Being injured in a car accident can be traumatic. You expect the at-fault driver to compensate you for your lost wages, medical bills, pain, and suffering. However, what happens when the insurance company denies your car accident claim due to your pre-existing conditions?
Under Oregon personal injury laws, accident victims can recover compensation for injuries caused by the car crash. However, insurance companies frequently use a victim’s pre-existing conditions to avoid liability for valid claims.
Our Portland car accident lawyers at Tillmann Law Personal Injury Lawyers understand this tactic and how to fight for full financial compensation. Our award-winning civil trial lawyers have recovered millions for accident victims in Oregon. Contact our Oregon law firm by calling (503) 773-3333 to schedule a free consultation with an experienced Portland car accident attorney.
How Our Portland Personal Injury Lawyers Can Help if You’ve Been Injured in a Car Accident
The law does not allow insurance companies to hide behind pre-existing conditions to avoid liability for damages. You could be entitled to compensation even if a car accident aggravates a pre-existing condition.
Our founding attorney Aaron Tillman has more than 17 years of legal experience. He has numerous awards and recognitions, including being named on the lists by SuperLawyers of “Oregon Super Lawyers” and The National Trial Lawyers Top 100 Trial Lawyers.
Personal injury cases can be stressful and complex, but our legal team handles everything for you to reduce stress so you can focus on healing.
When you hire our legal team, you can expect us to:
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- Use our extensive skills, resources, and experience to investigate the cause of your car accident and gather evidence proving fault and liability
- File insurance claims and handle all matters related to those claims
- Consult medical specialists and other expert witnesses to strengthen your claim that the accident caused pre-existing conditions to worsen
- Calculate the total value of all damages and aggressively fight to obtain that amount for settlement or as a jury verdict
- Use evidence to prove that your current injuries are not based on or caused by pre-existing conditions
You do not have to accept the insurance company’s opinion regarding your car accident injuries. Instead, get help from experienced Portland car accident lawyers. Call Tillmann Law Personal Injury Lawyers for your free case evaluation to discuss getting the money you deserve for a personal injury claim.
What Is a Pre-Existing Condition?
A pre-existing condition is an injury or medical condition you had before the car accident occurred. Car accidents can aggravate or make pre-existing conditions worse.
Common pre-existing conditions that a motor vehicle accident can aggravate include, but are not limited to:
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- Knee injuries
- Arthritis
- Heart conditions
- Head injuries
- Deep vein thrombosis (DVT)
- Shoulder injuries
- Herniated discs and other disc injuries
- Traumatic brain injury
- Spinal cord injuries
- Neck injuries
- Hernias
Compensation for Aggravated Conditions
An accident victim is entitled to be made “whole” by receiving financial compensation for the economic and non-economic damages caused by their car crash. At-fault drivers are only responsible for the damages they cause. This means they can be liable for causing a pre-existing condition to worsen, including increased pain, medical expenses, loss of income, and other harm.
Does Oregon Follow the Eggshell Skull Doctrine for Car Accident Claims?
The eggshell skull doctrine is a legal theory that holds a party responsible for damages they cause based on the condition of the victim at the time of the incident. Oregon courts have ruled that if an accident causes a pre-existing condition to worsen or a person’s medical condition could make them more susceptible to injury, the jurors should be informed of the “multiple causation” and eggshell plaintiff jury instructions.
Being an eggshell plaintiff means that the at-fault party is responsible for injuries to the victim regardless of the victim’s current condition. For example, just because a person’s degenerative disease makes them more susceptible to a back injury does not release the at-fault party from liability if a car crash causes broken vertebrae.
How Will a Pre-Existing Condition Impact My Portland Car Accident Case?
Trying to conceal a pre-existing condition can damage your claim. Instead, contact our Portland car accident lawyers immediately to discuss how to proceed. It is best to allow an experienced injury lawyer to handle the disclosure of pre-existing conditions in a personal injury case.
It is not your fault that you have a pre-existing condition. It is also not your fault that another person’s negligence caused the accident. Therefore, you deserve compensation for your damages.
However, proving damages in a pre-existing condition car accident case can be more challenging. You are not entitled to compensation for losses you would have incurred regardless of the car accident. However, if you can prove the crash caused damages that you would not have incurred but for the car crash, you could receive compensation for those damages.
Potential compensation for the aggravation of a pre-existing condition could include the following:
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- The cost of medical care for the worsened condition
- Loss of income associated with the aggravated condition
- Emotional distress
- Physical pain and suffering
- Long-term care
- Physical therapy
- Out-of-pocket expenses
- Loss of future earning capacity
- Diminished quality of life
The insurance company fights hard to blame all damages on your pre-existing condition. Our Portland personal injury lawyers fight even harder to hold the parties accountable for the harm they caused.
Schedule a Free Consultation With Our Portland Car Accident Lawyers
We’re standing by to provide you with top-rated legal services. Contact us today to schedule a free consultation with our car accident lawyers in Portland. Our firm is located near you. We have an office in Portland at 101 SW Main St #1905, Portland, OR 97204. Find us with our GeoCoordinates: 45.51612408324096, -122.6754185
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