{
  "slug": "personal-injury-settlement-estimator",
  "title": "Personal Injury Settlement Estimator",
  "heading": "Personal Injury Settlement Estimator",
  "category": "financial",
  "url": "https://www.revenuelab.fyi/toolbox/personal-injury-settlement-estimator",
  "summary": "Estimate gross settlement, attorney fee, liens, and your net take-home.",
  "description": "The number a claimant hears quoted is the gross settlement; the number that reaches their bank account is far smaller. This estimator applies the standard structure used in US personal injury practice: economic damages (medical bills plus documented lost wages) multiplied by a pain-and-suffering multiplier that reflects injury severity, reduced by comparative fault, then reduced again by the contingency fee, case costs, and medical liens or health-insurance subrogation claims. Typical multipliers run about 1.5x for soft-tissue claims that resolve in a few months, 3x for injuries with objective imaging findings and lasting limitation, and 5x or more where surgery, permanent impairment, or disfigurement is involved. Contingency fees are commonly 33.3% pre-suit and 40% once a lawsuit is filed. This is an educational estimate, not legal advice or a valuation of your specific claim — jurisdiction, venue, insurance limits, and the quality of your medical documentation move real outcomes more than any formula.",
  "formula": "Gross = (Medicals + Lost Wages) × Multiplier × (1 − Fault %). Net = Gross − Attorney Fee − Case Costs − Liens.",
  "dateModified": "2026-09-06",
  "run_url": "https://www.revenuelab.fyi/api/public/calc?tool=personal-injury-settlement-estimator",
  "inputs": [
    {
      "id": "medicals",
      "label": "Medical bills to date",
      "kind": "number",
      "hint": null,
      "default": 12000,
      "unit": "$",
      "min": 0,
      "max": 1000000
    },
    {
      "id": "wages",
      "label": "Documented lost wages",
      "kind": "number",
      "hint": null,
      "default": 4000,
      "unit": "$",
      "min": 0,
      "max": 500000
    },
    {
      "id": "multiplier",
      "label": "Injury severity multiplier",
      "kind": "select",
      "hint": null,
      "default": "2",
      "options": [
        {
          "value": "1.5",
          "label": "Soft tissue, full recovery — 1.5x"
        },
        {
          "value": "2",
          "label": "Moderate, imaging findings — 2x"
        },
        {
          "value": "3",
          "label": "Serious, lasting limitation — 3x"
        },
        {
          "value": "5",
          "label": "Surgery / permanent impairment — 5x"
        }
      ]
    },
    {
      "id": "faultPct",
      "label": "Your comparative fault",
      "kind": "number",
      "hint": null,
      "default": 0,
      "unit": "%",
      "min": 0,
      "max": 99
    },
    {
      "id": "feePct",
      "label": "Attorney contingency fee",
      "kind": "number",
      "hint": null,
      "default": 33.3,
      "unit": "%",
      "min": 0,
      "max": 45
    },
    {
      "id": "costs",
      "label": "Case costs (records, experts, filing)",
      "kind": "number",
      "hint": null,
      "default": 1500,
      "unit": "$",
      "min": 0,
      "max": 200000
    },
    {
      "id": "liens",
      "label": "Medical liens / subrogation",
      "kind": "number",
      "hint": null,
      "default": 3000,
      "unit": "$",
      "min": 0,
      "max": 500000
    }
  ],
  "outputs": [
    {
      "id": "net",
      "label": "Estimated net to you",
      "format": "currency",
      "hint": null,
      "primary": true
    },
    {
      "id": "gross",
      "label": "Estimated gross settlement",
      "format": "currency",
      "hint": null,
      "primary": false
    },
    {
      "id": "fee",
      "label": "Attorney contingency fee",
      "format": "currency",
      "hint": null,
      "primary": false
    },
    {
      "id": "economic",
      "label": "Economic damages base",
      "format": "currency",
      "hint": null,
      "primary": false
