At Maison Law Accident & Injury Lawyers of Fremont, we have a long history of representing car accident victims and securing the support they need to recover. After accidents involving something as serious as a chest injury caused by another driver’s carelessness, victims can demand financial support so they can focus on getting better. Contact a skilled personal injury lawyer and schedule a free consultation. It’s a simple way to determine what your injury is worth and how to hold an at-fault party responsible.
Do I Need a Lawyer If I Suffer a Chest Fracture in a Car Accident?
The severity of your injuries usually determines if you need a lawyer to handle your case. If your injuries are very minor, you may not need the help of an attorney. It’s when your injuries are more serious, such as a collarbone fracture, that the protection of a skilled Fremont personal injury lawyer is often necessary.
A chest injury will require more care and a longer period of recovery, resulting in higher medical bills. This triggers insurance companies to look for ways to reject your claim, like blaming you for the accident. Your Fremont car accident lawyer fully investigates your accident and collects evidence to make sure at-fault parties and their insurers can’t escape accountability. Then your lawyer demands the most in compensation available for your recovery.
Chest Injury Dangers in Car Accidents
Fremont residents on busy roads like I-880 or Blacow Road can be getting their days started when they’re suddenly forced into a collision by a careless driver. The forces unleashed can cause injuries anywhere in the body, but the chest, the ribs, and internal organs are often put under the most pressure.
The chest can hit the steering wheel or collide with a metal door. The restraint of a seatbelt can save a life, but also force a rib or collarbone out of place. Internal organs that the ribs are meant to protect can also be threatened.
The Merck Manual explains how around 25% of deaths from a severe injury involve chest damage. These are a few of the life-threatening outcomes due to trauma to the chest:
- Rib fracture – Pain from a rib fracture or cartilage damage can leave patients unable to move their upper bodies without pain. A broken rib can also be sent into the lungs or heart with deadly consequences.
- Sternum fracture – Also known as the breastbone. It runs down the center of your chest and connects to the ribs. A break will usually be left to heal on its own, but the pain will usually leave patients unable to work or to complete household duties for three months or more.
- Broken Collarbone – Pressure from a seat belt can fracture the collarbone running from the shoulder to the sternum. A break may heal with time, but patients will have to deal with pain every time they attempt to move. A severe break could require surgery and reattachment of bone with wires, plates, and screws.
- Esophagus Damage – When the bones protecting the chest cavity become damaged, the esophagus can be damaged through blunt force trauma or an object penetrating the chest.
- Blood Vessel Damage – The aorta can tear, leading to a dangerous loss of blood.
- Heart and lung damage – Respiratory failure is one life-threatening consequence of internal organ damage. A lung may collapse. These are very dangerous injuries.
With the severe outcomes for chest injuries possible, doctors may not know how long healing will take or if patients may need surgeries months or years down the road. It’s why victims shouldn’t sign off on a “lowball” offer sent by insurance adjusters. These first offers may not cover any care patients will need in the years ahead. A Fremont Broken Bone Accident Lawyer works with medical experts to determine just how much a client may need to cover the cost of a long-term injury.
Earning Support for Fremont Chest Fracture Victims
Your attorney looks into your accident and the driving record of the at-fault driver. A skilled lawyer would also collect witness testimony and even accident reconstruction teams if necessary.
Your lawyer documents every hardship you’ve experienced and includes a full list of the damages you have endured in your normal life. Every hardship must be included because anything left out of your claim could end up as a cost you’d have to pay out of your own savings. That’s unacceptable for an accident you didn’t cause.
Your legal representative will make sure support for these and other hardships is included in any personal injury accident settlement check:
- Full support for hospital care and rehabilitation costs
- A lifetime of support for a permanent physical disability
- Money for medical equipment to make it possible for victims to deal with the pain of a chest injury
- Travel costs while going to hospital appointments
- Support for the physical pain victims will endure
- Support for the emotional trauma victims must suffer through
- Past and future lost income while victims miss work
- Estimates on lost earning capacity from a permanent disability
- Damage or destruction of property
- Wrongful death benefits for families who lose a loved one to a car accident and chest injury
Contact a Fremont Chest Fracture Attorney
Victims of car accidents and their families are granted up to two years to file a broken bone injury claim to seek the support they shouldn’t have to wait for. It’s important to act quickly. The longer you wait, the harder it will be to collect fresh evidence and locate witnesses. Surveillance video proving your innocence may also end up erased if you delay.
Contact Maison Law Accident & Injury Lawyers of Fremont to schedule a free, confidential consultation with a real Fremont broken bone injury lawyer. We want to hear what happened to you. You’ll learn about what your injury is worth before an insurance adjuster tries to convince you it’s worth nothing at all.
There’s no obligation when you talk to us, but if you feel we can help you get the most out of your injury claim, you won’t need any money to hire us. We don’t get paid unless we win your case for you. Then our fee comes out of the settlement you receive.