Personal Injury Claims & Lawsuits In Maine (2026)

Common Types of Personal Injury Claims in Maine

To have the best chance of succeeding when starting personal injury claims & lawsuits in Maine, it can help to know a bit more about each of the most common types.

Motor Vehicle Accident

Motor vehicle accidents lead to the majority of claims in the state. Maine is a fault state for collisions, so you would file against the other party’s insurer in an accident if they were responsible. You can be partly to blame and still recover losses because Maine has modified comparative negligence laws. Your liability must be less than 50%, however.

General Injury

General injury cases involve another party’s negligent or wrongful conduct resulting in losses. A ceiling tile falling on you while eating at a restaurant or an appliance that malfunctions because of a defective part can cause injuries for which you can file a claim.

Workers’ Compensation

Employers in Maine must carry workers’ compensation insurance to cover their employees. If you suffer a work-related illness or injury, you can file a workers’ compensation claim and have your medical bills and lost wages covered.

You will not be able to sue your employer, but if a third party was involved in the accident, you may be able to begin a lawsuit against them.

Sexual Assault

Sexual assault personal injury claims offer the chance to sue the perpetrator. You will be filing against their general liability insurance. For these cases, you can hold the perpetrator liable along with other parties who owed you a duty of care, including institutions like schools.

Dog Bite

Maine has strict liability laws for dog bites. This means that if you didn’t provoke the animal and you were legally on the property, you can hold the dog’s owner liable for any losses you sustain.

Slip and Fall

If a property owner or manager knew or should have reasonably been aware of a slipping or tripping hazard on their premises and did nothing about it, they can be responsible for any injuries that occur. Premises liability laws cover these types of claims.

Medical Malpractice

A medical professional who doesn’t offer the standard and expected level of care can be liable. Medical malpractice requires demonstrating that another professional would not have made the same error that led to your losses. You can file a claim against the defendant as well as against the hospital that employs them, if applicable.

Types of Compensation Available in Maine Personal Injury Cases

After suffering injuries in a Maine accident or as a result of an intentional act like assault, you may be able to obtain damages under state law. This compensation aims to address the various losses you have sustained.

Economic Damages

Economic damages cover your medical expenses, including any future needs you may have. If you’re dealing with an injury that will take months or years to heal, or if you require ongoing help with everyday tasks because of a disabling injury, then all of these costs should be addressed by your economic damages. They can cover physical therapy and psychological therapy sessions, too.

These damages can also reimburse you for your lost wages. If you need to take time off from work to recover or to get medical care, you should be compensated for the income losses you sustain. Those losses may include salaries, commissions, bonuses and all other benefits you get from your job. If you used up vacation and sick days, you should be compensated for them as well.

Your lawyer and the liable insurers will look at the average wages you made during the previous months to come up with a fair number. If you can’t return to work at all or if you can only do so in a diminished capacity, you can receive compensation for that loss.

Wrongful Death

If you’re filing a wrongful death claim because a loved one died as a result of negligent or wrongful conduct, you may also receive coverage for funerary expenses as part of economic damages. There could be further compensatory damages, too, like those that address the cost of hiring someone to do the household jobs that your loved one did.

Non-Economic Damages

You can also receive non-economic damages. These cover losses that are less easy to put a price on, such as the emotional and physical suffering you have experienced as a result of your injuries. Additionally, they cover your loss of enjoyment of life if you can’t live as you used to.

When dealing with a wrongful death claim or an accident that resulted in disabling injuries, close family members can file for loss of consortium damages. These compensate you for the loss of support and companionship that you have experienced.

Punitive Damages

In some rare cases, you may be able to obtain punitive damages. These damages are generally only available in special cases where the defendant’s conduct was egregious. They focus on punishing the person and preventing the issue from happening again.

Filing a Personal Injury Claim

To file a personal injury claim in Maine, you must get medical assistance and collect as much evidence as possible to prove the types of injuries you suffered and establish liability. It’s always best to hire attorneys to assist you, since they will know how to write and file the letter of demand that you need to send to the defendant’s insurance.

In Maine, you have six years to file most types of personal injury claims. With medical malpractice cases, however, you will typically only have three years.

You should not accept any settlement offers from insurers without consulting your lawyer first. Insurers will do everything they can to minimize your claim, so you need representation to negotiate aggressively for fair compensation.

As much as 60% to 70% of all claims are resolved via a settlement.

Typical Personal Injury Settlement Amounts in Maine

There aren’t settlement amounts specific to Maine, but nationally, the average settlement for car accident injuries and property damage is $30,416. The average dog bite settlement amounts are $69,300, and the average truck accident settlement is $103,654.

The severity of your injuries, how they impact your life and the amount of evidence you have will affect your settlement.

When You Need to File a Lawsuit

Although the goal is to obtain a settlement, there are instances when a lawsuit may be necessary. If insurers deny your claim or if they continue to make low offers, filing a lawsuit could be the right choice. The same applies if the fault isn’t clear.

The process starts with your lawyer formally filing the lawsuit in the appropriate court. The discovery phase then begins, which involves all parties exchanging information related to the case. Negotiations typically continue right until you go to court.

Only 15% to 20% of claims become lawsuits, and just 3% to 5% actually make it to trial. The rest are settled out of court.

Get Matched With a Personal Injury Lawyer in Maine

Local lawyers will have the resources to pursue your claim aggressively. They will have expert witnesses they can call on and will understand the unique challenges that your case may face in Maine.

At ConsumerShield, we can connect you with an experienced attorney in your area so that you can fight for your rights. Contact our team to learn more about our services.