Not every accident causes catastrophic injuries. Some are relatively minor. Sure, you may feel a little banged up for a couple of days but there’s an end in sight. You know eventually, you’re going to make a full recovery. However, some accidents result in life-changing injuries like hemiplegia. This occurs when your nervous system and muscles are no longer communicating.
So what are the common causes of hemiplegia in accident claims? Any injury impacting the brain or spinal cord can cause a hemiplegia injury. You may be experiencing paralysis, cognitive issues, problems with balance, and more. This can severely impact your quality of life and may mean you’re eligible for recovering compensation. But how do you go about recovering compensation for a long-term injury? The steps may be a little easier than you think.
Recovering Compensation for Long-Term Injuries
Anytime you’re involved in an accident things like property damage and injuries are common. This includes long-term injuries like hemiplegia. Around 43% to 63% of hemiplegia cases are caused by brain and/or spinal cord injuries sustained in vehicle accidents. This doesn’t mean you’re likely to suffer a long-term injury if you’re involved in an accident, but it does increase your chances. So, what steps should you take to help ensure you can recover compensation after your accident?
- Assess yourself for injuries and seek immediate medical attention. This holds true even if you don’t think you suffered any serious injuries. Sometimes it takes a bit for signs and symptoms to appear so it’s always best to be safe and make an appointment with a healthcare professional.
- Report the accident. All states have laws requiring certain accidents to be immediately reported. While property damage amounts can vary. Some states require all accidents resulting in property damage over $500 be reported as soon as they happen. Other states have a higher property damage amount before the law kicks in. What all states have in common is accident reporting requirements when injuries and/or fatalities are present. These types of accidents must be reported immediately to the authorities.
- Gather evidence. This can mean taking pictures of the accident scene and documenting the location of any surveillance cameras. If your injuries require a ride to the hospital don’t worry about documenting the accident scene. The authorities will handle this. However, you will need to collect your accident report and medical records, along with any bills and receipts relating to your accident. These documents help prove you suffered damages including a long-term injury.
From there, you work with an experienced accident attorney. Your personal injury lawyer can help calculate your damages, including long-term care, and file your claim with the at-fault party’s insurance provider.
Factors to Consider in a Long-Term Injury Claim
Even though the steps for filing an insurance claim are the same regardless of the severity of your injuries, hold off on submitting your claim for a bit. You probably want to take a minute to think about a few things that may impact your claim.
Have You Addressed Your Future Medical Needs
Long-term injuries like hemiplegia usually aren’t treated on an outpatient basis. There’s also no magical prescription that can cure your symptoms. You’re probably going to need ongoing medical care and this isn’t exactly cheap. You may even require a lifetime of medical care. Somehow you’re going to have to figure out how you’re going to meet these costs. This is when your settlement check comes in.
Your settlement with the at-fault party should cover all of your medical expenses, including things like rehabilitation and long-term care. Since paralysis isn’t unheard of in hemiplegia cases, your home may need a few modifications. This is something you should consider, especially since it’s considered claimable damage. Revamping a home to make it handicapped accessible is a time-consuming and expensive project. There’s no reason why you should pay for someone else’s negligence.
Calculate Your Pain and Suffering
Long-term and lifetime injuries can certainly have a negative impact on your life. You probably can’t go out and participate in the same activities and this can take some enjoyment out of life. Guess what, this can be claimable damage. Things like loss of life enjoyment, mental anguish, pain, and suffering are known as non-economic losses. Yep, you can claim your non-economic damages and it’s something you don’t want to omit.
Your non-economic damages often make up a pretty big part of your claim’s value. Besides, there’s also no reason why you shouldn’t receive compensation for your suffering. If you’re ready to start thinking about compensation, contact an experienced personal injury attorney.