Suffering a Brain Injury After a Motorcycle Accident?
Brain InjuryRiding a motorcycle can be one of the greatest joys in a person’s life. However, this thrill can come with dangerous consequences, especially if you are involved in a motorcycle crash.
Motorcycle accidents are considered one of the most devastating accidents on the road, often resulting in catastrophic injuries, debilitating pain, and skyrocketing medical expenses. If you have been in a motorcycle accident and suffered a brain injury, you may have many questions regarding what you need to do or who you need to call. This blog post will cover some common questions and explain how a motorcycle accident attorney could get you through this horrific ordeal.
Recognizing a Brain Injury Following a Motorcycle Accident
If you are one of the lucky few to walk away following a motorcycle accident, it does not mean you are in the clear just yet. In fact, it can take weeks to realize that you suffered a brain injury following a motorcycle crash. Many times, these injuries do not have any immediate symptoms. That is why, no matter if you believe your injuries are minor, you need to get examined by a doctor following your collision.
The more common symptoms of a brain injury often include:
- Decreased consciousness
- A headache that continues to get worse
- Feeling weak or experiencing numbness in your legs, fingers, hands, or toes
- Trouble with coordination or experiencing vertigo
- A hard time speaking
- Feeling nauseous or even vomiting
In situations where you or your loved ones notice any of the below symptoms.
You need to head to the hospital for immediate medical intervention:
- Extreme neurological deficits such as lethargy, drowsiness, loss of vision, or muscle weakness
- A significant alteration in mental state such as slow thinking, loss of consciousness, or not waking up from sleeping
- Convulsions
- Seizures
- Loss of memory to the extent that you do not remember the day or what year it is
- Any unusual behavior that is not typical for you
In addition to checking for any brain injury, your doctor can write up their findings in their medical report. If you decide to bring a legal claim, this report could provide you with vital evidence. It could document the extent of your brain injury and help determine how it resulted from the motorcycle accident.
Understand the Financial Impact of Your Brain Injury and How You Can Fight for Damages
Brain injury accidents are one of the most expensive types of injuries. The medical treatments and care can result in an astronomical financial burden for the victim and their family.
Following a motorcycle crash, if you suffer a brain injury, you could face these costs:
- Medical treatments and expenses: If you were in a motorcycle crash, your medical costs may include emergency services such as an ambulance ride, overnight hospitalization, diagnostic tests to determine the extent of your injury, surgeries, pain medications, and continued treatments.
- At-home nursing care: Depending on the extent of your damages, you may need long-term care, even when you are back home.
- Rehabilitative services: Most individuals who suffer a traumatic brain injury not only lose brain function, but they require extensive help to regain their ability to perform simple tasks again. These rehabilitative services can include vocational therapy, physical therapy, behavioral therapy, and even speech therapy.
- Lost income: Unfortunately, when individuals suffer a traumatic brain injury, they may not work for a significant time. In certain circumstances, when the damages are extreme, these victims may never return to their job. As a result, lost wages and lost earning capacity are among the most devastating financial impacts that a person can suffer following a brain injury.
- Home modifications and medical equipment: If you suffered a brain injury, it is not uncommon to require home modifications or medical equipment. The impact of this brain injury may require a wheelchair or a hospital-style bed. As a result, you would need to install a wheelchair ramp, safety features, handrails, and even extra alarms to protect your safety and make things more accessible.
- Personal property damage and replacement services: Following a motorcycle accident, it is likely that you suffered significant personal property damages, including damage to your bike. But, because of your brain injury, you may need additional help around the house, including lawn care services, grocery shopping help, child care help, and cleaning services.
As you can see, the expenses can add up quickly following a motorcycle accident, especially if you suffered a brain injury. For these reasons, you should contact an experienced motorcycle accident lawyer as soon as possible. These attorneys can quickly get to work investigating your accident, reviewing your case, and helping you decide on the best course of action you need to pursue to collect maximum compensation.
Necessary Steps Following a Motorcycle Accident
Typically, following a motorcycle accident, you will need emergency medical treatment.
However, if you can, there are specific critical steps you can take following your motorcycle crash that can help protect your legal rights.
- Gather evidence: After contacting 911, try to take as many pictures of the accident scene as you can. Include photos of your visible injuries, your bike, the cars involved in the crash, any skid marks on the road, weather conditions, and traffic signs near the crash scene.
- Witness information: If anyone saw your accident, get their name and contact information. Their statements could provide you with vital evidence, helping you prove liability and damages.
- Contact an experienced motorcycle accident attorney: Generally, in South Carolina, you only have three years to bring a motorcycle accident claim. However, as each case is unique, this time limit may vary. That is why you should not wait to contact a motorcycle accident attorney following your crash. The faster you call, the sooner these lawyers can start investigating the accident and figure out what happened and who is to blame for your injuries.
If you or a loved one suffered brain damage as a result of a motorcycle accident, do not delay. Contact an experienced motorcycle accident attorney today and let a lawyer fight for the damages and justice you deserve.
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