What Should I Do After I’ve been Injured in an Accident?

If you have been injured in a car or workplace accident due to someone else’s negligence, you may be considering filing a personal injury lawsuit.  You may feel you are entitled to collect certain damages from the person responsible or the insurance company.  An Evansville personal injury attorney may be able to help you decide if this is right for you.  If you decide to file a lawsuit, certain things will be required of you; namely, that you will be required to do what you can to recover from your injury. The law requires injury victims to “mitigate their damages” or take measures to improve their physical condition and recover.

This means that you should:

1. Be careful not to miss any appointments with your doctor or physical therapist.  Maintain all appointments and reschedule any you cannot make. If you absolutely have to cancel, give as much notice as you can.  If you are recorded as a “no show” on a doctor’s record sheet, this might be used against you at trial to question whether your injuries were really that severe.

2. Follow your doctor’s orders to speed up your recovery. Take all prescribed medications and therapy, and respect any prohibitions or limitations on activities from which the doctor tells you to abstain.  If you disregard your physician’s orders, this can be used against you in settlement negotiations and at trial to impugn your credibility.  This especially includes advice regarding work, rest, and leisure activities. Stay home from work and rest as your doctor recommends.  Not doing so can not only hinder your recovery from your injury, but it can also affect your case legally.  If you are worried about the financial effect of doing so, your attorney will try to recover lost earnings over the course of the case.

If you have more questions about what to do after you have been in an injury, contact Evansville personal injury attorney Lane Siesky for a free initial consultation.