    },
    {
      "id": "netPct",
      "label": "Share of gross you keep",
      "format": "percent",
      "hint": null,
      "primary": false
    }
  ],
  "worked_example": {
    "inputs": [
      "Medical bills to date: 12000 $",
      "Documented lost wages: 4000 $",
      "Injury severity multiplier: Moderate, imaging findings — 2x",
      "Your comparative fault: 0 %",
      "Attorney contingency fee: 33.3 %",
      "Case costs (records, experts, filing): 1500 $",
      "Medical liens / subrogation: 3000 $"
    ],
    "outputs": [
      "Estimated net to you: $16,844",
      "Estimated gross settlement: $32,000",
      "Attorney contingency fee: $10,656",
      "Economic damages base: $16,000",
      "Share of gross you keep: 52.6%"
    ]
  },
  "how_to": {
    "title": "How to use this",
    "steps": [
      "Enter medical bills to date ($).",
      "Enter documented lost wages ($).",
      "Enter injury severity multiplier.",
      "Enter your comparative fault (%).",
      "Enter attorney contingency fee (%).",
      "Enter case costs (records, experts, filing) ($).",
      "Enter medical liens / subrogation ($).",
      "Read your estimated net to you on the right — it updates as you type.",
      "Hit Share to keep the scenario or send it to someone."
    ]
  },
  "scenarios": [
    {
      "name": "Conservative",
      "description": "Lower-end numbers — what if things land soft?",
      "values": {
        "medicals": 7000,
        "wages": 2500,
        "multiplier": "2",
        "faultPct": 0,
        "feePct": 19.979999999999997,
        "costs": 1000,
        "liens": 2000
      }
    },
    {
      "name": "Typical",
      "description": "Defaults — the most common real-world setup.",
      "values": {
        "medicals": 12000,
        "wages": 4000,
        "multiplier": "2",
        "faultPct": 0,
        "feePct": 33.3,
        "costs": 1500,
        "liens": 3000
      }
    },
    {
      "name": "Ambitious",
      "description": "Higher-end numbers — what if things really pop?",
      "values": {
        "medicals": 19000,
        "wages": 6500,
        "multiplier": "2",
        "faultPct": 0,
        "feePct": 45,
        "costs": 2500,
        "liens": 5000
      }
    }
  ],
  "limitations": [
    "Results are estimates before tax, fees, and inflation unless an input explicitly covers them.",
    "Rates are treated as fixed for the whole period — variable-rate products will drift from this projection.",
    "This is educational maths, not financial advice. Check anything contractual with the lender or your accountant."
  ],
  "faq": [
    {
      "q": "Is the multiplier method how insurers really value claims?",
      "a": "It is a rough industry shorthand. Adjusters increasingly use claim software that scores diagnosis codes, treatment gaps, and duration of care, but the multiplier remains a reasonable first approximation for negotiation ranges."
    },
    {
      "q": "What is comparative fault?",
      "a": "Most states reduce your recovery by your share of responsibility for the accident. A few states bar recovery entirely once your fault crosses 50% or 51%, so check your state's rule — this tool simply applies the percentage reduction."
    },
    {
      "q": "Can medical liens be negotiated down?",
      "a": "Often yes. Hospital liens, ERISA plan subrogation, and Medicare/Medicaid claims are frequently reduced, sometimes substantially, as part of the settlement. Lower the lien input to model that."
    },
    {
      "q": "Does this replace a lawyer's valuation?",
      "a": "No. It is an educational estimate only. Policy limits, venue, witness credibility, and documentation quality drive real outcomes and cannot be captured in a formula."
    }
  ],
  "related": [
    "https://www.revenuelab.fyi/toolbox/debt-settlement-savings-calculator"
  ],
  "license": "CC-BY-4.0",
  "citation": "RevenueLab — Personal Injury Settlement Estimator (https://www.revenuelab.fyi/toolbox/personal-injury-settlement-estimator)"
}