If you’ve been involved in a car accident in Tallahassee, you may suffer from various injuries depending on the circumstances of the crash. One type of injury caused by auto collisions, knee injury, can range from mild burns to severe ligament tears that
need surgical repair.
Your knee injury could mean that you are entitled to recover compensation from the other driver. At the Law Offices of Anidjar & Levine, we fight for car accident victims across the state of Florida, including Tallahassee. Contact us today at 1-800-747-3733 to begin a consultation with one of our team members so you can learn about working with a Tallahassee knee injury lawyer.
Types of Knee Injuries Car Accidents May Cause
When immense force and pressure is placed on your knee from an outside source, there are several ligaments and other parts of your knee that can be snapped or strained. Types of knee injuries that you may have received include:
- Meniscus injury
- Kneecap injury
- Anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury
- Medial collateral ligament (MCL) injury
- Posterior cruciate ligament (PCL) injury
An ACL injury can happen when you fall, like if you are forcefully ejected from a car during a crash. MCL injuries are often referred to as “dashboard knee,” and this happens when a knee slams into the dashboard during an accident. PCL injuries also occur when your knee hits something solid.
Depending on the severity of your knee injury, you may need surgery right away to repair it. Your doctor will come up with a treatment plan for the injury so that your knee can recover as quickly as possible. Examples of recommended treatments include rest, ice, compression, and elevation (RICE), and physical therapy. It can take weeks, months, or even years to recover from these types of injuries, and you should not have to be financially liable for the treatment your injury requires.
Steps to Take After a Knee Injury
After your car accident, you will have a lot to sort out as you figure out what to do. Speaking with the other driver’s insurance company, finding out your course of treatment, and other tasks will fall on your to-do list. It could be overwhelming, especially in the aftershock of the collision.
Hopefully, you also were able to get contact information from any nearby witnesses who saw the collision unfold and can back up your claims if needed. You’ll also need an official police report on file, so make sure you contact 9-1-1 after the wreck happens.
Seeking medical attention after the accident is also important, as you may have other injuries that need to be treated as quickly as possible. It also gives you an official record of your knee injury so that you have the evidence you need if you decide to file a claim.
You should also consider connecting with a Tallahassee knee injury lawyer, as they may be able to assist you with your case. A lawyer will take on your case for you and handle all the responsibilities of proving the validity of the claim. Call today at 1-800-747-3733 to get started on your case.
Ways a Lawyer May Help You Win Your Case
Once you have hired a lawyer, then you can let them worry about the negotiations with the insurance company and proving the negligence of the other driver. They’ll do that by collecting evidence for your case, such as police reports, witness statements, traffic camera footage, photos of the scene, and more.
For your case to be viable, you must prove negligence before you can collect compensation. In Florida, we follow comparative negligence, which means that you can collect damages even if you are partially at fault, but your award will be reduced by the percentage of fault that you were assigned, according to Florida Statute §768.81. Since your attorney wants you to win maximum compensation, they will try to get your fault reduced or removed.
Types of Damages That May Be Part of Your Award
When you file your claim, there are a few types of damages you can include in order to try and get compensated for them. These may include:
- Medical Bills: With a knee injury, you may need treatment for years to come as you go through physical therapy to restore your knee or surgery for a total knee replacement. You should be able to claim these costs so that you aren’t liable for them.
- Lost Earnings: If your job requires a lot of bending, lifting, standing, and more, it is possible that you won’t be able to resume your duties after the accident. You may also miss time at work in the recovery process. In these events, you deserve compensation for your lost wages or future earning potential.
- Pain and Suffering: Your knee injury likely caused you mental and emotional anguish, and this is not something you can easily quantify. However, you should receive some sort of money for this type of trauma.
- Property Damage: If your car is damaged, then you should be able to recover money from the other driver’s insurance company to cover the costs of either repairing it or replacing it.
Contact Us for a Free Consultation if You’ve Suffered a Knee Injury in a Car Accident
If you’re a victim of a car accident and you suffer a knee injury, then the team at the Law Offices of Anidjar & Levine may be able to provide you with the assistance you need to get the compensation you deserve. We’ve helped people throughout the state of Florida get the money they need after being in a car accident.
We offer free consultations, so there is no obligation at all to you if you make a phone call to us to discuss your case. We’ll go over your options with you and tell you what we think your game plan should be from here. Give us a call today at 1-800-747-3733 so we can tell you all about working with a Tallahassee knee injury lawyer.