If you’ve been involved in an auto accident, you know that the pain resulting from the injuries you suffered in that crash may “hit” you right away, or its onset may be delayed. You may first feel the pain the next day, a week later, or maybe not for months. Just because the symptoms of your injuries were delayed in emerging, that doesn’t mean that they weren’t caused by the accident and it doesn’t mean that you can’t still get compensation from those who were to blame for the accident. If that happens to you, don’t be discouraged, but do reach out to an experienced Oakland injury attorney right away to learn more about your options.
A recent case (Ventura County Superior Court Case No. 56-2016-00483594-CU-PA-VTA) from Southern California is an example of that kind of scenario, and is an example of how it doesn’t have to be devastating to your injury lawsuit. K.F. was making a left turn inside a Thousand Oaks mall parking lot when B.R. hit her. K.F. experienced some symptoms shortly after the crash and underwent treatment from a chiropractor for two months, but received no more treatment after that until she underwent steroid injections and spinal fusion surgery… four years later.
This woman’s case is not completely out of the ordinary. A few years ago, KTAR in Arizona reported on seven accident symptoms that may not onset until a substantial period of time has passed following your accident. These include headaches (which can be symptoms of blood clots on the brain or a brain bleed,) neck or shoulder pain, back pain (which, as was the case in K.F.’s lawsuit, can be the result of vertebrae damages,) changes in personality (which may be caused by an undiagnosed brain injury) or abdominal pain.
As K.F.’s case shows us, with the right evidence you can still recover substantial compensation even if you had delayed-onset symptoms. K.F.’s case included, among other evidence, expert testimony from a biomechanics expert and a neurosurgeon. That proof was enough to convince the jury, which unanimously concluded that the injured woman was entitled to both past and future economic damages, as well as both past and future non-economic damages. Those types of damages encompass a variety of things, including medical expenses, lost earnings and pain and suffering.
For this injured driver, the sum total of all of those things was an award of $835,000 plus costs.
Whenever you’re injured in a failure to yield or other type of car accident, it is important to reach out to legal counsel without delay. That need for prompt action becomes even greater when your accident injuries’ symptoms are delayed in emerging. For you, time is especially of the essence as the law in California says that you have only two years to bring a claim in civil court for damages.
Get the advice and advocacy you need by reaching out to the Law Offices of Stephen M. Fuerch. As an accomplished and experienced Oakland injury attorney, Mr. Fuerch has many years of helping injured people in California to use the legal system to achieve the outcomes they need. To learn more, contact us through our website or call our office at (925) 463-2575 to schedule your confidential initial consultation today.