How To Assess The Value of Your Injuries?

An objective view of an injury looks at the costs created by that problem. It also considers the length of the anticipated recovery, the amount of time that the injured victim must refrain from going to work. A subjective view of the same injury focuses on the level of the victim’s pain and suffering.

How does some insurance company view injuries?

The typical insurance company considers the type of injury sustained by the victim of the accident. Insurers put each injury into one of 2 different categories. Some are soft tissue injuries. Those cause the victim to suffer pain and discomfort; yet the same conditions do not show up on an x-ray or on an imaging test. Consulting with an Injury Lawyer in Orillia helps.

The remaining injuries get classed as hard. Their existence has been proven by medical evidence. That same medical evidence signals the need for some type of invasive treatment. Examples of a hard injury include a broken bone, an open wound, a dislocation or a tear, a head injury, and a spinal or vertebral injury.

In the absence of proof, an injury does not possess much value.

That is why the victim of an accident should see a doctor as soon as possible. Then the doctor can order the appropriate tests. If any test reveals the presence of a hard injury, the insurance company must arrange to compensate the victim. By the same token, an early examination can alert a physician to the possible appearance of certain symptoms.

For instance, someone that sustained an impact to the head at the time of a collision might later suffer an episode of dizziness. That could signal the existence of a traumatic brain injury, one that has developed in response to the initial impact. That signal should push the affected victim to schedule an appointment with a neurologist.

If an injury goes unnoticed and unreported, the insurance company has no reason to factor that unseen injury into calculation of the victim’s damages. Hence, the victim does not receive a fair compensation. That is why any accident victim should learn as much as possible about any suspected injury.

A costly injury can have value as a bargaining tool. If the insurance company claims that the plaintiff might be partly responsible for the accident, the injury’s value might increase the size of a fair compensation. When the size of the compensation gets increased, the percent deducted for contributory negligence does not hold as great a significance.

That is why it helps to hire a lawyer. One woman refused to do that. Her family had to pay for what the insurer called contributory negligence. Yet she failed to value an ignored injury, one that later affected her daughter’s life.