Our firm specializes in all types of personal injury law, including without limitation auto accidents, motorcycle accidents, train accidents, airplane accidents, accidents involving pedestrians, accidents involving bicyclists, accidents involving skateboarders, slip and fall accidents, premises liability or unsafe premises claims, dog bite accidents, wrongful death accidents. No case is too small or too large for us to handle.
WHAT TO DO IN CASE OF AN ACCIDENT:
- DO stop at the scene, or as close as possible, without obstructing traffic any more than necessary;
- DO determine if you, or any of your passengers, are injured, and if so, stay put and call 911;
- DO call the police and report the accident, even if you and/or your vehicle are only slightly injured;
- DO get detailed information from the other drivers and/or parties and/or witnesses involved, including name, address, phone number, vehicle or motorcycle information, insurance information, the location, date and time of the accident;
- DO take photographs of the accident scene, location of the vehicles, any visible injuries, road signs, skid marks, damage to the vehicle(s);
- DO communicate all of your injuries to the police, even if you do not need immediate medical attention;
- DO seek immediate medical attention if there is any possibility that you may be hurt;
- DO report the accident to your insurance company;
- DO NOT admit fault;
- DO NOT give a recorded statement, or any statement, to the other driver’s insurance company;
- DO NOT minimize your injuries, even if you feel bad for the other driver or feel embarrassed; and
- DO NOT try to settle your own claim if you have a serious injury or sought medical treatment for your injury.
EGGSHELL SKULL RULE
Is an insurance company not offering you money for your auto accident case because:
“This is a minor rear end accident with only minor property damage.”
“We question the casual relationship between the impact and the injuries claimed.”
“This type of minor accident does not typically result in an injury producing event.”
“You have pre-existing injuries and they are not a result of this accident.”
“The impact was insufficient to cause you injuries.”
“Crash studies conclusively establish there is a minimum threshold of force required for an accident to cause an injury. Based on the damages to both vehicles, it is clear those injury producing forces were not present in this loss.”
An insurance company will not tell you that you are entitled to money if an accident makes a pre-existing medical condition worse. If you have a pre-existing injury that is made worse by an accident, you may recover for the aggravated injury. Or, if you have a pre-existing injury, that makes you more susceptible to injury and results in more serious damages than normal, you may recover for the full amount of your damages. This is called the eggshell skull rule.
The eggshell skull rule is the law in California. It says if you have a skull as thin as an eggshell and a defendant hits you causing your skull to break, the defendant is responsible for all damages caused, even if your damages were not foreseeable. In other words, the Defendant must take you as they find you. The eggshell skull jury instruction is CACI 3927:
“Plaintiff is not entitled to damages for any physical or emotional condition that he/she had before defendant’s conduct occurred. However, if plaintiff had a physical or emotional condition that was made worse by defendant’s wrongful conduct, you must award damages that will reasonably and fairly compensate him/her for the effect on that condition.“
Everyone has some sort of a pre-existing condition. Everyone has felt pain in their back, neck or had a headache. Do not let an insurance company use your prior medical condition against you. Do not sign a medical authorization allowing the insurance company to obtain your medical records. You are arming the insurance company with ammunition it will use against you.
If you have a prior injury and the insurance company is trying to use it against you, contact Quirk Law Firm now.
