Two car wrecks in two days. Can you imagine that? It’s hard enough to deal with the damage, injuries and personal stress of one car accident, but two?
It’s a complicated situation on many levels, and one our client found herself dealing with after two very rough days manifested serious ongoing health issues.
Hit in the rear twice
On two consecutive days, our client was in a rear-end collision. Her second wreck occurred while she was on her way to get her car repaired. The damage to the car was secondary to the ill health effects that kicked in almost immediately from the personal injury she sustained.
Suffering from low back pain which persisted despite months of treatment, our client was running out of options. Her debilitating back pain prevented her from living her life in any normal way. She was forced to scale back her working hours because it was just too painful. She couldn’t care for her home and family the way she had before the accidents occured.
A chiropractor treated her extensively, and she got numerous injections to no avail. She also saw several other doctors who were unable to offer a solution to get her life back.
Where do you go when nothing’s working?
Engaging the legal team at Watson Injury Law, we were able to help our client find a neurosurgeon who accurately diagnosed the problem. She had a centralized disc herniation in her lumbar spine, which was not going to heal or improve on its own. Our client needed surgery; it was the only option that could help return her to some sort of normal life.
Unfortunately, her health insurance company wouldn’t approve the surgery. Without that coverage, our client couldn’t alleviate her back pain. It took many months to reverse the ruling from the insurance company and get the surgery approved. Our client finally got the surgery she needed, but spent over a year, unnecessarily in pain, waiting.
Who pays when there’s back-to-back accidents?
On the mend, having successfully come through surgery, our client now faced the legal difficulty of how to recover from her extensive medical bills and the general damage to her life. None of the insurance companies linked to either accident wanted to pay. Their arguments ranged from disbelief that her injuries had been so serious, to each claiming that their specific car accident didn’t cause the long-term issues.
After hard work and a long discovery process, we were able to show that both accidents contributed to her personal injury. The doctor who performed the back surgery on our client testified and presented the irrefutable truth — although neither car wreck on its own would be likely to cause such a serious physical injury, they both played a part.
The first car accident weakened our client’s body, putting her in a vulnerable state that made her more susceptible to injury. This made it possible for the second car accident to cause disproportionate damage to our client’s spine.
It was only when looking at the two car wrecks together that we were able to discover the right answer and present the proper evidence for the case.
Taking responsibility
With medical causation established, it turned out both of the insurance companies involved needed to compensate our client. We collected the full limit of the liability policy from both liability insurance carriers.
Additionally, we had to fight with our client’s uninsured motorist carrier. They were willing to pay their uninsured motorist policy limit, but our position was that they needed to pay double. After proving that the law supported our position, the uninsured motorist carrier did in fact pay double — one policy limit for each wreck.
The final outcome was a six-figure financial recovery which greatly helped our client with her healthcare and medical expenses.
Car accidents in the U.S.
There are approximately 6.75 million car accidents each year in the U.S. That breaks down to around 18,500 per day.
Since the majority of car accidents are caused by the driver or the environment rather than a vehicle malfunction, establishing fault is the first course of action to take. From there, the insurance companies get involved.
You may feel, at this point, that things are out of your hands, but it’s imperative to continue fighting for the compensation you deserve. Whether it’s to cover property damage or personal injury expenses, if a car accident isn’t your fault, appropriate compensation belongs to you.
Hiring legal representation can ensure this happens.
If you’re in a car wreck, don’t handle it alone
If you experience costly damages or ongoing health issues related to your car wreck, the next step is to reach out to a qualified legal team for support. At Watson Injury Law, we provide a free consultation before crafting a customized plan specific to your case. Our job is to focus on getting you the compensation you deserve for your personal injury, so you can focus on healing. If you’re in a car crash, and don’t know what to do next, contact us today. We’ll get you through this tough time.