Waldorf, MD, Car Accident Law Firm: Can I Still Recover in a Personal Injury Case if I Have a Preexisting Medical Condition?
The answer is “Yes.” Many people worry that a preexisting medical condition will prevent them from recovering just compensation if they have been involved in an auto accident here in Southern Maryland. Others worry that they are not even eligible to make an insurance claim or file a personal injury lawsuit. If you have these worries, call us here at the Law Office of Robert Castro. Our number is (301) 870-1200. We can ease your concerns and evaluate your case. We are top-tier Maryland personal injury litigators located in Waldorf, MD. Here is some information on how preexisting medical conditions affect Maryland auto accident cases.
After a Maryland auto accident, the innocent party is entitled to bring a claim or sue for any and all injuries and for damage to property. To succeed in a claim, the victim must prove four legal elements: duty by the at-fault party, breach of that duty, injury/damage to property, and causation. In other terms, the breach of duty must have been the cause of the injury/damage.
This is important to understand because issues with respect to preexisting conditions are only relevant to the injuries caused by the particular accident in question. Probably everyone involved in any Maryland auto accident has some sort of preexisting medical condition. Maybe it is high blood pressure, an old broken arm, asthma, etc. But those types of preexisting injuries and medical conditions certainly do not prevent an injured person from obtaining a recovery. Indeed, most preexisting medical conditions have no impact on a Maryland personal injury case. Why? In Maryland personal injury cases, preexisting medical conditions matter only in relation to the new injury suffered in the car accident or slip and fall. As an example, a preexisting heart condition does not matter if the injury suffered is a brain injury or damage to the spinal cord.
Now let’s change the example and assume that the victim of a Maryland automobile accident has previously injured their back in a slip and fall accident. Let’s assume that the person’s back was injured six months before the Maryland auto accident at issue. Finally, let’s assume that the medical records and doctors’ opinions clearly demonstrate that the Maryland vehicle accident made the person’s back injuries worse. In this example, the victim is entitled to seek compensation even though there is a preexisting injury to the body part or system that has also been previously injured. This is called recovery for aggravation of injury. And, to be clear, the victim is not seeking to recover for a “back injury,” but rather for the additional injury — the aggravation — caused by the new Maryland auto accident.
This also means that victims will specifically ask for recovery for the aggravation of an injury when making insurance claims and filing Maryland personal injury lawsuits. Victims want to avoid the appearance of “trying to pull a fast one” on the insurance company or before the jury.
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.
