Physical pain after a car accident often calls for suing a negligent driver and all parties who caused your injuries. If you’re suffering immediate or delayed pain after a car accident, contact the car accident lawyers at Wilshire Law firm. We’ll demand payment for pain and suffering, medical bills, lost wages, and other damages. We’ve recovered over $1 billion for clients.
Call us 24/7 at (800) 501-3011.
Table of Contents
● Hiring a Lawyer for Car Accident Pain
● Collecting Compensation for Pain and Suffering
● Definition of Pain After a Car Accident
● Psychological Effects Are Common After a Car Crash
● Delayed Pain After a Car Accident
● FAQs
Hiring a Lawyer for Car Accident Pain
You need an experienced car accident attorney when a negligent person or entity causes your injuries. Pain may often limit your ability to handle growing financial and legal obligations and priorities. The compassionate team at Wilshire Law Firm will contact the insurance companies on your behalf and answer your important questions.
Our team will also work to gather evidence to prove responsibility by:
- visiting the accident site
- interviewing witnesses
- accumulating photos from traffic lights
- reviewing the police report for mistakes
- making sure you have the data and information you need to obtain the compensation you deserve
Our attorneys will then use this information to build a strong case in your favor. At Wilshire Law Firm, we work on a contingency fee basis. Simply put, you pay no fees unless you win.
Don’t Miss The Deadline to File a Car Accident Injury Lawsuit
The deadline to file an auto accident injury lawsuit is known as the statute of limitations and differs in each state. California’s statute of limitations for a personal injury lawsuit is two years. The two-year time period begins to run from the date of the accident or from the date of the victim’s last treatment related to their injuries, whichever is later.
If the two-year time period passes before filing a lawsuit, you may miss your opportunity to collect compensation for injuries and pain after a car accident.
Collecting Compensation for Pain and Suffering – Car Accident Facts
Pain and suffering is the legal term for the physical pain and emotional distress that the plaintiff – our injured client – has suffered due to an injury. When filing a car accident lawsuit, you may seek compensation for the pain and suffering you have endured due to your car accident injuries.[1] Emotional distress (sometimes called mental anguish) may include fear, anxiety, insomnia, depression, and irritability.
Pain and suffering damages get estimated by reviewing your symptoms of physical pain and emotional distress, considering severity and duration closely.
Keep a record of all your treatments, therapies, and medications. With this information, our car accident lawyers will calculate how much compensation to pursue on your behalf.
LEARN MORE: Suing for Pain and Suffering
Definition of Pain After a Car Accident
Pain after a car accident refers to the physical and psychological discomfort that may occur. This type of pain can range from mild to severe, depending on the severity of the impact and resulting injuries. Common symptoms such as headaches, dizziness, nausea, fatigue, and depression often accompany the pain. Symptoms can occur immediately, but often car accident pain is delayed for days or weeks after the incident.[2]
Causes of Car Accident Pain
The primary cause of post-accident pain is the trauma experienced during the crash and may include physical injury to tissue and organs from blunt force, whiplash, or damage to the brain. Psychological effects like fear and anxiety may also contribute to pain felt after a car accident.
Physical Car Accident Pain
Common injuries leading to pain after a car accident include:
- Lacerations and bruises: Although usually minor, lacerations can become infected without proper care.
- Sprains and strains: Many people experience extreme discomfort from muscle strain.
- Torn ligaments: This injury can persist for months or years.
- Herniated spinal discs: The discs normally cushion the vertebrae as they line up around the spinal cord. When they herniate, the cushion is gone, and considerable pain can result. Often, surgery is needed to fuse the vertebrae.
- Fractures: Simple fractures usually heal when a cast is applied. However, some breaks require surgical implantation of pins or rods to heal correctly.
- Whiplash: This strain of the upper back and neck muscles causes long-term pain that can persist for up to 24 months.
- Amputation: Losing a limb is a catastrophic injury that affects a person for the rest of their life.
