Cascade Car Accident Injury Attorneys

What to Do After a Hit and Run in Cascade

Hit and run accidents are more common than many Cascade drivers realize. According to the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety, approximately eleven percent of car accidents involve a driver who flees the scene. If you were struck by someone who did not stop, there are several important steps to take right away.

Avoid the Temptation to Chase the Driver

Anger and adrenaline can make a Cascade accident victim want to chase down the driver who fled, but authorities strongly warn against this. There are many reasons a driver may flee the scene, and some of those reasons make the situation genuinely dangerous. Many hit and run drivers act the way they do because they are uninsured or intoxicated, so it is best to stay calm, gather what information you can, and let the authorities pursue the other driver.

Contact the Police

After a hit and run in Cascade, contacting the police is essential. You can provide them with all the information you gathered, and they will complete a police report. Even if the driver is never located, that report will still support your car accident claim. While officers are surveying the scene, it is also a good time to take photos or video of the accident location and the resulting damage, since this evidence can help both the investigation and your insurance claim.

Consulting a Car Accident Attorney

Hit and run accidents can cause significant losses, and because the other driver is unknown, recovering compensation can be especially difficult. This is why it makes sense to speak with an accident attorney as soon as possible. An attorney can explain your legal options, which most often involves filing an uninsured motorist claim. This coverage is not required in Iowa, but if you carry it, it can help pay for your losses. If the other driver is eventually identified, a claim can then be filed directly against that driver's insurance.

Broken Nose Injuries After a Car Accident

Car accidents in Cascade can cause serious facial injuries, including a broken nose, which typically involves a fracture of the large bone across the bridge of the nose. Beyond car accidents, broken noses can also result from bicycle accidents, pedestrian accidents, sports injuries, falls, or fights, but the treatment considerations are largely the same.

Recognizing the Symptoms

Sometimes a broken nose is obvious because of extreme swelling or a crooked appearance, while other times it is unclear whether the nose is broken or simply bruised. The following symptoms may indicate a broken nose that needs medical attention:

• Difficulty breathing through the nose
• Mucus discharge from the nostrils
• Blocked nasal passages
• Bruising around the nose or eyes
• Pain or tenderness when touching the nose or surrounding area
• Bleeding from the nose
• Swelling of the nose and surrounding facial area
• A misshapen or crooked appearance

Treatment for a Broken Nose

Minor fractures often require little more than self-care instructions, such as applying ice and taking over-the-counter pain medication, along with a follow-up appointment to check progress. More serious breaks may call for additional treatment, including:

• Manual realignment, where a doctor uses a nasal speculum and specialized tools to reposition displaced bone or cartilage, often after applying local anesthesia, followed by packing or splinting to hold everything in place.
• Surgery, which may be necessary for multiple breaks, a delay in seeking treatment, or damage to the nasal septum that requires reconstructive repair.

If your broken nose resulted from an accident caused by another person's negligence, you may be entitled to compensation for medical bills, lost wages, and pain and suffering. More complicated facial injuries can create significant financial strain, and an experienced car accident attorney can help you understand and exercise your rights.

Avoiding Mistakes When Dealing With Doctors

What a Cascade accident victim tells a doctor, and how consistently that person follows through with treatment, can significantly affect the strength of an injury claim. Below are some of the most common mistakes people make while receiving medical care after an accident.

Failing to See a Doctor Immediately

It is up to the injured person to show that the accident caused their injuries. If you are experiencing any pain, seek medical care right away. Insurance companies and juries often assume that a delay in treatment means the injury was not related to the accident, and even minor pain can develop into something more serious if it goes unaddressed.

Talking With Medical Providers About Your Claim

A doctor's job is to treat your injuries, not to manage your legal case. Medical providers do not need to know about a lawsuit or an attorney in order to treat you effectively, and anything you say to them is not confidential once you bring an injury claim. However, you do need to accurately explain how you were injured and when, since this information becomes part of the medical record that insurance companies, and potentially a judge or jury, will eventually review.

Hiding Prior Health History

Doctors will typically ask whether you have had a previous injury to the same part of the body. Being honest about your medical history is important, both for the quality of your treatment and for your credibility later in the claims process, since your full prior medical records will eventually become available to the insurance company regardless.

Missing or Being Late to Appointments

Missed appointments show up in medical records as a "no show," and repeated missed or late appointments can make it appear as though a patient does not take their treatment seriously, even if there was a valid reason for missing the visit. If you need to cancel or reschedule, doing so with as much notice as possible helps avoid this impression.

Not Reporting the Injury's Impact on Work

If an injury is affecting your ability to work, that needs to be documented by telling your medical provider directly. Since medical records form the foundation of an injury claim, an insurance company or jury is unlikely to simply take your word for a work impact that was never mentioned to a doctor. Bringing written notes to appointments can help make sure nothing important gets left out.

Improperly Documenting Pain

Pain cannot be seen or measured directly, so it has to be documented through what a patient reports. Insurance companies and juries look closely at how quickly pain was reported, where it was located, how severe it was, and how long it lasted. Writing out your symptoms before an appointment can help ensure everything makes it into a busy doctor's notes, and it is important to describe pain accurately rather than exaggerating it.

Not Following Medication Instructions

Doctors prescribe specific medications for specific reasons, and it is important to follow those instructions. If a medication causes unwanted side effects, contact your doctor rather than stopping on your own, since some medications need to be tapered off gradually.

Stopping Treatment Too Early or Leaving Long Gaps

Insurance companies and juries often assume that a person who stops seeking treatment has fully healed. Long gaps between appointments, a month or more, can be used to suggest that an original injury resolved and any new symptoms are unrelated. If a doctor says to come back only "as needed," that generally means returning if symptoms have not improved within a few weeks.

Failing to Keep Records

Keeping business cards, bills, and other documentation from every medical provider you see makes it much easier for an attorney to gather your complete records. Work excuses, restrictions, and referral paperwork should also be kept and copied before being handed over to an employer.

Not Addressing Anxiety or Depression

Pain, limited activity, and disability following an accident can lead to anxiety or depression, which are just as real as a physical injury visible on an X-ray. These conditions can be part of a compensable injury claim, but only if they are properly diagnosed and treated, which means telling a doctor if you are struggling emotionally after your accident.