Shelly is a stay at home mom from Greenfield. She was stopped at a red light when she was rear-ended. The at-fault driver told the investigating officer that she “nudged” Shelly’s vehicle. Because Shelly’s vehicle had a trailer hitch on it, there was very little property damage. However, Shelly developed back pain, neck pain, and headaches after the impact.
Legal Assistance After Greenfield Rear-End Car Accident
Complicating Shelly’s car accident case further was the fact that she was already scheduled for a cervical neck fusion surgery before the crash. While her doctors wanted her to get treatment for her low back pain, no one would perform physical therapy on her spine until after she had the previously scheduled surgery. Shelly was very reasonable from the beginning of her case; she understood that because of the pre-existing condition in her neck and the surgical recommendation that pre-dated the crash, we were unlikely to be able to make a claim for her neck injury.
However, her low back (or lumbar spine) had never given her trouble and she had no history of treatment on her low back. Following successful unrelated surgery, Shelly was able to begin treating for her back pain and headaches from the crash. Ultimately, she received injections in her low back – and physical therapy.
‘Simple’ Accident – Challenging Car Accident Case
Shelly’s case represented several common challenges in personal injury cases:
First, a relatively low impact
The insurance industry has made a push in recent years to heavily defend low impact cases, arguing that a low impact is not capable of producing the claimed injuries. Sound science proves this is simply not the case – however, it is a common attack on injury claims where available.
Secondly, Shelly had degeneration in her spine before the crash
To be clear, all humans, should we be lucky enough to live into our 40s to 100s, will have degenerative changes in our spines and joints. We’re biological beings and we degenerate over time. However, degeneration does not always lead to symptoms – like pain.
Often times, a triggering event, like a car crash, even at low speeds, can cause degenerative conditions to produce symptoms – like pain. The insurance industry has long tried to leverage these degenerative changes against injured people. But for people like Shelly, the post-crash reality was pain where there was never pain before – even though there was pre-existing degeneration.
Domnitz Wins for Shelly of Greenfield, WI
We successfully fought all of these battles on Shelly’s behalf. Ultimately, the liability carrier paid their $100,000 policy limits to Shelly. Additionally, because Shelly wisely purchased Underinsured Motorist Coverage on her auto policy, she collected an additional $37,500 from her own carrier.
We appreciate Shelly’s trust in our firm – and we’re proud that Shelly found us through our A+ rating with the Better Business Bureau.