Proving an Injury When There is Little Damage Done to Your Car
While the injuries resulting from a high speed crash can usually be mirrored by the damage to your car, the same is not often true in low impact collisions. Is that case, your pain and injury can be intense, but the damage to your car may be almost non-existent. Proving the extent of your injury and getting compensation in these cases will likely require the assistance of an experienced attorney.
Low impact collisions most often occur at intersections, where one car is stopped waiting for the right of way when struck from behind from another. The momentum caused by the impact will propel the drivers and passengers back and forth quickly causing a condition in the neck known as whiplash. This is characterized by tiny fractures in the vertebrae at the base of the neck and can cause severe headaches and pain to the victim.
Our law firm has a lot of experience in these types of cases.
The injury can also be to the lower back region and due to the nature of the injury, symptoms may not appear immediately. That’s why it is important to always seek medical attention following an accident regardless of whether or not you are experiencing any pain.
The problem that usually stems from these types of accidents is that the vehicular damage does not match the bodily injury. Referred to as a fender bender, low impact crashes may do nothing more than leave a scratch on your back bumper. You and your attorney will need to rely on medical expert testimony to help prove your case for compensation.
An underinsured motorist in Missouri caused a female driver to have to undergo back surgery after he rear-ended her at a stop sign. She was able to receive the policy limit from the driver, but her own insurance company questioned her claim after seeing that the rear of her car had only suffered a few minor scratches.
The woman’s insurance company eventually agreed to a $150,000 settlement after expert testimony was presented proving that the surgery was necessitated as a result of the accident. Your attorney has to be ready to fight insurance companies with hard medical evidence when they try and claim that your injury is not as severe as you say it is.
Seeking medical attention immediately is essential in helping to win low impact car accident claims. A key element in any type of personal injury case is proving damages, so even if you are hit from behind and the other driver is clearly at fault, you are not entitled to compensation unless you can show some type of injury resulted.
Don’t let an insurance adjustor intimidate you into accepting a small settlement based solely on the damage to your car. Speak with a lawyer at The Australian Law Firm, L.L.C. if you are involved in a car accident. Call Your Local Lawyer for a free case evaluation.
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