Do Your Car Accident Injuries Warrant a Personal Injury Lawsuit?

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If you have been involved in a car accident, you may have sustained catastrophic injuries, including broken bones, spinal cord injuries, or traumatic brain injury, which required you to be transported to the hospital directly from the scene of the crash. However, sometimes the injuries you believe to have suffered in a car accident are not so severe. In these cases, you might wonder whether your injuries are serious enough that you should pursue a car accident claim or lawsuit. 

When Should You Speak to a Lawyer After a Car Accident?

There are certain kinds of injuries that you might suffer in a car accident where you absolutely must speak to a personal injury lawyer. These injuries include:

• Broken bones, especially fractures that require surgical repair
• Head injuries or traumatic brain injury
• Spinal cord injuries and paralysis
• Amputation
• Miscarriage/loss of pregnancy
• Fatal injuries (filed on behalf of a loved one)

Common “Delayed” Car Accident Injuries

However, many injuries that you might suffer in a car accident may not initially cause you any pain or discomfort. As a result, you might refuse transportation to the hospital from the scene of the accident and may not go to the hospital or to your doctor in the days following the accident. But as time goes on, you may begin to feel that something isn’t “right.” You may begin to feel pain, discomfort, or physical limitations that interfere with your daily living. Unfortunately, “delayed” car accident injuries are common in crashes. Examples of these kinds of injuries include:

• Herniated disc injuries, where the soft, spongy tissue located between your vertebrae bulges out from a tear or break in the disc covering and presses on nerve roots running out from the spinal column. These injuries often cause weakness, numbness, and pain in the back and the extremities, particularly one or both legs. However, such symptoms may not manifest for weeks or even months after a car accident. Unfortunately, herniated disc injuries do not show up on X-rays and instead require an MRI or CT scan to diagnose. While some disc injuries can be treated with physical therapy, more serious injuries may require surgery.
• Traumatic brain injuries, including concussions, brain bruise (contusion), brain bleeding (hematoma), and diffuse axonal injury (shearing of nerve cells). With a closed head injury, a car accident victim can seem fine in the hours and days following the crash but then begin to experience symptoms such as persistent headaches, nausea and vomiting, dizziness, loss of balance/coordination, and more serious symptoms like seizures, memory problems, and cognitive/behavioral changes.
• Internal organ injuries and internal bleeding, which may not cause any symptoms right after a car accident but in the hours and days following the crash may result in extreme pain, tenderness and swelling, and blood in mucus, urine, or stool. 

What to Do If You Think Your Injuries Are Not Serious

After you have been in a car accident where you do not think you were hurt or that the injuries you suffered are not serious, you should still follow up with a doctor as soon as possible to get examined. Your doctor can run tests to determine if you have suffered injuries and to ascertain the severity of your injuries. You should also speak with a personal injury lawyer soon after the crash to have a legal advocate who will help protect your rights to compensation. 

Contact a Rochelle Park Personal Injury Lawyer to Discuss Your Car Accident Case in New Jersey

Did you or a loved one sustain serious injuries due to a car accident in New Jersey? Don’t let the medical bills pile up while you wait for the negligent party or their insurance company to do the right thing. Right now, you need an aggressive personal injury attorney on your side, fighting to get you the compensation you need, want, and deserve. The skilled attorneys at The Epstein Law Firm represent clients injured because of car accidents in Jersey City, Union City, Bayonne, Hoboken, and throughout New Jersey. Call (201) 380-7687 or fill out our online contact form to schedule a free consultation about your case. We have an office conveniently located at 340 West Passaic St., Rochelle Park, NJ 07762.

The articles on this blog are for informative purposes only and are no substitute for legal advice or an attorney-client relationship. If you are seeking legal advice, please contact our law firm directly.