What You Should Know About Soft Tissue Injuries
If you have been injured in a Waldorf, Maryland auto accident, you are entitled to compensation for your injuries. This includes compensation for “soft tissue injuries.” Soft tissue injuries include injuries like nerve, muscle, and ligament tears, sprains, and strains. These generally result from “whiplash” effects on the victim’s body caused by sudden changes in acceleration, for example, when a vehicle’s forward motion is instantly stopped by a head-on collision or a massive forward momentum is caused by a rear-end crash. Many serious soft tissue injuries happen from T-bone collisions and other crashes coming from the side of the victim’s vehicle. Often, soft tissue injuries occur in addition to other types of injuries like broken bones, bruises, internal organ injuries, brain injuries, and the like.
To obtain full compensation for their injuries, victims must be sure to seek damages for all injuries. That is, just because an injury is a soft-tissue injury does not mean the injury is non-compensable.
It is probably well-known that it can be difficult to convince insurance companies to provide settlement compensation for soft tissue injuries. This is why it is important to have a legal consultation with experienced Charles County, Maryland, Car Accident Attorneys like those here at the Law Office of Robert Castro. Our number is (301) 870-1200, and we have offices in Waldorf, Maryland. We excel at techniques to ensure fair compensation for all injuries, including soft tissue injuries.
Soft tissue injury can be hard to prove for several reasons. First, soft tissue injuries do not generally manifest to the naked eye. Further, the injuries are not easily visible with typical medical procedures like X-rays and various types of scans. Third, soft tissue injuries often do not manifest in the form of pain and discomfort until days or even weeks after the accident. For these and other reasons, insurance companies are often skeptical of claims related to soft tissue injuries, often arguing that the claims are exaggerated.
That being said, there are many ways to alleviate the skepticism and make sure that you are compensated for your soft tissue injuries. The key is obtaining solid medical documentation of the injuries and proof of treatment. To help with this, victims should seek medical treatment on the day of the accident. This should be done even if you think “you’re fine.” As noted, soft tissue injuries tend to manifest hours and days after an accident. Thus, a thorough medical examination should be done.
Second, even if you have not been evaluated on the day of the accident, you should seek an evaluation and treatment as soon as pain and other symptoms manifest. In addition, to the extent possible, it is important to seek medical treatment and evaluation from family doctors or facilities. For insurance companies, there are two “red flags” when it comes to soft tissue injuries: delay in seeking treatment and treatment by unfamiliar medical providers. These evaluations and treatments will be documented in your medical records.
Another method of ensuring fair compensation for soft tissue injuries is to obtain opinions from your treating physicians and physical therapists. That your doctors opine that you have suffered soft tissue injury is very important and helps substantiate your claims.
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.
