Strengthen Your Injury Claim By Following Doctor’s Orders
Medical records and testimony from treating physicians are key pieces of evidence for those seeking to recover full compensation for injuries following a car accident here in St. Mary’s County, Maryland. Under Maryland law, injured victims are legally entitled to make insurance claims — or file personal injury lawsuits — for compensation after a Maryland auto accident. Generally, compensation is “paid” by the party or parties who are held to be “at fault” for the accident. But, most often, that means that compensation is paid by the insurance companies that have issued the relevant auto insurance policies. If you have suffered injuries in a St. Mary’s Country, Maryland, car or auto accident, contact us here at the Law Office of Robert Castro. Our number is (301) 870-1200. We are experienced and top-tier Maryland car and auto accident attorneys and have offices in Waldorf, Maryland.
To ensure maximum recovery of compensation, you must maximize the strength of your case. To do this, injured victims must take several actions. First, victims must seek medical care and treatment right away, and second, just as importantly, victims must “follow doctor’s orders.”
Why? To begin, the strongest case for compensation is one where the injuries are clearly and unquestionably connected to the accident. One of the best ways of proving that is by having medical records and doctors’ opinions that are very close in time to the accident. This prevents the insurance company from arguing that the victim “wasn’t really injured,” “wasn’t injured that badly,” or “wasn’t injured in THIS accident.”
As one might expect, insurance companies want to pay as little compensation as they can legally. So, their representatives will make any kind of argument that can be justified by the facts. Getting to the doctor right away prevents insurance company lawyers and claims adjusters from making arguments like that.
In the same way, “following doctor’s orders” is crucial to ensuring the strongest case, which ensures the maximum recovery. Most injured victims follow their physician’s orders as a matter of course. But, there are some injured parties that try to “be brave,” “shake it off,” or “power through.” This is a bad idea in the context of a St. Mary’s County, Maryland, auto accident. There is no reason to “be brave.” That will only diminish your recovery and “save money for the other side.” There is certainly no reason to do that. You deserve medical treatment, and you deserve a full recovery to health and activity. So, follow your doctor’s orders.
Further, by following your doctor’s orders, you avoid any argument by the insurance company that you were not injured that badly or that you made your medical condition worse. Legally, an at-fault party is only responsible for paying compensation for injuries that occurred because of the accident. If you reinjured yourself or caused some other injury by failing to follow the doctor’s orders, the insurance company will, very likely, dispute coverage. Further, if you don’t follow the doctor’s orders, that opens you up to the charge of not really being injured — something like: “The injury could not have been THAT bad if he/she didn’t even bother to follow the doctor’s orders.”
Contact Waldorf, MD Personal Injury Attorney Robert Castro Today
This article has been provided by the Law Office of Robert Castro. For more information or questions, contact our office to speak to an experienced Maryland personal injury lawyer at (301) 870-1200. We are Waldorf, MD, Personal Injury lawyers. Our address is 2670 Crain Highway, Waldorf, MD 20601.
