What a Ft Lauderdale personal injury attorney advises
A pain and suffering car accident is, unfortunately, a part of life and very few of us have been able to drive free of problems on the road, whether being involved in a slight fender-bender or a major highway car accident, or even becoming a witness to the aftermath of a major car accident. With major highways converging in the Ft. Lauderdale area, and the high numbers of snowbirds and tourists coming into our towns during the winter, the roads become crammed with cars, and car accidents are bound to happen.
Getting back behind the wheel can be psychologically stressful for some, an anxiety-inducing action that causes us to experience and develop post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Anxiety after a car accident, especially one in Fort Lauderdale that has caused personal injury, can hinder somebody’s ability to function and can alter their lifestyle. The sort of trauma that arises after a major car accident is one from which some do not easily recover – people can continue to relive the car accident, particularly if they must drive past the area of the accident on a consistent, or daily, basis.
Assessing pain and suffering after a car accident is based on a number of intangible proofs – your particular level of anxiety and pain could be different from another’s, which is why doctors often ask patients to describe their pain on a scale of 1 to 10. When it comes to attorneys and insurance companies, and reaching a decision on a financial settlement, the assessment of pain becomes more difficult – it can neither be seen, felt, touched or heard. Car accident victims have to convince an insurance adjuster of the amount of physical suffering, calculated by how many days were missed from work, or how many activities cannot be accomplished at all because of accident injuries, or can only be accomplished through the assist of another person, or have been limited due to the personal injury. Emotional distress, or mental anguish, due to PTSD, as well as the stress of coping with injury, is all a part of pain and suffering. Thus, the emotional toll of the car accident needs to be considered in a personal injury claim, along with the medical bills and real losses associated with the actual physical injury.
While some claims adjusters will limit the value placed on emotional distress, often seeing it as a ploy to get money, we know emotional distress and suffering can cause real issues to the injured. Are you experiencing emotional distress? Take a look at these symptoms:
- Anxiety
- Depression
- Guilt
- Frustration
- Insomnia
How to present your suffering to the adjuster can be tricky. You cannot just say, “I’m suffering,” when talking to an insurance adjuster; you must instead provide examples of how the pain and suffering have negatively impacted your life. How many days of work have you missed? How many sleepless nights have you had? Are you able to drive in the same manner you did before, or are you avoiding certain routes and locations close to the scene of the car accident? Or are you tense behind the wheel – does driving cause you more stress? When you’re driving in the car with other people, do you find your temper is shorter than it was prior to the accident? Do you lose patience more than you used to, especially when you find yourself distracted from the road by others in the car? Do you lose your patience more with other drivers? These are the types of scenarios to record and provide to the insurance adjuster.
Here are some of the issues/occurrences to document before you see the adjuster, to help you get to that tangible proof you need so that an adjuster takes you and your personal injury case seriously and will pay you for your suffering:
- Visits to a therapist or counselor. These should always be documented; in addition, a professional should be able to provide an assessment in writing of your emotional duress following the accident. Also, don’t be afraid to ask work associates, your employer, or your family members to write in their own words what they’ve observed of your anxiety and stress following your accident.
- Do you keep a journal? A record of your thoughts and feelings on a daily basis could be used, and potentially help you, in a trial.
- Did you/are you using prescription medications for your anxiety/stress? Bring a list or take a cell phone photo of your prescription list and bring it with you when you go before the insurance adjuster.
Your pain and suffering since your motor vehicle accident are equally as important as the personal injury you suffered – injury of the mind can be as debilitating as physical injury – and may take even longer to heal. If you have been the personal injury victim of a Fort Lauderdale car accident, make sure to seek medical help first, counsel from a personal injury litigation attorney second, and then seek help for any emotional wounds – anything that interferes with your ability to return to your daily activities impacts your quality of life and that is why it is critical to seek the advice of an expert personal injury litigation attorney.
