If you are injured in a car accident, you may seek answers about the nature and the extent of the injuries. Are you dealing with a car accident injury that will self-resolve in a week or two, or will you be faced with ongoing pain and limitations for the rest of your life?
These are important questions, as they may inform you whether you want to retain a personal injury attorney to make a claim for pain and suffering on your behalf.
Of course, your condition is a question for a medical provider. Only a medical provider, such as a physician, osteopath, or chiropractor, can provide you with a medical diagnosis and prognosis. If you suspect you were injured in a car accident, a good place to start is a trusted medical provider such as your primary care doctor.
Diagnosis
Medical diagnoses and prognoses are not static things, but instead are subject to change.
Some injuries, like herniations to the intervertebral discs of the spinal column, are progressive in nature. The pain from a herniation may start with a slight pinch in the neck and progress into unbearable neck pain and weakness/numbness in the arm and legs. Just because symptoms seem mild at first does not mean they will not worsen in the days and weeks that follow.
For this reason, if you suspect you have been injured in a car accident, it is almost always a good idea to get checked out by a medical provider. It is also important to put the applicable insurance companies on notice so that, in the event that your injuries are immense, you can receive the compensation you deserve.
Bear in mind that any settlement or verdict for pain and suffering must account for past and future pain and suffering. That means, in theory, the settlement or verdict must compensate you for the pain and limitation you will experience throughout the remainder of your life.
Non-permanent injuries resulting from a car accident
Nobody wants to be injured in a car accident, much less sustain a permanent injury. If you were injured but your injury has seemed to resolve, that is great news.
That being said, it is possible that your quality of life was still affected during your period of recovery. Maybe you missed time from work or could not engage in your ordinary daily activities. Maybe you could do everything you normally do but struggled in pain while doing so. If that is the case, you may be entitled to compensation for pain and suffering, as you can make a claim for strictly past pain and suffering.
Indeed, while in most cases you do need to establish a “serious injury” to recover for pain and suffering after a car accident in New York, several serious injury categories do not necessarily require a showing of permanency— namely the “90/180”, a significant limitation of use of a body function or system, and permanent consequential limitation of a body organ or member categories. This means you may be entitled to compensation for pain and suffering even though your injuries have resolved.
Hurt in a Car? Call William Mattar.
If you sustained an injury in a car crash, the car accident attorneys at William Mattar law offices are available to help you. Regardless of whether your injuries are permanent or non-permanent, you may be entitled to compensation for pain and suffering. Call (844) 444-4444 to set up a free consultation.