From pedestrians hit while crossing the street to catastrophic truck accidents, collisions with motor vehicles often leave innocent victims struggling with injuries. More often than not, these injuries require medical attention that typically result in expensive medical bills. Sometimes, these injuries are fatal. In fact, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, in 2014, 32,675 people were killed in motor vehicle crashes on U.S. roadways. An additional 2.3 million people were injured in crashes in 2014.
As we have discussed, some injuries (such as whiplash, a serious condition resulting often resulting from car accidents) and other health conditions are not initially obvious because they may take a while to develop. As a result, some accident victims do not believe that they should file a claim to recover compensation for these injuries or, if they do file a claim, are not sure whether to include them in their request for compensation. Without the guidance of an experienced personal injury attorney in Woodland Hills, many injury victims do not consider the long-term health care needs their injuries may require, and this on-going cost should obviously affect how much compensation a victim seeks.
Besides whiplash, a common ‘injury’ that does not immediately show up after an accident is Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, or PTSD. PTSD develops after a terrifying ordeal that involved physical harm or the threat of physical harm (such as a car car crash). We often hear of PTSD with soldiers returning home from combat, but it can affect accident victims as well. In many cases, accident victims do not realize that their flashbacks of the accident, recurring nightmares, and anxiety near elements involved in the accident are actually symptoms of PTSD. 
What’s more, while post-traumatic stress disorder symptoms may start within three months of a traumatic event, sometimes symptoms may not appear until years after the event. This means if you rush to settle your car accident claim without speaking to a knowledgeable car accident lawyer who is familiar with PTSD and its long-term effects, you may not receive the full financial compensation you deserve and may be stuck paying out of pocket for injuries caused by someone else’s negligence.
If you were injured in a car accident in Woodland Hills, reach out to personal injury attorney Barry P. Goldberg and his team for a free, no-obligation consultation to discuss your legal rights and potential for financial recovery.
