Everything You Need to Know About Personal Injuries
Thousands of people sustain personal injuries every year. Many of these injuries are accidental, while others result from negligence or errors.
Personal injuries can range from minor, such as cuts and bruises, to major, such as broken bones, traumatic brain injuries (TBIs), and even amputations. They can incorporate psychological, emotional, and financial components, too.
It’s important to understand the various types of personal injuries, when to file a claim for a personal injury, and how to navigate personal injury claims.
If you need further legal advice after reading this article, contact Lamber Goodnow. You can visit their website to learn more about their services, the types of personal injuries they cover, and how to contact them.
What is a Personal Injury?
A personal injury is exactly as it sounds. It refers to an injury or injury that a person sustains. Unlike when you injure yourself at home because of clumsiness or accidental errors, a personal injury is caused by another person’s negligence, error, or laziness.
Personal injuries incorporate physical injuries, psychological trauma, and any financial losses associated with the injury.
What Causes Personal Injuries?
Although many injuries are accidental, there are a series of situations where another person or group of people are responsible for the injuries. Here are the most common situations that result in personal injuries:
- Slips and falls
- Car, truck, or bike accidents
- Medical malpractice
- Performing repetitive movements, such as typing or sewing
- Working with heavy equipment or moving machinery
- Working with faulty machinery
What Are the Different Types of Personal Injuries?
There is a variety of different types of personal injuries, ranging from minor to major, including:
- Cuts and lacerations
- Burns
- Whiplash
- Traumatic brain injuries (TBIs)
- Spinal cord injuries
- Muscle strains and soft tissue injuries
- Fractures and broken bones
Alongside physical injuries, a person may experience emotional distress following an incident where they sustained a personal injury. Many people develop anxiety, depression, and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) following a personal injury incident, which affects them for the rest of their lives.
Personal injuries also encompass financiers, including lost wages, the costs of medical bills, property damage, and financial strain following the accident.
What Are the Most Common Causes of Personal Injuries?
We’ve briefly covered the most common scenarios that lead to personal injuries, but now, let’stake a look at the causes of personal injuries in more detail.
Slip-and-fall accidents
Accidents caused by slippery or wet floors, uneven surfaces, or inadequate signage can lead to slip-and-fall accidents. Often, this type of personal injury occurs in the workplace, public spaces, or on private properties, and causes cuts, bruises, and broken bones.
Medical malpractice
Healthcare professionals can make mistakes, many of which don’t lead to any serious consequences. However, mistakes that involve medical misdiagnoses, administration of incorrect treatments, or serious injuries that lead to permanent disabilities. Medical malpractice cases can also involve birth defects or birth injuries.
In the case of an injury caused by medical malpractice, the healthcare professional(s) responsible for the incident are liable for the injuries. Those responsible may be required to take additional training courses, contribute to the compensation payments of the injury claim, or even find alternative work.
Repetitive strain injuries
Performing constant repetitive movements can lead to muscle strains and inflamed tendons, leading to pain and discomfort. Employees in jobs that involve typing, sewing, writing, and packaging or labelling boxes are most prone to repetitive strain injuries.
Usually, the resolution to these injuries involves resting and taking a break from the repetitive movements. Employers can provide ergonomic equipment, such as special keyboards and mice, to reduce their employees’ risk of repetitive strain injuries.
Road traffic accidents
Driving a car, truck, lorry, or motorbike on the road carries a risk of accidents and injuries.
Road traffic accidents can lead to a range of personal injuries of all severities, including cuts, scrapes, lacerations, whiplash, traumatic brain injuries, broken bones, and even car-related deaths. The severity of the personal injuries caused by a road traffic accident depends on the impact of the collision, the safety measures in place, and the conditions of the road.
Product liability
Defective products can lead to serious injuries. Workers may sustain head injuries from broken parts of moving machinery, and consumers can get harmed by using faulty items.
Product liability generally lies in the hands of the manufacturers of the faulty products, not necessarily the seller or the consumer. Most manufacturers will have insurance coverage that protects them financially in the case of personal injury claims.
The Legal Implications of Personal Injuries
Personal injuries often lead to legal claims against those thought to be responsible for the incidents that caused them. An individual who suffers a personal injury due to another person’s negligence may wish to claim compensation for their physical injuries, emotional trauma, medical expenses, and lost wages.
If you’re in the above situation and are in the process of filing a compensation claim against another person for your injuries, you will need to hire a personal injury lawyer and work with them to create a strong case. Your case should prove the negligence and liability of the person who caused the injury to ensure they are held responsible for their actions.
To prove the other person’s negligence, you will need to collect documentation and evidence to convey what happened before, during, and after the accident, the injuries you sustained, and how to the other person is responsible for causing these injuries.
Proving negligence and liability isn’t always easy, but this is something that an expert lawyer can help you with. They will help you collect evidence, including written documents, medical records, police reports, and CCTV footage of the accident if it’s available.
If you and the other parties involved can’t come to a resolution, you may decide to take your claim even further. Your lawyer will represent you in court and showcase the details of your case to maximize your chance of winning the compensation you deserve for your injuries.
