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THE DEVIL IS IN THE DETAILS
There’s an old saying that goes something like this – “you can’t make chicken salad out of chicken poop no matter how much mayonnaise you add.”
It has application in many areas of life, but it is especially applicable in the successful pursuit of your car wreck case. One little thing ignored or done wrong and you and your case are screwed, blued and tattooed.
“I would never do something to torpedo my case,” you reply indignantly.
We hope you’re right, but here are a few examples just as lessons for the wise.
1. I DON’T FEEL LIKE I NEED MEDICAL TREATMENT
If that’s the case then you’re not hurt, and don’t waste our time three months later by coming to our office and deciding that the herniated disk your doctor just discovered probably was caused by the car wreck.
If you’re not hurt, be thankful.
If you’ve been in an accident and you momentarily feel o.k. but something’s just not quite right, then go get checked out. The reason you feel momentarily o.k. is because the human body produces a lot of the hormone adrenalin when you’re in a car wreck. Adrenalin can mask pain and make you feel A-O.K. until the adrenalin makes its way out of your body 12 to 24 hours later.
If you fail to get immediate medical treatment you could endanger your health or your life.
If there are significant gaps in your medical treatment for almost any reason it will hurt the value of your case.
2. I FEEL FINE AND OTHER COSTLY LIES
We live in the Deep South. When anyone asks us the simple question “how are you?” The answer is invariably, “well, I’m fine. How are you?”
If you’ve been in a car wreck, and the person asking the question is an EMT, a police officer, or any medical professional, “I’m fine” is not the right answer unless you truly are just fine.
Assuming that you can still talk after your compact car has been run over by a loaded dump truck, then you need to concentrate on telling the truth and not worry about being polite. Everything you say to a cop, an EMT or a nurse or doctor will be written down. If it’s not in your medical records and the report of the accident, it didn’t happen.
We have seen people with debilitating injuries tell doctors they were fine, and because the doctors were so busy they did not take the time to carefully assess the situation. The medical records read “Mrs. So and So has no complaints.”
There’s a difference between whining and telling the truth. Nobody likes a whiner. But if you don’t tell the truth you will be the one to suffer.
3. HEY Y’ALL, WATCH THIS!
It’s said that those are the last recorded words by many a redneck daredevil. It is also an invitation for Insurance Defense Lawyers who work for Insurance Companies who want to pay you the least amount of money possible for your injuries to carefully examine your Facebook, Twitter and MySpace pages.
It is very difficult for us to successfully argue that you are entitled to be compensated for a back injury resulting from a car wreck when there is a photograph or video on the Internet featuring you in the bull riding contest at the local rodeo, or lifting a refrigerator, or smiling while lifting a world record blue marlin that you just caught on a fly rod with 12 pound test line.
The same goes for photos or videos of you winning a chugging contest at Cabo Wabo or trying out a new bong with four of your best buds.
The point – if this office accepts your personal injury case you will cease and desist from ANY communication via social websites during the pendency of your case.
Why? Because Insurance Defense Lawyers will find those photos, videos or posts if they exist. They will blow them up the size of a wall, and they will show them to a jury who will say “that so and so, he/she is trying to scam us. He/she gets nothing, zip, zero, nada!”
4. WELL OFFICER, IT WENT LIKE THIS
When police officers or insurance investigators or insurance adjusters talk to you, every word you say can and will be used against you in a court of law, or at the very least in a settlement conference.
If a police officer asks you what happened in a wreck in which you were injured, tell the truth. If you don’t know, or don’t remember, say that. Don’t try to make something up just to satisfy the cop. Don’t agree with the cop if he tries to put words in your mouth. And for goodness sakes, don’t argue with the cop. You have just been in a serious accident and are fortunate if you can talk at all. You don’t want to get arrested on top of everything else.
Once you are represented by a lawyer you should not discuss your case with a police officer or an insurance company representative without your lawyer being involved in the conversation.
NEWSFLASH – your conversations with insurance company representatives will be recorded whether you like it or not and whether you are informed are not.
5. I DON’T NEED TO LISTEN TO NO DOCTOR, I FEEL FINE
If you’ve been in an accident and you’ve sought medical care for goodness sakes follow the advice of the doctor. If you are supposed to go to physical therapy, GO TO PHYSICAL THERAPY. If you’re supposed to get an MRI and come back to your doctor next Tuesday, then GET THE MRI AND GO BACK TO YOUR DOCTOR NEXT TUESDAY.
If you discontinue your medical treatment and then show up at your doctor’s office six or eight months from now complaining about how your shoulder hurts from that car wreck you were in last June, the value of your case, if any, will be greatly decreased because of an unexplained gap in medical treatment.
We hope you are never in a car wreck. But if you are, remember these hints, and your life will be better in the long run.