5 things that can ruin your personal injury case

Did you know that not getting medical attention can ruin your personal injury case?

Take a moment and imagine suffering injuries from a car accident or workplace accident, but failing to secure compensation from the liable parties.

Personal injury cases are usually multifaceted and often require diligence at every stage to successfully navigate and secure favourable outcomes. One of the most critical steps to take immediately after an accident is to seek medical attention. However, it is common for victims to neglect seeking medical attention, especially if they perceive the injuries suffered as less significant.

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Apart from being essential for your health, seeking medical attention is pivotal if you intend to file a personal injury claim. Not getting medical attention can ruin your injury case in the following ways.

5 things that can ruin your personal injury case

1. Casting doubts on the severity of injuries

Defense attorneys always employ different tactics in an effort to undermine the credibility of injury claims made by the plaintiff. One of the aspects that defense lawyers can capitalise on to shoot down the credibility of injury claims is the gap between injury time and seeking medical help. With the existence of this gap, it becomes challenging to directly link the injuries to the accident. Apart from raising doubts about the causation of the injuries, not getting medical attention also raises doubts about the severity of the injuries claimed.

2. Failing to link injuries that manifest later to the accident

Some injuries may have symptoms which appear much later after your involvement in an accident. This does not, however, mean that such injuries are not serious. Some of the common injuries that may be severe if left untreated but may not be apparent immediately include:

Concussions
Internal injuries
Soft tissue damage

By seeking medical attention immediately after an accident, qualified medical professionals will be able to establish some of the injuries whose impact could manifest much later. Failure to do this gives the opposing party the chance to argue that your injuries, whose symptoms appear later, were not a direct result of the accident.

3. Lacking requisite documentation to support your claim

Seeking medical attention immediately after an accident not only helps you to address your health concerns but also plays an important role in documentation. Medical records provide authentic documentation for:

Pain and suffering
Extent of the injuries suffered
Medical expenses
Lost wages

Therefore, not getting medical attention implies that you will not be in a position to prove the pain and suffering resulting from the accident. Additionally, you will not be able to prove the medical expenses incurred or wages lost as a result of being involved in the accident.

4. A form of negligence

Failure to seek medical attention immediately after an accident is in itself a form of negligence on the part of the victim. Defense attorneys may argue that your negligence in seeking medical attention worsened your injuries. This has the potential to change the dimension of your case, pointing towards having the damages that the liable parties owe you reduced.

5. Limiting ability to secure expert witness

Medical professionals are among the expert witnesses that can have a huge impact on the proceeding of your personal injury case. They can effectively quantify the extent of harm caused by the injuries suffered, something that gives credibility to your compensation claim. By seeking medical attention immediately after the accident, you can establish contact with medical professionals attending to you, and involve them in the case as expert witnesses.

In summary, always prioritise seeking medical attention over anything else after suffering injuries from an accident. This is essentially important for your health, giving you an opportunity to ensure you are safe before taking any other step. However, apart from your health, seeking medical attention is significant in your subsequent personal injury case. Failure to seek medical attention may give the defense attorney an advantage in various ways. For instance, such action raises doubts about the severity of your injuries, something that undermines the credibility of your claim.