Do Not Delay in Reaching Out to Seek Medical and Legal Help
If you or a loved one suffered a brain injury after a car accident, chances are the first responders took you to the nearest emergency room. You may have been unconscious if the accident and resulting trauma were severe. But what comes next? What are the legal steps to take if you have brain injury after a car accident?
Following any car accident, the clock starts ticking for you to file a claim. This can be even more critical if it involves a brain injury. It does not take much for a vehicle driver, occupant, or bystander to experience head trauma from a car accident. Brain injury can cause a variety of symptoms that can mean a lengthy recovery afterward.
Protect Your Rights After a Brain Injury with Complications
Even so-called “minor” accidents involving the head can bring very real difficulties associated with injury to the brain. These can range from mild to severe, with the most severe causing death. Consider these possible situations:
You drive along, and another vehicle hits yours with such impact that your head hits the side window or bangs into the top of the windshield. You are knocked unconscious.
As a passenger in a car accident you sustain brain injury from a rear- or side-impact crash, due to head trauma.
You are a bike rider wearing a helmet, and a car hits your bike. In the fall you hit your head fairly hard on the ground, and suffer a concussion.
You do not have to be at fault to seek legal help when it comes to your rights in a car accident resulting in a brain injury. Simply being a passenger in the accident or in the wrong place can result in severe head trauma. Whether you experience a concussion or experience lack of consciousness, your brain injury warrants emergency medical care. Be aware that complications from brain injury may require legal help to protect your rights.
Get Medical Care Promptly for Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI)
Whether or not you experienced a loss of consciousness with your head injury, traumatic brain injury (TBI) can still occur. It is imperative to get prompt medical care to thoroughly check on the extent of traumatic brain injury after a car accident. TBI can result in lingering physical, mental, and emotional problems.
Traumatic brain injury usually results from a violent blow or jolt to the head or body. An object that penetrates brain tissue, such as a bullet or shattered piece of skull, also can cause traumatic brain injury.
Mild traumatic brain injury may temporarily affect your brain cells. More-serious traumatic brain injury can result in bruising, torn tissue, bleeding and other physical damage to the brain. These injuries can result in long-term complications or death.
https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/traumatic-brain-injury/symptoms-causes/
The link from the Mayo Clinic also provides a host of symptoms for adults and children, depending on the severity of the traumatic brain injury.
Complications from brain injury include various types of altered consciousness, such as coma; physical complications that can include seizures, infections, and more; intellectual problems with memory or decision-making; communication problems that can include slurred speech or disorganized thoughts; behavioral changes that may result in verbal or physical outbursts or mood swings; and sensory problems like persistent ringing of the ears or impaired hand-eye coordination.
A Legal Consultation Can Protect Your Rights After Brain Injury
In addition to the medical hurdles and related recovery time, Summers & Associates encourages anyone who suffers a brain injury to promptly consult with a lawyer. We must stress the importance of the time it takes to gather the necessary medical information in an accident matter that results in brain injury. Seek advice from a lawyer with skill in pursuing your rights in the accident. For instance, it helps to have the experience to know when additional legal documentation must be put in place.
Many of the complications of a brain injury can affect an individual’s decision-making abilities. Therefore, it may be appropriate to secure a limited power-of-attorney instrument. These directives can be crucial if the person with the brain injury also manages the care of others or operates a business. There may be other protective steps to take regarding your medical care or other wishes which can only be determined by a legal consultation. The legal team at Summers & Associates has the years of experience to give your case all the consideration it may need to protect your rights.
Was Your Brain Injury Caused by a Hit-and-Run Accident?
Our previous blog post on hit-and-run accidents describes some of the other considerations you may have if your brain injury was the result of such an accident. You may not have all the information at your disposal in a hit-and-run matter. After that experience we encourage you to speak with one of our accident attorneys about your concerns.
If a hit-and-run accident caused your brain injury, you can rely on the experience of our attorneys’ advice on insurance matters. You or your loved ones may have questions about who pays for medical care and recovering other costs. The attorney may also require you to sign releases of information, enabling them to speak with your healthcare providers. Ask us about what information on the hit-and-run you will need to bring with you to the consultation. The lawyer may also ask you specific questions about your recovery. For example, they may ask you to describe any challenges relating to the accident and your brain injury.
Trust Summers & Associates in Parkersburg After a Brain Injury Accident
Summers & Associates, in Parkersburg, WV, has a team of attorneys who can offer sound accident advice to residents of West Virginia and Ohio. Our experienced legal staff provides responsive service. This expertise covers accident and injury matters in both states.
There is a limited time in which to pursue an accident claim. Let Summers & Associates help you secure your rights and pursue compensation for your brain injury. Give our office a call today, and allow us to give you some peace of mind. We are ready to help clients and families in West Virginia and Ohio after a car accident with brain injury.
Summers & Associates is a law firm serving clients in the region of Parkersburg, WV, for personal injury, criminal, and family law matters. Call our office today at (304) 420-0975, or contact us anytime via live chat on our website about a car accident with brain injury.
