What is a Survival Action in Pennsylvania?
When someone loses their life because of the negligent and reckless acts of another party, this is considered a wrongful death. For example, if a drunk driver hits your loved one’s car and kills them, this would be a wrongful death. When a wrongful death happens, depending on the circumstances, it can be tried in both civil and criminal courts.
Pennsylvania’s wrongful death laws say that recovering compensation for damages can be done either by bringing a wrongful death lawsuit or a survival action. It is very common for both legal actions to be brought to recover the full amount of compensation after a wrongful death incident. Because of the complexity of the system, working with an attorney to initiate a legal action can be incredibly advantageous. For assistance with a legal suit after a wrongful death incident, please connect with our Philadelphia wrongful death attorney at Monaco Law PC.
What Does a Survival Action Do?
A survival action like a wrongful death claim both have the same objectives. That is, to recover compensation for damages. However, the damages that can be recovered by each differ.
While a wrongful death action can allow spouses, children, or parents of a deceased individual to recover financial compensation for losses related to services, society, and comfort that have been taken away from them due to the death of a loved one, a survival action covers losses related to the deadly accident. These would be economic losses, including medical expenses, hospital costs, pain and suffering, lost wages, and more.
A survival action is essentially a legal suit that a family can bring on behalf of their deceased loved one who, given their death, could not bring themself.
Pennsylvania allows members of a decedent’s immediate family to bring about a wrongful death claim. Compensation from a wrongful death claim goes to the decedent’s heirs including parents, children, or spouses of the decedent.
Survival actions and wrongful death claims are not the same thing, although they serve to accomplish the same goals. They are meant to allow individuals who are left behind after a wrongful death incident to obtain financial compensation for losses suffered. Due to the type of damages each legal action covers, both survival actions and wrongful death claims are frequently filed at the same time.
Speak to a Pennsylvania Wrongful Death Attorney Today
For more information on wrongful death claims or survival actions, please call our Pennsylvania wrongful death attorney at Monaco Law PC. You may schedule a free initial consultation by calling (609) 277-3166 for our New Jersey office and (215) 546-3166 for our office in Pennsylvania.
We are a Pennsylvania wrongful death law firm serving Philadelphia, Bucks County, Lehigh County, Delaware County, Allegheny County, Montgomery County, and all other counties throughout Pennsylvania.
