The Impact of Prior Injuries on You Personal Injury Claim

When you are injured in an accident that was caused by another person, you may be entitled to compensation. What happens if this new set of injuries resembles prior injuries? In cases where a claim for new injuries resembles prior injuries, the insurance carrier may tell you that the “new” injuries are simply an aggravation of your pre-existing injuries. More often than not, this will be an excuse to offer you minimal compensation for your injuries.

However, you don’t have to accept this lowball offer. You are entitled to fair compensation for your injuries, regardless of whether there is an aggravation of previous injuries or you have suffered a new set of injuries. This line of reasoning applies to all types of accidents that result in injuries, such as slip and falls, car accidents, work accidents, dog bites and other injury events.

The First Step Is To Prove Liability

The first step in obtaining compensation, whether they are new or preexisting injuries, is to prove liability. Although each state and jurisdiction has its own set of laws, the general requirements are:

• The liable party owed you a duty of care
• The liable party breached that duty of care by acting negligently
• The negligent actions were the direct and proximate cause of your injuries and damages

In order to prove these elements, your personal injury attorney needs to provide strong, credible evidence such as photographs, witness statements, police or incident reports, and medical records.

Proof of New Injuries v. Prior Injuries

Regardless of whether you have suffered new and separate injuries or aggravated previous injuries, you need to prove it. The best proof of injuries is your medical records. If you have aggravated previous injuries, it is expected that you will have an overlap of medical treatment to a certain degree.

Nevertheless, it is imperative that your treating physicians assist your attorney in proving whether your injuries are new or an aggravation of preexisting injuries. One of the best ways is to provide the insurance adjuster with your doctor’s written narrative.

What Is a Doctor’s Narrative?

A doctor’s narrative is a detailed report about your injuries that provides credible evidence as to where your preexisting injuries end and your new injuries begin. A good attorney will communicate with their clients’ doctors to what they are trying to prove. This allows the doctor to focus his or her written narrative on the details of the new injuries. When an adjuster is presented with sound medical evidence from a well respected physician, it is difficult to overcome the professional medical opinion and deny the claim or provide a lowball offer.

Call Us Today!

The legal team at the Law Offices of Samer Habbas is dedicated to helping our clients reach the best monetary settlement for personal injury accidents.  With years of experience and success, we can certainly help your case too!  Call us at 1-888-848-5048 to schedule a free, complimentary consultation with our legal team today.