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Picture this scenario:
You pull up to the Target parking lot, it’s business as usual, just grabbing some errands while you hurry home from work. All of the sudden you get hit by another car, you get out… it’s just a small fender bender, thank goodness. You feel your neck and back, it’s all good, so the only thing really affected here is your car. First you think “Wow, I’m glad it’s just material damage. That could have really wrecked my week”. Then a little devil pops up in your head and reminds you that you’ve been in a tight spot for months now, putting in extra hours to patch all the financial leaks, the economy has been in turmoil etcetera.
It’s so easy to give in to this weak moment, you grab your neck for a second… mimicking the effects of a whiplash. It’s a cinch to find a doctor who will diagnose you, since neck and back injuries are usually soft tissue damages it’s mostly a matter of faking the right symptoms. There are enough personal injury attorneys willing to take on any case, no matter if it’s in your best interest. So you’re on your way to a quick pay day… but might that split-second decision you‘ve made, to milk this for all you can, be the worst mistake of your adult life?
Allow me to explain, we’re not trying to exhibit some “holier than thou” moral values here, although that’s always something to ponder about. What we’re referring to here, is you creating a pre-existing condition out of nowhere.
To put it simply, you have changed the perception that you are a completely healthy person, and now your medical record will have that nagging little annotation that says you’ve been hurt before. The extent of injuries sustained in a whiplash can persist for years, if not for your entire life, and are hard to quantify. The causes of a whiplash are very complex, and it’s more of a common denominator for a collection of neck and back injuries than anything else.
Fast forward 2 years and you’re driving along the I-35 when all of the sudden, you hear a thunderous thump, you feel the adrenaline coursing through your body, this is the real deal. You’ve just been rear-ended by an 18-wheeler. This is no fender bender, you’ve been shaken to the core and the next few hours are more of a blur than anything else. You have just been in a very serious car accident.
Of course there is no need to fake anything this time around, you’re in thorough agony and now experience the true effects of a whiplash. A week passes, barely having processed what actually happened on that Interstate, the medical bills start pouring in. That short ambulance ride to the hospital, those few exams and maybe a scan or two, were more expensive than two full months at the Ritz.
What was supposed to be a slam-dunk case, has now turned into a tug of war. The insurance company adjuster and their lawyers will deny or limit liability based on the fact that you have had this condition before. It’s not unthinkable that, however well-qualified your personal injury lawyer may be, you will not receive the compensation you actually deserve. All of this because, that faithful day two years ago, you decided to take a shortcut, and you had nobody telling you that might turn into a very costly mistake.
It’s not hard to find a law firm to take shady cases, there are enough lawyers out there who will gladly grab those few extra dollars from your little fender bender. Here at Rad Law Firm we always say “Clients First”, that means we have your best interest in mind, and if you ever come in with an ambivalent case like this, we will honestly tell you that it’s not in your best interest to pursue it. Down the line, when you ever get into a serious accident, you will thank us for it. And of course , in that case, we will gladly represent you and make sure you get the compensation you deserve!
Now there are of course many instances where there is a legitimate pre-existing condition, and this doesn’t mean you cannot get proper compensation when you get into a serious accident. Our team of attorneys has experience with cases like these, we fight with insurance companies every day to make sure that our clients get what they are entitled to. If you have a pre-existing condition and have been in an accident but did not seek help because you considered it to be futile anyway, give us a call today and let us evaluate your situation. As always free of charge.
