What Compensation Is Available for Brain Injuries After Car Wreck?

What Compensation Is Available for Brain Injuries After Car Wreck 

After a car accident, brain injuries may be serious and lead to lifelong issues. In high velocity car accidents, occupants may suffer from the force and momentum of the accident, as well as be struck by objects, the structure of the car, or objects coming into the car during the accident. Many people do not even realize they have a traumatic brain injury from a car accident. 

Unlike broken bones, the brain can’t always completely heal. In some cases, victims’ lives are permanently changed. This can affect their work, mental capacity, quality of life and many other factors related to brain injury. 

If you have suffered a car accident brain injury, you may be able to collect compensation with the help of a Georgia car accident lawyer.

Common Types of Brain Injuries From Car Accidents

There are three levels of severity for a traumatic brain injury from a car accident: mild, medium, and severe.

Mild brain injuries include mild concussions with the following symptoms:

  • Lack of coordination
  • Sleeping more than usual
  • Violent outbursts
  • Mood swings
  • Difficulty forming thoughts
  • Memory loss
  • Loss of smell or sensitivity to lights
  • Nausea
  • Seizures

Moderate to severe traumatic brain injuries may have permanent effects. They may even lead to a comatose state from which an individual might not recover.

Be alert for the following symptoms:

  • Loss of consciousness
  • Clear fluid draining from the ears 
  • Dilated pupils
  • Depression
  • Nausea or vomiting
  • Difficulty speaking or walking
  • Confusion
  • Combative behavior and a fiery temper
  • Seizures

Types of Damages in a Car Accident Brain Injury Case

Traumatic brain injuries are a form of personal injury. To collect damages, you must file a personal injury claim. Personal injury victims are often eligible to collect three types of damages: economic, non-economic, and punitive.

  • Economic damages cover the financial losses that the victim has suffered due to the car accident. These include their medical bills, lost wages due to time off to recover, and any loss of future earnings due to further medical requirements.
  • Non-economic damages cover the emotional and intangible losses that the victim suffered. These may not have a receipt like economic damages, but their effects can be just as debilitating and their treatment can require significant financial expense. You may be entitled to claim non-economic damages for pain and suffering, loss of enjoyment of life, loss of capacity to work, disfigurement, and mental illness.
  • Punitive damages can only be awarded if the at-fault party was especially negligent, acted recklessly, or intentionally.

How much is a traumatic brain injury worth?

A traumatic brain injury is a serious medical condition that often has a long-term or permanent impact on an injury victim’s life. Often, people with TBI suffer from dizziness, blurred vision, vertigo, difficulty forming words, coordination difficulties, paresthesia (sensations on the skin such as burning or tingling), memory loss, personality changes, or other symptoms which have a severe impact on the victim’s ability to work and care for themselves. 

Many of these symptoms can be permanent and the victim may be facing a future with full or partial disability.

With any traumatic brain or head injury, it is extremely important to talk to an experienced attorney in your area and make sure that all of your current and future needs will be met—and that you will be fully compensated for the massive impact this injury could have on the rest of your life. At Scholle Law, we have years of experience helping victims of TBI recover just compensation for their injuries. We know how to evaluate how much your injury is worth based on the severity, the circumstances, and your expenses to recover. 

How to File a Personal Injury Claim to Collect Damages

If you have suffered a traumatic brain injury, you will need to file a personal injury claim to collect damages. To file a personal injury claim, you will need to do the following to prove the other party was negligent:

1. Duty of care

The other party must have a duty of care to the victim to be found negligent. This duty of care is a legally recognized obligation that every individual has to care for other members of society. 

For example, any reasonable human understands that drivers on the road should not go out of their way to injure others or put them at risk. They have a duty to drive safely.

2. Breach of duty of care

Proving a breach of duty of care is as simple as comparing the driver’s actions with those of a reasonable individual. 

For example, a driver who swerves recklessly would not be considered by a reasonable driver to be caring for others on the road since they are not driving safely.

3. Causation

To prove negligence, you must prove that the at-fault driver’s breach of duty caused your injuries.

For example, if the driver who was swerving sideswiped your car and sent you into a highway barrier. This collision causes you to slam your head against the steering wheel, giving you a traumatic brain injury. Thus, the negligent party is at-fault for your injuries.

Our experienced personal injury lawyers have helped thousands of car accident victims get their lives back. Now we want to help you.

Call us at (866) 592-1296 or contact us online today for a risk-free case assessment.