- Spinal cord injuries: Because spinal cord injuries can cause paralysis, victims often cannot work.
- Burns: Treatment can be complex, and repeated surgeries and care to prevent infection is often necessary.
- Traumatic brain injuries, including concussions: Concussions often cause severe headaches, nausea, vomiting, and other symptoms such as memory and cognitive loss. Surgery frequently follows to relieve pressure on the brain.
Psychological Effects Are Common After a Car Crash
The psychological effects after a car accident can be just as debilitating as the physical damage in some cases. Anxiety, depression, intrusive memories, difficulty concentrating, and insomnia are all symptoms associated with post-accident trauma. Some victims are fearful of leaving the house or driving again. Many must seek help from trained professionals.
Delayed Pain After a Car Accident
Not every car accident victim experiences immediate pain. For many people, car accident pain is delayed. Increased adrenaline your body produces in response to the accident is a flight or fight response the human body uses to increase the chance of survival. During an adrenaline rush, an injured victim may notice the following:
- An energy boost
- Pain that is reduced or nonexistent
- Strengthened muscles due to increased blood flow
- The ability to focus on sights and sounds ahead of you due to changes in vision and hearing
- Airways and blood vessel dilation to increase oxygen flow
- Calmness due to concomitant endorphin release
Alternately, specific injuries may take hours or days before symptoms appear. Whiplash pain can manifest within 72 hours after the injury. Seeing a doctor immediately after an accident allows the injured individual to watch for delayed symptoms.
Car Accident Pain Treatment Options
Treatment for pain after a car accident may involve medication, surgical intervention, physical therapy, and more. These treatments aim to reduce inflammation and swelling while limiting pain to restore mobility as quickly as possible.
Some injuries like TBI, abdominal trauma, compound fractures, and pelvic damage often require surgery.
Psychological Therapy for Chronic Pain After a Car Accident
Car accident victims may require psychotherapy to treat symptoms like anxiety, depression, and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Psychological therapies such as cognitive behavioral and exposure therapy can help. Talk therapy can help individuals cope with fear, anxiety, and depression. Additionally, therapists can help individuals understand underlying causes of negative emotions to confront and resolve them.
Free Case Review with a Law Firm for Car Accident Pain
Wilshire Law Firm stands ready to help you as you try to cope with the pain after a car accident. To speak with an attorney during a free case review, call to schedule an appointment at (800) 501-3011 or contact us online. Let us help you through this difficult time while you recover. Remember, you pay no fees unless you win.
Frequently Asked Questions About Pain After Car Accidents
Who pays for pain and suffering in a car accident?
In California, pain and suffering from a car accident may be compensated through the at-fault driver’s insurance policy. Depending on the specifics of the accident, the injured party can file a claim under either their own personal injury protection (PIP) policy or under the other driver’s bodily injury (BI) liability coverage.
In addition to medical expenses, wages lost due to an inability to work during recovery, and other expenses related directly to the car accident, victims may be able to receive payment for pain and suffering. It is important to note that California is a no-fault state so drivers must turn first towards their own policies before seeking compensation from another party in an auto accident.
How long after a car accident do you feel pain?
The onset of car accident pain may appear immediately. However, delayed pain after a car accident is widespread and often occurs hours, days, or weeks later. Specific injuries may take time to reveal themselves as the body attempts to repair itself. See a doctor for evaluation and treatment as soon as possible. Your situation may warrant a lawsuit seeking damages for pain and suffering. Start a free and confidential case review with our car accident lawyers to find out more.
More Helpful Resources
- Start a FREE Car Accident Injury Case Review
- Suing for Pain and Suffering
- Common Causes of Car Accidents
- What To Do After a Car Accident
- Common Car Accident Injuries that may lead to a lawsuit
- How To Describe a Car Accident – – Lawsuit Guidance & Insurance Reporting
- Car Accident Lawsuit Mistakes – What Not To Do
- Nausea After a Car Accident