| Read Time: 8 minutes | Medical Malpractice
average settlement for nerve damage

Nerve damage can have a lasting impact on your ability to live your life the way you want. If you are such a victim, you may wonder, What is the average payout for nerve damage?

The average payout for nerve damage in the United States is around $20,000. Compensation can range from $5,000 to over $250,000 depending on injury severity, long-term disability, and required medical treatment. Severe cases involving permanent damage typically result in higher settlements or verdicts.

Nerve damage settlement lawsuits can provide compensation to accident victims.

At Poulos & Cavazos, LLP, our experienced attorneys have successfully obtained compensation on behalf of countless clients.

With our help, you can effectively pursue a sciatic nerve damage settlement, peroneal nerve damage settlement, or pinched nerve settlement to ensure you are fairly compensated for what you have been through.

Key Takeaways

  • The potential value of a nerve injury claim can vary widely depending on factors like injury location, permanency, and how it affects your daily life. A more severe injury generally leads to a higher compensation amount.
  • Settlements and verdicts for nerve damage have ranged from tens of thousands to over a million dollars. The final payout often hinges on the injury’s impact on your ability to work and enjoy life—making the long-term consequences a major factor.
  • To strengthen your claim, you’ll need solid medical records and expert input. Testimony from specialists who can confirm the extent and effects of your nerve damage can greatly increase the credibility of your case.
You’re living with burning, tingling, or numbness—and wondering if it will ever go away. If nerve damage changed your life, Poulos & Cavazos can help you pursue compensation and accountability. Talk to us today. Contact Us

How Do Courts Determine the Average Payout for Nerve Damage?

Determining the average settlement for nerve damage can be complex due to the unique nature of each case. Settlements for nerve damage vary widely. Minor injuries typically result in settlements ranging from $5,000 to over $250,000. Severe injuries that cause chronic pain and disability can lead to much higher amounts. The settlement depends not only on the injury itself but also on its impact on your daily life and ability to work.

The available compensation in a nerve damage lawsuit typically depends on a few factors.

First, as a general rule, the more severe a victim’s injuries, the higher the amount of compensation they can recover.

Also, where the nerve damage is located matters because damage in certain areas may be more challenging to live with.

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Here’s an example of two people suffering from nerve damage

Joe has sciatic damage that negatively impacts approximately half of his body in his back and lower extremities.

Jane has nerve damage that affects her left hand, and she is right-handed.

Joe’s sciatic nerve damage settlement may be more than the average payout for nerve damage. It might be significantly more than Jane’s settlement for nerve damage in her hand. But keep in mind that there are always exceptions.

For instance, if Jane was a world-renowned concert pianist, her losses might be valued more highly. 

Generally, when assessing the severity of an injury, your lawyer would assess the following potential damages:

  • The cost of all reasonable necessary past and future medical treatment;
  • How much work you have missed in the past;
  • When you can return to work, if ever;
  • Any long-term effects of the nerve damage;
  • How your nerve damage affects your day-to-day life; and 
  • The extent of pain and suffering you are experiencing.  

Second, whether your actions played a role in causing your nerve damage can impact nerve damage settlement cases.

For example, if an insurance company faces a pinched nerve settlement claim, the insurance company will offer less money if the claimant’s actions contributed to their pinched nerve.

Finally, if a defendant acted with “willful or wanton” conduct, you may be eligible for punitive or exemplary damages, which can greatly increase your recovery amount.

Punitive damages are intended to punish a defendant for their particularly egregious actions. However, punitive damages are only available in limited and rare situations.  

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Is It Hard to Prove Nerve Damage?

Proving that you have disabling nerve damage can be difficult. A doctor will have to do a thorough physical and neurological exam. During the exam, the doctor must keep a close eye out for the following.

The typical nerve damage symptoms are:

  • loss of sensation
  • muscle weakness
  • tingling sensation
  • decreased coordination

A nerve conduction velocity test may be critical to any exam investigating nerve damage. 

At Poulos & Cavazos, LLC our staff nurse can help you determine how to best prove your injuries to obtain a nerve damage settlement. When we investigate your potential lawsuit, there are never any upfront costs. 

Call us about your case so one of our nerve damage injury attorneys at Poulos & Cavazos can get to work. Call now at 575-523-4444

Can I Get Compensation for Nerve Damage After Surgery? 

You are likely entitled to compensation if a doctor’s negligence caused your nerve pain. Like with other personal injury claims, you will have to show that the doctor failed to act with reasonable prudence.

Further, you can suffer from over 100 different types of nerve damage, each of which carries a separate set of symptoms. Unique types of nerve damage also require distinct treatments.

All these factors will figure into how much you can be compensated for your injury. The average payout for nerve damage after surgery can also differ based on the injury’s location.

Nerve damage to different parts of the body

  • A settlement for nerve damage in a leg will take into account factors such as painful leg cramps, uncontrollable twitching, and muscle weakness. Tingling or loss of sensation in the leg is also a common issue. Severe injury can reduce a victim’s ability to walk, which impedes their work and quality of life.  
  • A settlement for nerve damage in a foot must consider issues including a loss of balance, severe stabbing, shooting, or burning pain, and tingling or loss of sensation in the foot. These injuries also affect a victim’s ability to work and interfere with their quality of life. 
  • A nerve damage in the hand lawsuit settlement should include compensation for an intense feeling of pain, tingling or loss of sensation, reduction in fine motor skills, or paralysis.
  • A loss of sensation in your hand dramatically increases the risk of severe burns. This type of nerve damage can be particularly troublesome for anyone who works with their hands. Performing tasks such as typing on a keyboard or using handheld tools can become extremely difficult. 
  • A settlement for nerve damage in the neck should account for any loss of feeling or numbness in one or more extremities, severe pain in the neck or other areas supplied by the nerve, and weakness in any part of the body.

