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- Onawa Car Accident Injury Attorneys
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A serious car accident can leave an Onawa victim dealing with painful injuries to the knees and spine, along with an insurance company that is more interested in protecting its own bottom line than paying a fair settlement. Below, the Onawa car accident attorneys at Walker, Billingsley & Bair explain what an ACL tear involves, what legal recourse is available after a herniated disc, and six little known secrets to help you get a fair settlement from the insurance company.
Understanding an ACL Tear Car Accident Injury
The legs and knees are at risk of injury during a car accident, and the ACL may be torn as a result of trauma. If an Onawa driver has experienced an anterior cruciate ligament, or ACL, tear as a result of a car accident, an attorney can help recover the compensation they are entitled to.
What Is the ACL?
The ACL is the ligament found in the center of the knee. The ligament is responsible for stabilizing the knee joint. It works in concert with the posterior cruciate ligament to keep the femur and tibia from sliding out too far over one another. When an ACL injury occurs, a person may have difficulty performing even basic movements like walking and jumping, and will require medical intervention. An ACL tear is often accompanied by other injuries.
Causes of an ACL Tear
An ACL tear occurs as a result of trauma to the ACL. In terms of a car accident injury, an ACL tear can be the result of the knee changing direction quickly, if an object pushes the knee one way or the other swiftly and unexpectedly, or as a result of a direct collision, such as an object or vehicle part making contact with the leg.
Treatment for an ACL Tear
An ACL tear is one of the most painful injury types, and is characterized by the loss of full range of motion, tenderness, swelling, and the inability to walk or move the leg comfortably. Both surgical and nonsurgical options may be pursued depending on the severity of the injury. Nonsurgical options usually include the use of a brace and physical therapy. When an injury is severe, surgical intervention may be necessary, and the ACL will usually have to be completely reconstructed. Most people are able to return to their regular lifestyle activities about six months after surgery.
It takes time and money to repair a soft tissue injury like an ACL tear. Onawa car accident victims may have to miss work and may face significant medical expenses. When the cause of an ACL injury is a car accident that was not the fault of the victim, the victim deserves to be compensated for lost wages, medical expenses, and suffering.
Legal Recourse After Suffering a Herniated Disc
When an Onawa driver is in a car accident that results in a herniated disc, he or she can seek compensation for this injury from the at-fault driver's insurance policy. Injured drivers can seek both economic and noneconomic damages, but may face challenges proving causation and the extent of their damages.
Herniated Disc Symptoms and Prognosis
The spine consists of vertebrae and soft discs as well as the spinal cord. These discs act as a cushion for the vertebrae and help with flexibility. They are made of a hard covering, called the capsule, and a softer inner jelly-like substance, called the nucleus. A herniated disc occurs when the inner portion protrudes through a weak or damaged spot in the outer covering, pressing on nerves in the spinal column.
Doctors may first try to treat herniated discs with a combination of pain medications and physical therapy. If this does not improve and manage the condition, the patient may have to undergo surgery to repair the damaged disc. Surgeons can remove the protruding part of the disc or may remove the entire disc. If the entire disc is removed, the vertebrae have to be fused together, or the surgeon has to insert a replacement disc in the gap. These procedures can result in months of recovery time in some cases.
Proving Legal Recourse for a Herniated Disc
If an injured Onawa driver can prove that a defendant was negligent and caused the accident, and that the accident directly caused an injury, the driver may be entitled to compensation from the defendant or the defendant's insurer. Negligence broadly means failing to use reasonable care to prevent harm to others, so evidence of such behavior is important when pursuing a claim or lawsuit. Economic damages include medical expenses, lost wages, and expenses traveling to and from medical appointments. Non-economic damages include things like pain and suffering and emotional distress that arise from the accident.
Challenges to Proving a Case
Defendants may dispute that the accident directly caused the herniated disc and instead argue that the plaintiff already suffered from the condition before the accident. In these cases, medical records from before and after the accident may demonstrate that the accident caused the injury.
