Attorneys
- Eldora Personal Injury Attorneys
- Phone: 641-792-3595
- Directions
A personal injury can upend daily life in an instant, leaving an Eldora resident to deal with pain, medical treatment, and a confusing insurance process all at once. Knowing whether you can trust the insurance company handling your claim, understanding who is actually responsible for paying your medical bills, and recognizing why some injuries do not show symptoms right away can all make a real difference in protecting your rights after an accident.
Can You Trust the Insurance Company After an Eldora Accident?
In Iowa alone, there are more than 100 insurance companies that sell coverage, offering everything from personal injury policies to commercial liability coverage. Just because the at fault party pays a premium to their insurer does not mean that insurer is going to look out for an injured Eldora victim. Some people assume that if they are hurt, their own insurance company will pursue the at fault party on their behalf. That is simply not true. While your own insurer may try to recover what it paid for property damage, it is highly unlikely to pursue a claim for your personal injuries.
If you are dealing with the at fault party's insurance carrier after an Eldora accident, there are several things you should keep in mind.
Tips for Dealing With the Insurance Company
Tell the Truth
Anything you say can be used against you later. Even a small inconsistency can damage your credibility, so always be truthful with the insurance company and their representatives.
Let a Professional Handle the Adjuster
Insurance companies employ trained professionals to manage claims. Hiring your own attorney means someone with matching experience is handling communication on your behalf.
Keep Documentation
Keep a diary of how you feel each day, retain doctors' excuses for missed work, and hold onto medical bills and explanation of benefits forms from your health insurer.
Be Thorough With Doctors
Tell every medical provider everything that hurts. If a new complaint surfaces weeks or months later, the insurer may argue it was unrelated to the accident.
Regularly attending your medical appointments is also essential after an Eldora accident. Failing to see a physician regularly can be treated as evidence that you have fully recovered, both by the insurance company and potentially by a judge or jury down the road. If your doctor tells you to follow up as needed, that means returning within a few weeks if problems continue. Skipping that follow up can make it look, in the eyes of the insurer and possibly a jury, like you have made a full recovery even if you have not.
Who Pays Your Medical Bills After an Eldora Accident?
One of the most common questions an Eldora accident victim has is who will actually pay for medical treatment. In many personal injury cases, it is rare for the at fault party's insurance carrier to make payments toward your medical bills as they come in. This is true even when liability is obvious and the insurer has already paid for property damage. The at fault party's insurer is not required to make ongoing medical payments, and insurance companies routinely wait to pay only at the time of a final settlement, when they can obtain a release in exchange.
Because of this, an Eldora victim should not expect the at fault party's insurance to cover medical bills as they are incurred. Instead, several other sources are typically used to pay for treatment while a claim is pending.
Sources for Paying Medical Bills
- Your own health insurance from an employer benefits package
- Health insurance you have purchased personally
- Health insurance obtained through a spouse, or through parents if you are a minor living at home
- Medical payments insurance coverage from your own auto policy, whether you were driving your own vehicle or riding as a passenger
- Healthcare.gov or Medicaid coverage if you do not currently have insurance
- Personal funds, if you are uninsured and able to pay as bills come in
With medical debt often rising quickly after a serious accident, an Eldora victim may not have the funds available to pay providers directly. In these situations, an attorney's office can often help facilitate an assignment, in which the client authorizes the law firm to pay the medical provider directly out of any settlement or verdict. Providers will frequently accept this arrangement and wait until the time of settlement rather than pursue collections in the meantime.
It is also important for an Eldora victim to remember that almost all insurance policies contain a subrogation provision. This means that if you obtain money for medical bills from another party or insurance company, your own insurer may be entitled to reimbursement out of that recovery.
When Injuries Don't Show Up Right Away
If you have been hurt at work, in a car accident, or in another type of personal injury incident in Eldora, you may not feel pain until later that same day, or even the next day. Regardless of when your pain begins, you should seek medical care and treatment as soon as it appears. In cases involving Iowa work injuries, you also need to report the injury, preferably in writing to your employer, and keep a copy of the First Report of Injury.
Why Symptoms Might Not Show Immediately
Adrenaline often spikes after an accident, and hormones such as cortisol can be released, which can temporarily mask pain. Anyone who has ever lifted heavy weights or pushed themselves too hard during a workout knows that muscle soreness does not always appear until the next day. What matters most for Eldora accident victims is that once pain does begin, they promptly seek medical care to document it and begin the healing process.
Is It Too Late If You Waited to Seek Care?
Waiting more than a week to seek medical care after an accident is not necessarily too late, but it can raise a red flag for the insurance adjuster reviewing the claim. It is important to tell your doctor exactly when the pain started and why you did not seek help immediately. Skipping medical care altogether, even when appointments feel inconvenient, can end up costing an Eldora accident victim their entire claim.
When an Injury Gets Worse Over Time
It is common for some injuries to develop gradually rather than all at once. An Eldora worker who lifts heavy boxes throughout the day may notice their back hurting after each shift, only for the pain to fade before returning the next workday. These cumulative injuries can be more difficult to prove than an injury that happens all at once, so it is important to be able to explain exactly which part of the job, or which specific incident, caused the injury.
Establishing which conditions are actually related to the original accident, known as a causation opinion, is an important part of any Eldora personal injury claim. An experienced attorney can work directly with your treating doctors to help establish this connection, since a doctor simply saying a new condition is "possible" is rarely enough to satisfy the burden of proof needed to recover compensation.
We Are Here To Help
Remember, you are not alone in recovering from your injuries. We have helped thousands of Iowans through their physical, emotional, and financial recoveries. If you have questions about what you are going through, feel free to call our office for your confidential injury conference. We will take the time to listen to you and give you our advice concerning your injury matter at no cost or risk to you.
Free Book at No Cost
If you are not ready to speak with an attorney yet but would like to learn more about Iowa injury cases including tips about how you can avoid making common costly mistakes request a copy of our Iowa Personal Injury book which includes 14 myths about Iowa injury cases and 5 things to know before hiring an attorney.
If you have specific questions about your injury matter feel free to call our office to speak with our Injury team at 641-792-3595 or use our Chat feature by clicking here 24 hours a day/7 days per week. Your information will remain confidential and there is no cost or obligation.