The broad range of areas that can be affected by nerve damage in the neck means that the effects on a victim’s work and life can vary greatly. 

  • A sciatic nerve damage settlement needs to compensate for a victim’s severe pain, muscle weakness, or loss of sensation in any area along the nerve’s pathway. Sciatic nerve damage tends to affect the lower body and can also lead to a loss of bladder or bowel control. Sciatic nerve damage can have various effects on a victim’s life.
Nerve damage can make even simple tasks painful or impossible. If you're suffering, you deserve to know what your case is worth. Contact Poulos & Cavazos for an honest, expert case review today. Contact Us

Sciatic Nerve Damage Settlements: Understanding Compensation After Accidents

Determining a settlement for sciatic nerve damage post-car accidents varies significantly. The average settlement for nerve damage claims ranges from $15,000 to $100,000, depending on factors like injury severity, daily life impact, and incurred losses.. However, severe injuries could result in compensation reaching from $100,000 up to several million dollars, contingent upon the accident’s circumstances and the extent of nerve damage.

What Are Typical Pinched Nerve Settlements?

Settlement amounts for pinched nerve cases vary based on the injury’s location, severity, accident circumstances, and financial losses.

Have You Suffered Nerve Damage After a Medical Procedure?

If you or a loved one suffer from permanent nerve damage due to a medical provider’s negligence, you may be entitled to financial compensation.

At the New Mexico medical malpractice law firm of Poulos & Cavazos, LLP, we have more than 50 years of combined legal experience handling all types of nerve damage cases.

We can help you pursue a peroneal nerve damage settlement, phrenic nerve damage settlement, or a settlement for any other type of nerve damage you sustained.

To learn more and to schedule a free consultation, call Poulos & Cavazos, LLP, today at 575-523-4444. You can also connect with us through our online contact form

Average Payout for Nerve Damage FAQs in New Mexico

1. What is the average payout for nerve damage in New Mexico?

There is no single “average payout for nerve damage” that fits every case. Nerve injury compensation depends on the severity of the nerve damage, whether it is permanent, the cost of treatment, lost income, and how strongly the evidence links the injury to negligence or trauma. In New Mexico, payouts vary widely based on these case-specific factors.

2. What factors increase the value of a nerve damage settlement?

Higher-value cases often involve permanent nerve damage, loss of function, chronic neuropathic pain, loss of sensation, muscle weakness, or mobility limits. Claims may also increase when the injury requires additional surgery, long-term physical therapy, ongoing pain management, assistive devices, or future medical care.

3. What types of nerve injuries commonly lead to compensation?

Common compensable nerve injuries include peripheral nerve damage (arm, hand, leg, foot), nerve compression injuries, spinal nerve injuries, brachial plexus injuries, and nerve damage leading to numbness, tingling, burning pain, or weakness. The value often depends on how the injury affects daily life and work.

4. Can nerve damage from surgery lead to a malpractice claim?

Yes. Surgical nerve injury may be malpractice if it resulted from preventable errors such as improper technique, wrong-site issues, excessive traction, poor positioning, or inadequate monitoring. Cases may also involve anesthesia complications, delayed recognition of postoperative symptoms, or failure to diagnose nerve injury promptly.

5. What is the difference between temporary vs. permanent nerve damage for settlement value?

Temporary nerve injuries may improve with time, therapy, or treatment, which can lower long-term damages. Permanent nerve damage—especially when it causes lasting pain, loss of sensation, weakness, or disability—typically increases the value because it may require lifelong care and affects quality of life and earning ability.

6. How is nerve damage proven in a legal claim?

Proof often includes medical records, imaging, neurology consults, and diagnostic testing such as EMG/NCS studies. A strong case also connects the timeline of symptoms to the medical procedure or injury event and documents functional limitations, work restrictions, and ongoing treatment needs.

7. What damages can be included in a nerve injury payout?

A nerve injury payout may include medical bills, future treatment, rehabilitation, lost wages, reduced earning capacity, and pain and suffering. When nerve damage affects sleep, mobility, or mental health, those impacts may also be reflected in overall damages.

8. What if the doctor ignored symptoms like numbness, weakness, or burning pain?

If a provider dismissed or delayed evaluation of nerve injury symptoms—like numbness, tingling, weakness, foot drop, or radiating pain—this may support a claim based on delayed diagnosis or failure to treat. Early intervention can matter in nerve recovery, so delays may worsen outcomes.

9. Can nerve damage come from accidents as well as medical procedures?

Yes. Nerve injuries can occur after car crashes, falls, workplace incidents, or other trauma, including nerve compression, disc injuries affecting nerve roots, or direct nerve laceration. The legal pathway depends on who was responsible and what evidence supports fault and damages.

10. How can I find out what my nerve damage case may be worth?

The best way to estimate case value is to review the medical records, diagnostic testing, prognosis, and the circumstances that caused the nerve injury. Poulos & Coates offers a 100% free consultation to evaluate liability, damages, and next steps for a nerve damage claim in New Mexico.
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Victor Poulos, JD

For more than two decades, Victor Poulos has devoted his practice exclusively to representing patients and families harmed by medical negligence. He has handled complex medical malpractice cases involving hospitals, surgeons, anesthesiologists, and other healthcare providers, and has taken hundreds of depositions of physicians, nurses, and hospital staff across nearly every medical specialty. Mr. Poulos has successfully tried high-stakes malpractice cases to verdict and is known for his meticulous case preparation and relentless advocacy on behalf of injured patients.