Which of the following best describes general damages?

General damages refer to intangible losses that a person experiences due to an injury or harm, which are not easily quantifiable in monetary terms. These damages are often assessed for pain and suffering, emotional distress, or loss of companionship. The difficulty in measuring these types of damages arises because they do not have a direct economic equivalent; for instance, while a medical bill can be easily calculated, the emotional impact of an injury does not have a straightforward monetary value.

This distinction is crucial within the realm of personal injury and liability claims. General damages can significantly influence settlement amounts or court awarded compensation because they address the more subjective aspects of an individual's suffering and life changes resulting from an incident.

Quantifiable compensation, specific monetary amounts awarded in court, and immediate expenses covered by an insurance policy relate more to measurable and definitive damages, such as economic losses. These are categorized as special or actual damages, which serve to compensate for financial losses and direct expenses incurred due to the injury. Unlike general damages, these are concrete and grounded in tangible loss, making them easier to calculate.