Should I See a Doctor After a Truck Accident in Pennsylvania?
After an accident, whether with a car, motorcycle, truck, or pedestrian, visiting a doctor as soon as possible is the first step to take. Not only is it vital for your health, but it also establishes a verified paper trail that you did seek medical care. Proving you sought care is crucial to seeking compensation in a personal injury case.
You need to know what injuries you sustained. Some of them may not be readily apparent right after the crash. However, this is due to being in shock. You may have internal injuries that can worsen if not treated as soon as possible. If you do not go for treatment or delay it, this can affect your health, recovery, and potential compensation. We cannot emphasize this strongly enough. You need to have solid proof of your injuries.
We should also add that at the scene of the accident, do not say that you feel fine or are not hurt. This is for two reasons. First, you do not honestly know whether you are hurt unless you see a doctor. The second is that this kind of statement can be used against you by the insurance company. If you felt fine, your injuries could not have been that bad. They may be even worse than you thought, but you did not know that until going to a doctor.
Delaying or not going for treatment at all can make a personal injury claim seeking compensation extremely difficult. This is because the insurance company can deny or diminish your claim by saying it could not have been that bad if you did not seek medical care. If you do not want to be left with large medical bills because you did not want to see a doctor, make an effort to get medically assessed and keep good records about your diagnosis and treatments. Additionally, if the crash does not look serious to the insurance company after inspecting photos, they may suggest the injuries cannot be that bad.
The Pennsylvania Statue of Limitations for filing a personal injury claim is two years. If a claim is not filed within that period, it may be barred, and any legal lawsuit you may have had disappeared. This is another reason you need to know the nature and gravity of your injuries sooner rather than later. The longer you wait, the easier it is for the insurance company to balk at offering a reasonable settlement. Also, if they refuse to provide fair compensation, we can take them to court.
You may still file a personal injury claim if you delay getting medically assessed. It is more difficult to establish a direct connection between your accident and your injuries. It also means that the defendant can then argue that the accident did not cause your injuries or that your injuries are not as bad as you suggest.
It is essential to know that Pennsylvania is a choice no-fault state, which means each party in an accident collects compensation from their insurer, no matter who caused the crash. There is a choice when you buy auto insurance to choose no-fault or fault rules. What you choose is what you get if you are in a collision.
You may choose full tort or limited tort when buying an insurance policy. The less expensive limited tort option means the driver is selecting the no-fault system and, in most instances, cannot file a lawsuit for compensation. On the other hand, full tort means a survivor can file a lawsuit against the other driver seeking compensation. If successful, the at-fault driver pays medical expenses and lost wages. There are exceptions in the case of a driver with limited tort coverage if they are seriously injured. At Placidi, Parini, Grasinger & Page, we can explain those to you.