Can You Have Emotional Distress After a Car Accident?

If you’ve been in a car accident, it’s easy to focus on what’s visible, like cuts, bruises, and broken bones. But what about the emotional impact? Emotional distress after a car accident is just as real. For many people, the emotional aftermath can be just as devastating, sometimes even more so. Anxiety, depression, panic attacks, and grief are common responses to serious accidents, especially when someone else’s negligence is to blame.

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If you’ve experienced this kind of harm, you may be wondering: Can emotional distress be included in a personal injury claim?

The answer is yes, but with some limitations. Oklahoma law does allow emotional distress damages in many personal injury cases. However, these claims can be complex, and proving them often requires the support of an experienced Tulsa personal injury lawyer who understands what courts and insurance companies expect.

What Is Emotional Distress?

Emotional distress is the psychological suffering someone experiences after a traumatic event. It can look different for every person. Some people develop intense anxiety after a car accident. Others may experience long-term sleep problems, emotional outbursts, or a sense of hopelessness. In more serious cases, survivors develop post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) or depression.

This kind of suffering is real, and it can interfere with daily life, employment, relationships, and the ability to heal physically. According to studies, nearly 30% of individuals involved in serious vehicle crashes develop PTSD. Interestingly, research shows that people who were not responsible for the crash are often more likely to suffer emotional harm. That sense of helplessness, being injured and having no control can have a deep psychological impact.

At Aizenman Law Group, our car accident attorneys take these injuries seriously. Just because the damage isn’t visible doesn’t mean it’s any less valid.

Types of Emotional Distress Claims in Oklahoma

There are two primary ways emotional distress can be claimed in a personal injury case, depending on how the harm occurred. These categories are well-established under Oklahoma law and supported by both statutes and court precedent.

Intentional Infliction of Emotional Distress (IIED)

In cases of intentional infliction of emotional distress, someone deliberately acts in a way that causes extreme psychological harm to another person. The standard here is high. The behavior must be “outrageous” to the point that it’s considered intolerable in a civilized society.

This is grounded in § 46 of the Restatement (Second) of Torts, which says that a person is liable if they “by extreme and outrageous conduct, intentionally or recklessly cause severe emotional distress.”

Oklahoma courts clarified this in Breeden v. League Services Corp., 1978 OK 27, 575 P.2d 1374. The court ruled that for a claim to succeed, the behavior must go beyond all bounds of decency.

Examples might include:

• Repeated harassment or threats
• Public humiliation intended to cause fear or shame
• Deliberate psychological manipulation or cruelty

While IIED claims are less common than negligence-based ones, they can be powerful when supported with the right facts and documentation.

Negligent Infliction of Emotional Distress (NIED)

The more common path is through negligent infliction of emotional distress, or NIED. In these cases, the person causing harm didn’t do so on purpose but their carelessness or recklessness, like causing a serious car accident, still resulted in emotional trauma.

To recover compensation for NIED, you typically need to prove:

• The other party owed you a duty of care
• That duty was breached through negligence or reckless conduct
• The breach caused your emotional suffering

For example, if you’re involved in a serious truck accident in Tulsa and develop severe anxiety or depression as a result, that emotional damage may be part of your injury claim.

However, Oklahoma courts often require that emotional distress after a car accident be linked to a physical injury. This doesn’t mean you must have broken bones, but there needs to be some bodily harm or risk that caused the emotional response. This rule has been debated over the years, but it remains a common requirement in Oklahoma courts.

Emotional Distress as a Bystander

Things become more complicated when someone witnesses a traumatic event involving another person but isn’t physically hurt themselves. Oklahoma law imposes stricter standards for these situations.

In Kraszewski v. Baptist Medical Center of Oklahoma Inc., 916 P.2d 241 (Okla. 1996), the Oklahoma Supreme Court interpreted § 46 to lay out specific criteria. To qualify for damages as a bystander, the plaintiff must:

• Have been directly involved in the traumatic event
• Have actually witnessed the event as it occurred (not heard about it later)
• Share a close familial relationship with the victim (such as parent-child or spouse)

For example, if a mother sees her child get struck by a negligent driver, she may have a claim for emotional distress. But if a friend hears about the accident hours later, they likely don’t meet the legal standard.

Courts have also recognized a few additional categories of valid NIED claims, including:

• A person who was in immediate danger and feared for their life
• A person who saw a close relative suffer a severe injury or death
• Emotional trauma caused by a negligent professional service (like a hospital delivering a false HIV diagnosis or mishandling a loved one’s remains).

What About Emotional Distress in Wrongful Death Cases?

Losing someone you love because of someone else’s actions is one of the hardest things a person can go through. In Oklahoma, families can pursue damages for emotional pain under the state’s wrongful death statute.

Under 12 Okla. Stat. § 1053B, compensation in a wrongful death case may include:

• Mental pain and anguish suffered by the deceased before death
• Grief and loss of consortium for the surviving spouse
• Emotional harm experienced by close family members due to the loss

If your spouse, child, or parent died because of another party’s negligence, whether in a car crash, truck accident, or other personal injury Aizenman Law Group’s wrongful death attorneys can guide you through what’s possible. We understand the grief of losing a loved one to someone else’s negligence and will fight for every dime you deserve to protect your family from financial turmoil. We won’t take any payment until we win.

Don’t Let the Insurance Company Dismiss What You’re Going Through

Unfortunately, insurance companies are quick to downplay emotional injuries. They may try to deny that your symptoms are real or suggest they aren’t related to the accident. This happens in especially serious car accident claims and wrongful death cases.

But you don’t have to go through this alone.

At Aizenman Law Group, we push back against lowball settlements and wrongful claim denials. We make sure your suffering is fully documented, clearly presented, and forcefully advocated for. When necessary, we take cases to trial to ensure our clients are treated with fairness and dignity.

When to Call a Tulsa Personal Injury Attorney

If you’ve been through something traumatic, whether it’s a serious car crash or the unexpected loss of a loved one due to someone else’s negligence, and you’re struggling emotionally, don’t wait to reach out for help.

You should speak with a Tulsa personal injury lawyer if:

• You’ve been diagnosed with PTSD, depression, or anxiety after a car accident
• You’re having emotional symptoms that interfere with daily life or work
• The insurance company is ignoring or denying your mental health struggles
• You’re unsure how to prove the full impact of your injuries
• You lost a loved one and are trying to understand your rights

We’re not here to tell you how to feel. We’re here to help you take the next legal step so you can get support, healing, and peace of mind.

Talk to an Experienced Tulsa Personal Injury Lawyer Today

Emotional distress is real, and it deserves real compensation.

At Aizenman Law Group, we handle every case with compassion, experience, and relentless advocacy. Whether your emotional injuries came after a car accident, a trucking crash, or a wrongful death, our team will stand by your side. And we don’t get paid unless we win.

Call Aizenman Law Group at 918-215-8856 any time day or night for a no-cost consultation. Let’s talk about what happened and how we can help you move forward.

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