Iowa is a modified comparative fault state, meaning plaintiffs need to be 50 percent or less at fault in an accident to recover damages. Because the state follows a comparative fault theory, a plaintiff can only collect damages minus his or her proportion of fault. Onawa drivers suffering from a herniated disc caused by an accident that was no fault of their own should consult a lawyer, who can help establish the defendant's fault and the extent of damages.
You vs. The Insurance Company: 6 Little Known Secrets to Getting a Fair Settlement
We all want to be treated fairly, whether it involves an employer or an insurance company. Here are six little known secrets to help an Onawa accident victim get a fair settlement.
1. Know Your Facts and the Law
If you are trying to handle a case on your own, you will need to know the facts of your case and how Iowa laws apply to them. Otherwise, the insurance adjuster will push you around, and you will have little, if any, response to them. Insurance adjusters are trained to use different techniques to convince you to settle your case for less than fair value. One common technique is acting like your friend, telling you to send the medical bills to them and they will give you a fair settlement, and that you do not need a lawyer because it will just cost you more money and take longer. What the adjuster will not tell you is that it is perfectly legal for them to try to settle your case for less than what it is worth.
2. You Do Not Have to Give a Recorded Statement
In most cases, you are not required to give the insurance adjuster for the other side a recorded statement. This is especially true if you were involved in a car accident where the police were called and there is a police report. Under these circumstances, you should politely decline to give a recorded statement and refer the adjuster to the police report and your medical records. There are a few cases, such as when bringing a claim against your own insurance company for underinsured or uninsured motorist coverage, where you may be required under the language of the policy to provide a recorded statement.
3. Always Tell the Truth
Honesty is always the best policy. Insurance companies have massive databases with information about any and all prior claims that you have made. If the insurance adjuster asks whether you have ever made a personal injury claim and you say no, and there are prior claims in their database, you have likely hurt the value of your case.
4. Ask About Available Insurance Coverage
This will often catch the insurance adjuster off guard when it comes from a person without an attorney. Chances are they will not readily tell you how much insurance coverage is available. Under Iowa law, the state minimum for car accidents is only $20,000 per person for personal injuries. If you have sustained a serious permanent injury, you will need to consider looking at your own underinsured motorist policy for additional coverage, though there are specific requirements, such as obtaining permission from your own insurance company before agreeing to a settlement.
5. Making Threats Will Not Help Your Case
The insurance adjuster is a trained professional whose job is to pay you as little as possible while increasing insurance company profits. Making threats seldom helps increase the value of a case. It signals that you can be provoked to anger, which is not good for an injury case, and insurance companies have teams of lawyers standing by, so a threat to sue does not bother them.
6. Do Your Research to Know How Much Your Case Is Worth
It is very hard to negotiate with an insurance adjuster if you do not know how much your case is worth. Without a solid understanding of how similar cases in Iowa have been valued, it is difficult to negotiate effectively.
Protecting Your Onawa Car Accident Claim
Whether an Onawa driver is dealing with an ACL tear, a herniated disc, or negotiating directly with an insurance adjuster, understanding the facts and the law is essential to securing a fair outcome. Insurance companies rely on accident victims not knowing their rights, and the more informed a victim is going into settlement negotiations, the better positioned they are to avoid a lowball offer.
Seeking Legal Assistance in Onawa
Seeking legal counsel from experienced Onawa Iowa car accident attorneys such as those at Walker, Billingsley & Bair can provide invaluable support in filing insurance claims or pursuing personal injury lawsuits. With a comprehensive understanding of Iowa law, their team can help gather evidence, establish liability, and secure the compensation deserved by accident victims.
Suffering from the aftermath of a car accident shouldn't impede your pursuit of justice and fair compensation. The Iowa injury lawyers at Walker, Billingsley & Bair work hard to level the field between injured Iowans and insurance companies.
That's why we provide this FREE book; The Legal Insider's Guide to Iowa Car Accidents: 7 Secrets to Not Wreck Your Case. To learn more about what our legal team will do to help you protect your Iowa injury claim, contact Walker, Billingsley & Bair to schedule a no-cost consultation. Call 641-792-3595 to order your free accident book today.