Can You Sue for Emotional Distress After a Car Accident?

Sue for Emotional Distress After a Car Accident?

Car accidents can leave more than just physical scars. For many victims, the aftermath includes deep emotional trauma that interferes with their lives long after the wreckage is cleared. But can you sue someone for emotional distress after a car accident? The short answer is yes—in many cases, you can pursue compensation for psychological and emotional suffering. However, the process is more complex than suing for physical injuries alone. In this guide, we’ll explore your rights, the legal requirements for suing for emotional distress, and why working with an El Paso car accident lawyer is key to recovering the compensation you deserve.

What Is Emotional Distress in a Legal Context?

In personal injury law, emotional distress refers to mental suffering caused by a traumatic event, such as a car accident. It can manifest in various ways, including anxiety or panic attacks, depression or hopelessness, flashbacks or nightmares, fear of driving, loss of enjoyment of life, and difficulty sleeping or concentrating. This form of damage falls under non-economic damages, which are meant to compensate you for intangible losses rather than measurable financial ones.

Can You Sue Someone for Emotional Distress?

Yes, you can sue someone for emotional distress, especially when their negligence led to your accident. In Texas, emotional distress is often included in broader pain and suffering claims. You don’t have to suffer physical injuries to pursue emotional damages, but your case will likely be stronger if you experienced both.

Negligent Infliction of Emotional Distress (NIED)

This occurs when a person’s carelessness or recklessness causes you emotional harm. In car accident cases, this typically applies when the at-fault driver acted negligently, such as by texting while driving, speeding, or running a red light.

Intentional Infliction of Emotional Distress (IIED)

This applies when someone acted maliciously or intentionally to cause emotional harm, such as in road rage incidents that include threats or violence. These cases are less common and require strong evidence of malicious intent.

Suing for Emotional Distress Without Physical Injury

A common question victims ask is: “Can I sue for emotional distress if I wasn’t physically injured?” While it’s possible, these cases are more challenging to prove. You must demonstrate that the emotional distress is severe and disruptive to your daily life, is directly linked to the car accident, and that you’ve received mental health treatment. Courts and insurance companies often require documentation from therapists or medical professionals to validate your claims.

How Much Can I Sue for Emotional Distress?

There’s no fixed number for how much you can sue for emotional distress, as these damages are subjective. Several factors affect your potential compensation, including the severity and duration of emotional suffering, the impact on your relationships and work, medical or therapy costs, and supporting evidence such as expert testimony or personal journals. Some car accident victims in Texas have received five- or six-figure settlements for emotional distress, especially when physical injuries were also involved. That said, every case is unique.

For example, if a car crash left you with PTSD and an inability to work or drive, you may be entitled to significant compensation, not just for therapy costs, but for how your quality of life has been affected.

Evidence Needed to Sue for Emotional Distress

To successfully sue for emotional distress, you will need strong documentation and legal support. Helpful evidence includes therapist or psychologist reports confirming diagnosis and treatment, medical bills for psychological care, personal journals detailing your struggles, testimony from friends or family confirming behavioral changes, and expert witness testimony from mental health professionals. The more detailed and credible your evidence, the more likely your case is to succeed.

Emotional Distress as Part of a Personal Injury Claim

In most car accident cases, emotional distress is included as part of a larger personal injury claim. If you’re already suing for medical bills or lost wages, your attorney can include non-economic damages like emotional suffering. Your compensation claim might include economic damages such as medical bills and lost wages, non-economic damages like emotional distress and loss of enjoyment, and in rare cases, punitive damages when the at-fault party acted recklessly or intentionally.

The Role of an El Paso Car Accident Lawyer

Sue for Emotional Distress After a Car Accident?

Proving emotional distress requires legal experience, strategic planning, and professional evidence. That’s why consulting with an experienced El Paso car accident lawyer is critical. An attorney can help you determine if you have a valid emotional distress claim, gather expert evidence to support your case, handle insurance company negotiations, ensure all filing deadlines and procedures are followed under Texas law, and maximize the compensation you’re entitled to. Don’t try to navigate this complex process alone. The Law Offices of Michael J. Gopin, PLLC, has over 50 years of experience helping victims like you fight for their emotional and financial recovery.

Texas Law and Emotional Distress Claims

Texas law allows personal injury victims to sue for emotional distress, but there are a few key legal guidelines to understand.

Statute of Limitations

You typically have two years from the date of the accident to file a claim. Waiting too long can cost you the right to recover compensation.

Burden of Proof

You must prove that the other driver’s negligence directly caused your emotional suffering. This is where detailed documentation and professional support become vital.

Comparative Fault Rule

Texas follows a modified comparative fault system, meaning that if you are partially at fault, your compensation may be reduced accordingly. If you’re found to be more than 50% at fault, you may not recover damages at all.

How Insurance Companies Handle Emotional Distress Claims?

Another critical factor in suing for emotional distress is understanding how insurance companies view and evaluate such claims. While adjusters often take physical injuries more seriously due to the availability of medical records and invoices, emotional distress is frequently downplayed or denied outright.

Insurance adjusters may argue that emotional trauma is “subjective,” “not permanent,” or “exaggerated.” They may even claim that your psychological symptoms are unrelated to the accident, especially if you have a prior history of anxiety or depression.

In some cases, insurers offer lowball settlements that fail to account for long-term emotional effects, such as panic attacks, nightmares, or the inability to commute. Without an experienced attorney advocating on your behalf, you could end up settling for far less than your case is truly worth.

This is why partnering with an El Paso car accident lawyer who understands the full scope of emotional distress—and how to counter insurance tactics—is so important. Your legal team can bring in mental health experts, present visual aids that illustrate your daily struggles, and craft a narrative that resonates with jurors if your case proceeds to trial.

The Role of Expert Testimony in Emotional Distress Claims

Emotional distress is complex, but with the support of a qualified mental health expert, your legal team can present a compelling picture of how the accident has impacted your mental well-being. These professionals can diagnose your condition, document your progress over time, and provide insights into how your symptoms are likely to affect your daily life and recovery. Their input transforms abstract emotions into clear, evidence-based testimony that strengthens your case.

Expert witnesses might provide:

  • A formal diagnosis of PTSD, depression, or anxiety
  • An explanation of how the accident triggered or worsened mental health issues
  • Insight into how symptoms will impact your future quality of life
  • Validation that your symptoms are real, significant, and not exaggerated

These experts are trained to use clinical language and structured assessment tools to measure distress. Their reports and testimony can often be the key to unlocking fair compensation.

Additionally, your legal team may also consult vocational rehabilitation specialists or life care planners. These professionals evaluate how emotional trauma limits your work capacity, productivity, or ability to live independently, helping to translate your suffering into quantifiable financial losses for the court or insurer.

Take the First Step Toward Healing—Contact Our Team Today

If you’ve suffered emotional distress after a car accident in El Paso, you deserve justice, not just for your physical injuries, but for the invisible pain that lingers long after the crash. At the Law Offices of Michael J. Gopin, PLLC, we offer compassionate legal guidance and aggressive representation. Call us for a free consultation. Visit one of our three El Paso office locations.

Emotional trauma is real, and it’s just as important as any physical injury. If you’re wondering, “Can I sue someone for emotional distress?” the answer is yes. But success starts with the right legal team on your side. Let us help you fight for the peace of mind and compensation you deserve.

Michael J. Gopin

Michael J. Gopin has practiced law in El Paso since 1987. Even after more than 30 years, he still remembers his first jury case. It was two weeks after receiving his license, when he represented a person whose life had been forever changed after being blinded in a work-related incident...

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