What to Do About Delayed Injuries After a Texas Car Accident

Even minor car accidents can have a lasting impact on your physical and mental health. Although Texas laws hold at-fault drivers accountable for damages caused by these events, accident victims must submit their claims correctly and on time. Unfortunately, some accident-related injuries aren’t immediately apparent. It’s not uncommon for people to experience delayed neck, back, and shoulder pain, and mobility challenges. Anxiety, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and depression can also manifest weeks or even months after the events that have caused them. Working with a car accident lawyer is the best way to ensure that your car accident claim represents the full extent of your damages.

Don’t Ignore New or Worsening Symptoms

Many people walk or drive away from car accidents in a state of shock. These events can leave drivers feeling both dazed and numb. Even those with deep lacerations and fractured bones don’t always feel their injuries right away.

Car accidents can cause damages that aren’t visible to the naked eye, including whiplash and other joint dysfunction, spinal subluxation, and pinched nerves.

In the hours and days that follow your car accident, be on the lookout for:

• Stiff and aching muscles and limbs
• Nerve pain
• Tingling or numbness in your extremeties
• Recurring headaches
• Insomnia or poor sleep quality

Whether visibly bruised or seemingly unharmed, it’s always best to contact a car collision attorney and visit a hospital right away.

See a Doctor Immediately

Visiting the doctor immediately after a car accident makes it easier to prove the cause of your injuries. When reviewing claims, insurance adjusters look for evidence of causation. When accident victims wait days or weeks to schedule initial examinations, claims adjusters may argue that physical damages are the result of other events or activities such as work-related duties, heavy lifting, or prior events.

Establish a Solid and Ongoing Treatment Plan

Your initial hospital visit will likely take place in the emergency room (ER). ER doctors and nurses look for lacerations, broken bones, head trauma, organ trauma, and other life-threatening injuries. After verifying that patients are in stable condition, ER teams often discharge patients and send them home with recommendations to follow-up with their regular doctors. Be sure to schedule and attend your follow-up appointment. You can share your doctor’s findings and the related medical records with your car crash attorney.

Tell Your Doctor About the Accident

During your follow-up appointment, tell your doctor about the accident in detail. Be sure to describe any numbness, aches, tingling, or other discomfort that you experienced immediately after your collision or continue to experience.

Your general physician can look for latent or hidden injuries. General doctors can also make referrals to chiropractors, myofascial specialists, and other practitioners who can assist in expediting your recovery and diagnosing hidden or latent problems. Chiropractic care is a popular choice in treatment for auto accident victims given that chiropractors consider how these events affect the entire musculoskeletal system, balance, alignment, and mobility.

In the state of Texas, accident victims are legally entitled to receive all the treatment they need to support their return to good health. This includes treatment from non-traditional medical practitioners and mental health specialists. You may need mental health support if your accident has led to sleep troubles, recurring flashbacks of the accident, or avoidance. It is not uncommon for people to avoid driving, alter how, where, and when they drive, or experience panic attacks while driving following car accidents. Getting treatment for these and other post-accident changes in your mental health is an important part of documenting your claim and supporting your recovery.

Follow Through With Treatment

A car accident attorney can help you avoid the devastating financial effects of an auto accident and the medical and mental health treatment you now require. As your body heals, you may need to take time off of work to recoup and attend medical appointments. A car crash lawyer can help you document your medical expenses, lost wages, and other losses. Staying on track with your treatment plan will further bolster your case by creating clear and continuous medical records.

Report the Injury to Your Insurance Company

Individual policy deadline vary. However, in Texas, it’s important to report your accident to your insurance company within 30 days of the event or sooner. You can share the corresponding police report when doing so. This report will help your insurer and the other party’s insurance company establish fault.

It’s never too soon to hire a car wreck attorney following an accident. A car wreck lawyer can guide you in all communications with your insurance company to ensure that no verbal missteps are made. People who lack legal representation are always at risk of making statements that might undermine their claims. Your car collision lawyer can help you stay on top of important deadlines and counsel on what you should and should not say when speaking to adjusters. In fact, once your claim is opened, your attorney can handle much of the necessary communication for you.

Keep Detailed Records

Keep detailed records of everything related to your accident and your ongoing medical treatment.

You should retain:

• Copies of all medical bills
• Receipts for all necessary medical supplies
• Documentation of missed wages and missed professional opportunities
• Transportation costs for medical treatment

Your car crash attorney might recommend retaining other evidence to assist in proving your claim and to strengthen your position in negotiations. For instance, you may be asked to take photos of your vehicle, share the names and contact information of eyewitnesses, or retain clothing or other items worn at the time of your accident. If an insurance company contests your claim or fails to offer adequate compensation, even seemingly minor details could have a major impact on your case outcome. Collecting and saving more evidence than you need is always preferable to not having enough.

Don’t Accept a Quick Settlement

Claims adjusters are notorious for pressuring accident victims to settle early on. Even if you feel fine after a car accident, you should never accept a settlement offer without first consulting with your car accident lawyer. Car accident attorneys know that accident victims can experience dramatic changes in their mobility and general well-being days or even weeks after their collisions. Once you’ve accepted a settlement for a car accident, you can never return to ask for additional money. Accepting early settlements can leave victims paying for the treatment of their latent injuries out of their own pockets.

Contact a Personal Injury Attorney Who Understands Delayed Injuries

Latent or delayed injuries can sometimes manifest months after an accident. A personal injury attorney who understands latent injuries and has represented clients with latent injuries in the past can help you get the possible outcome.

A car collision lawyer who’s familiar with delayed injuries can help you in proving causation, even if your symptoms take weeks to manifest. Just as delayed medical treatment can create challenges in proving causation, the delayed development of accident-related symptoms can also cause problems. A seasoned car wreck attorney can seek the opinions of medical experts, recommend additional forms of treatment to support and further validate your diagnosis, and leverage data from similar cases.

Having a reputable car wreck attorney on your team can also legitimize your claim. For people who cannot pay outright for non-traditional medical services, qualified legal representation often makes it easier to access the care of chiropractors, naturopathic doctors, massage therapists, myofascial specialists, and others. Many non-traditional medical practitioners are willing to accept contingency payments when patients have obtained attorneys. With contingency payments, these professionals wait to receive payment for their services until patients receive their settlements.

Anticipate and Thwart Insurance Company Tactics

Be prepared to receive early and low-ball settlement offers. These offers can prove tempting when victims have missed multiple days at work, struggle to stay on top of their medical bills, or have a hard time accessing the care they need. With a car wreck attorney, you can look for practitioners that accept contingency payments and get guidance on waiting for potential latent problems to manifest.

You should also carefully guard your words when speaking with claims adjusters. Not only do adjusters pressure accident victims to settle early on, but they also use effective tactics to encourage statements that undermine claims of injury. For instance, a claims adjuster might open a phone conversation by asking how you feel. If you automatically respond by saying, “I’m fine” even if you don’t truly feel fine, this statement could be used against you at a later date.

Avoid answering phone calls from claims adjusters while heavily medicated, tired, or in severe pain. It’s important to be clear-headed and alert when talking with any insurance company representative. When possible, it’s also always best to refer these professionals to your car collision lawyer to answer quests and provide evidence in your stead.