Can you make a personal injury claim for negative effects on your social life?

The short answer is yes. Effects on social life are taken into account during the assessment of non-pecuniary damages, which is more commonly referred to as pain and suffering.

In fact, this is a fairly well established point of law. A strong precedent for this assertion can be found in McLeod v. Whittemore, 2018 BCSC 1082. This case dealt with a 28 year old dental assistant who suffered a variety of soft tissue injuries in a car accident, which had resulted in thoracic outlet syndrome and myofascial pain syndrome. The plaintiff in this case had been forced to leave her previous career as a dental assistant, and various aspects of her personal life had been affected, including: caring for her young daughter, her relationship with her husband, leisure activities, and her social life. In their decision the judge stated:

" I agree with the plaintiff’s submission that she has gone from a healthy, robust, active member of society with a bright future in the workforce to a person whose main job is managing her symptoms; her pain is near constant and only varies by degrees and areas of involvement. She faces real challenges caring for a newborn baby. Her recreational life has become all but non‑existent. Her social life has been affected. The relationship with her husband has been affected. Some of the plaintiff’s reduced activities would have come about in any event due to her marriage and starting a family."

https://www.canlii.org/en/bc/bcsc/doc/2018/2018bcsc1082/2018bcsc1082.html

The judge awarded the plaintiff $135,000.00 for non-pecuniary damages. This judgment shows how judges take a holistic approach in their assessment of pain and suffering awards, which is far from an exact science. A judge is tasked with deciding what the overall impact of an accident was on a person's life, and social lives are an important part of people's lives.