the safety of others. The consequences, therefore, will be more severe compared to ordinary negligence.
Punishment for gross negligence requires more than just compensatory damages, as with ordinary negligence. Victims of gross negligence, in addition to compensatory damages, are awarded what is known as punitive damages. Punitive damages, also known as exemplary damages, are aimed at deterring similar behavior from other parties; hence, they are more severe.
The punishment usually depends on the circumstances surrounding the case. In some cases, the defendant also stands a chance of facing criminal charges and penalties.
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