Were you involved in a car accident? Georgia law requires that you pull over, help the injured, and give your information to the others involved. It does not say anything about contacting a Georgia car accident lawyer or if you should see a doctor but you should, as soon as possible.
Having your health condition evaluated after the crash is very important both for you and your car accident claim. If you incurred any injuries, the sooner you diagnose and treat them, the sooner you will get better. If you did not, you will at least gain peace of mind.
If you’re interested in learning more about how long you have to file a car accident claim in Georgia, visit this page.
Also, if you consult a Georgia car accident lawyer, one of the first things they will ask you is whether you got a medical evaluation. That is because they know how important the medical evaluation is for your case. What happens if you do not get a medical evaluation or you postpone getting it?
Why Lawyers Advise Their Clients to Get a Medical Evaluation After an Accident
To Prove Injuries and Treatment Costs
Although the law gives you the right to compensation for your injuries, you need to prove them in order to obtain it. How can you convince the insurer or the court that you were injured if you do not see a doctor?
You should not only get a medical evaluation but also follow treatment. As you do, remember to keep any medical reports, prescriptions, and invoices. You will need them to justify the amounts you claim as medical expenses.
Any car accident attorney will actually want to see them before giving you their opinion on your case. That is because the injuries you incurred determine the value of your claim. If you did not incur injuries, your claim may not justify paying for legal help. If your injuries were severe, they may allow you to claim other losses as well, like pain and suffering.
To Help Your Georgia Car Accident Attorney Link Your Injuries to the Accident
In order to receive compensation for your injuries, you or your auto accident lawyer will need to prove that:
- The defendant to your claim owed you a duty of care
- They breached their duty
- Their actions led to your injuries
- Your injuries brought about the expenses and losses subject to your compensation claim.
If you fail to prove that your injuries were the direct result of the accident, no insurer will compensate you for them. But the more you wait before seeing a doctor, the more difficult proving that causality will be.
Let’s say you suffer head injuries and wait two weeks before diagnosing them. The doctor may not be able to tell if they were the result of a car accident, blow to the head, or falling and hitting a hard surface.
Do you think the insurance company will compensate you for injuries their client may not have caused? Even if they realize the injuries were caused by the accident, they will exploit your lack of evidence to diminish their costs.
To Avoid Complications
In the first minutes or hours after the accident, the adrenaline surge may minimize injury symptoms. You focus on the event, you worry about its consequences, so you do not have time to acknowledge your injuries.
However, left untreated, some injuries aggravate. Head injuries, for example, may bleed and cause neural damage. This, in turn, could lead to cognitive impairment, physical disabilities, and more. A broken rib may perforate the nearby organs, like the liver or one of your lungs.
These aggravations, besides jeopardizing your health and well being, maybe even your life, will bring about huge medical expenses. The expenses will most likely not be compensated. Why? Any aggravations will be considered your responsibility since you neglected to see a doctor.
For all these reasons and more, your priority, after the accident, should be to check your medical conditions. If you were injured, treat your injuries, document the process, and bring the evidence to your Georgia auto accident lawyer.
If you were not injured, you can rest assured you escaped the accident unharmed and claim your property damages. Either way, consulting an Albany car accident lawyer cannot hurt, especially since some provide free preliminary consultations.
Schedule a Free Consultation with an Experienced Albany Car Accident Lawyer Now!
Joe Durham Jr. P.C. law firm provides free initial consultations. You too can benefit from one. To make the most of it, consider getting a medical evaluation and bring in all your case documents. Our Georgia car accident lawyer will review your case and explain your rights and options.
