Florida Personal Injury Claims | Bundza & Rodriguez, P.A. https://www.daytonalawyers.com Sat, 07 Nov 2020 13:48:23 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.5.2 Spinal Cord Injuries are Expensive to Treat https://www.daytonalawyers.com/spinal-cord-injuries-are-expensive-to-treat/ Tue, 27 Mar 2018 16:30:47 +0000 https://www.daytonalawyers.com/?p=2144 Read More »]]> Many accidents leave victims with catastrophic injuries—head injuries, crushed limbs, and internal organ failure. But spinal cord injuries can be some of the most serious. The spinal cord runs down the middle of the back, carrying signals from the brain to other parts of the body. Although it is protected by vertebrae, the spinal cord can become damaged in a traffic accident, with victims facing a lifetime of continuing medical care.

Types of Spinal Cord Injuries

A traumatic accident can cause any of the following injuries to your spinal cord:

  • Compression fracture. The disc falls onto the one below it, pinching nerves and causing pain.
  • Herniated discs. The rubbery pad between vertebrae ruptures.
  • Spinal cord damage. The spinal cord becomes torn or bruised, resulting in loss of movement and sensation.

Paralysis deserves a special mention, because it is so devastating to those who suffer it. Generally, the victim is paralyzed below the point where the spinal cord is damaged. Spinal cord injuries can be complete or incomplete, with some sensation and movement remaining after an incomplete injury but total paralysis resulting when the spinal cord is completely severed.

Someone paralyzed from the neck down has tetraplegia (also called quadriplegia), whereas someone paralyzed from the waist down has paraplegia. Since 2010, the breakdown is as follows:

  • Incomplete Paraplegia: 21%
  • Incomplete Tetraplegia: 45%
  • Complete Paraplegia: 20%
  • Incomplete Tetraplegia: 14%

Costs of Treating Paralysis

A new study from the Christopher & Dana Reeve Foundation has shone a light on the extraordinary cost of living with tetraplegia or paraplegia. Based on their estimates, the first year requires the most intense investment of resources, with the total lifelong costs depending on the age of the victim when they suffered the injury.

For example, someone with paraplegia will spend about $518,904 in the first year alone, and then $68,739 each year going forward. Someone with high tetraplegia will spend $1,064,716 in the first year and $184,891 each subsequent year.

Measured over the course of a lifetime, the numbers look like this:

  • Someone who suffers from paraplegia at age 25 will spend roughly $2,310,104 over their lifetime.

  • Someone who suffers from paraplegia at age 50 will spend about $1,516,052 over their lifetime.

  • Someone who suffers high tetraplegia at age 25 will spend about $4,724,181 over their lifetime.

  • Someone who suffers from high tetraplegia at age 50 will spend roughly $2,596,329 over their lifetime.

These numbers represent only the costs of medical care. They do not include any amounts for lost wages if the paralyzed person cannot return to work, which can be particularly devastating when the injured person is a family’s main breadwinner.

Financial Compensation Is Available

At Bundza & Rodriguez, we help paralyzed victims and their families fight for the compensation they deserve. Victims can receive money damages for the following if they are successful in their lawsuit:

  • Past, present, and continuing medical care
  • Past, present, and future lost wages
  • Pain and suffering
  • Emotional distress
  • Loss of consortium for negative changes to your marriage, such as loss of companionship and sexual intimacy

Given the high costs paraplegics and tetraplegics face going forward, it is important to maximize the compensation you receive in a settlement or jury verdict. For this reason, you must begin building your case right away. Remember to hold onto all medical records and keep detailed notes about how your spinal cord injury has impacted your life.

Have You Suffered a Spinal Cord Injury?

Those suffering from spinal cord injuries face an uncertain future and need an aggressive Daytona Beach spinal cord attorney by their side. At Bundza & Rodriguez, we fight to obtain fair compensation for our clients. Contact us today to begin the process.

Resource:

christopherreeve.org/living-with-paralysis/costs-and-insurance/costs-of-living-with-spinal-cord-injury

]]> How Can You Pay For Medical Costs after a Car Accident? https://www.daytonalawyers.com/how-can-you-pay-for-medical-costs-after-a-car-accident/ Fri, 19 Jan 2018 14:33:18 +0000 https://www.daytonalawyers.com/?p=2051 Read More »]]> Most states require drivers to carry insurance that will cover medical-related expenses in the event of an accident. In Florida, the minimum amount of coverage is $10,000 for medical expenses as well as $10,000 for property damage. However, the minimum amount is often not enough to cover the full cost of medical care.

For instance, even in 2013, the average claim for medical costs after a car accident was $15,443, and costs for severe injuries can get into the hundreds of thousands. Paying for medical costs can be overwhelming, especially if your auto insurance doesn’t cover everything. This is where a personal injury lawyer can help significantly.

How a Personal Injury Lawyer Can Help

Hiring a personal injury lawyer is as much about peace of mind as it is about financial compensation. With rising costs of medical care, working with an attorney as soon as possible following an accident can help you cover the total costs of any treatment and repair damaged vehicles.

Although the statute of limitations on personal injury cases in Florida is four years, it is best practice to get an attorney involved as early as possible, while the event is fresh in your mind and it’s easier to put together the facts of what happened.

This is especially important in Florida because of our state’s comparative fault statute. This allows courts to assign part of the blame to both parties in an accident, if one of the party acted in a way that could be construed as negligent. If you make a personal injury claim against someone and they try to argue that you were also negligent, it may reduce the total compensation you receive, even if you win your case.

Experienced personal injury lawyers will put together a comprehensive set of evidence for helping establish your claim and award the maximum amount of damages, including:

  • Accident reports
  • Witness statements
  • Photo and video of the accident
  • Medical records

Using only some of these documents may leave a part of the story missing, so hiring the right personal injury lawyer can make a huge difference in your case. For example, utilizing only accident records and witness statements gives no indication of the amount of medical expenses caused by the accident. Getting an experienced attorney involved early will help them understand your unique situation and how to use the facts to accurately represent your case.

Hiring a Personal Injury Lawyer in Florida

Bundza & Rodriguez, P.A has years of experience dealing with personal injury cases in Daytona Beach. If you’ve been injured, we’ll take the time to understand your unique needs and build a strong case for your claim. If you’re not sure whether you should make a personal injury claim, contact us for a consultation and we’ll provide advice on the best way to move forward.

In addition to car accident cases, we work with a number of different types of personal injury, including medical malpractice, animal bites and other injuries, wrongful death and sexual assault.

Resources:

rmiia.org/auto/traffic_safety/Cost_of_crashes.asp

leg.state.fl.us/statutes/index.cfm?App_mode=Display_Statute&URL=0700-0799/0768/Sections/0768.81.html

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