The importance of attending with your GP or at hospital following an accident to prove that your injures were caused by a car accident
Find out on this page the two steps to medically proving causation – in other words your injuries were caused by an accident
Car accident victim question
Approximately 6 months ago I was driving alone down a main road in Salford on the way to Blackpool. The weather conditions were heavy snow and it was approximately 1am. I approached a set of traffic lights with slow speed due to the conditions of the road and managed to stop, but I could tell from the grip of the tyres that the roads were very slippery.
A few seconds later a car which was driving behind me hit the back of my car with some force throwing my car forward and jolting the whole of my body.
The driver of the vehicle at the scene apologised for the accident, but I later learned from my motor insurance company that he was saying that I reversed my car into him at the traffic lights, when I clearly would not do that.
My motor insurance company decided to settle the vehicle damage claim as a 50/50 – no solicitors were involved this was just between the motor insurance companies.
As a result I lost my no claims bonus.
The morning after the collision, I straight away felt neck and back pains although I didn’t attend at hospital or go to my GP – I just thought it would go away in due course and didn’t think it was necessary to seek medical attention or to claim compensation.
It is now 6 months later and I get slight back and neck pains when I drive and when I am in bed at night. I have had to take pain killers a couple of times in bed due to the aching of my back.
Is it still possible to claim for my injuries despite the fact that I have not sort medical attention?
Road traffic accident solicitor response
To make a claim for personal injury following a car accident two primary elements must be proved to succeed:
1. The other driver was negligent in causing the accident
So far as car accidents are concerned negligence can be proved by showing that the accident was caused by a driving error of the other driver. From your version of events it seems that the driver behind you was not driving with enough caution given the conditions and did not keep a sufficiently safe distance.
Even on a 50-50 basis if there is a dispute on liability will mean that you have a claim.
2. The driver at fault caused you injury in the car accident
The difficulty for your claim is medical causation – having a medical expert verify that you are suffering injury and that injury was caused by the accident.
Evidence in support of medical causation will normally come from hospital and GP notes – on the basis that an individual with an injury would attend at hospital or their GP immediately or a short time following an accident.
From my reading of the information you have supplied – it seems you have never sort medical treatment even now, which is essential to legally showing that a car accident caused your injury.
The best approach if you are still suffering injury in an accident and have yet to seek medical help
Irrespective of what you intend to do with your claim you should attend with your GP immediately and seek proper treatment. Explain to your GP how you first suffered injury and how long you have experienced your symptoms. X rays might be necessary which could show a cracked vertebrae of the neck / cervical spine or other part of your back.
After you have spoken with your GP and received his comments I think we would need a chat, so I can assess the likelihood of proving your injuries were caused from the car accident.
Discuss your claim with a specialist solicitor free of charge
Either call me for a free discussion on the number shown above my photograph or click car accident claim to fill in an online form with the respective details and I will reply by e mail or call you back to discuss further.
