Most people come to a calculator expecting it to produce a reliable number. In practice, settlement discussions are driven less by “how much harm happened” and more by whether the evidence can prove:
- Breach of the standard of care (what a reasonably competent provider would have done)
- Causation (that the breach caused the specific injury, not just that it happened around the same time)
- Measurable damages (medical bills, future care, lost wages, and non-economic harm)
In Michigan, insurers and defense teams commonly focus early on whether the record supports both negligence and causation. If your documentation is incomplete, unclear, or doesn’t match the timeline, a calculator’s “average range” can be misleading.


