Most personal injury claims are made for a new injury or health problem. However, some accidents result in a pre-existing condition being affected. This could involve an injury suffered in the past, an ongoing health problem or a chronic illness.
Car accidents commonly lead to the worsening of pre-existing injuries because the impact can affect much of the body. The same can be true with an accident at work or a fall in a public place.
The worsening such issues can have a big consequence on day-to-day life. It can affect someone’s ability to work, earn money and look after themselves or their family properly.
But can you still hold the 3rd party liable even though you already had problems? Here we look at whether you can claim for a pre-existing condition or injury that has been made worse. And how it can affect the settlement value of your personal injury compensation.
You can claim for pre-existing conditions as well as new injuries
Whether you are claiming for new or pre-existing injuries, the most important element of the claim remains the same: you must be able to demonstrate that someone else is liable for your accident and should have avoided it happening in the first place.
If you can prove liability, you can claim compensation for new and old injuries. Importantly, by making a claim, you may access further medical care that could well help you to recover more quickly.
Remember, if your situation has been worsened in an accident that was not your fault, you have every right to seek compensation for the distress, pain and effect that the outcome has on your life. This would also include mental health as well as physical conditions.
What if an accident has only affected your pre-existing condition?
If your accident only affected your pre-existing condition, you can still make a claim. For example, if a chronic disease has become harder to live with since your accident, you have a right to compensation. It depends what impact it has had on your life. To make a strong case, your solicitor should look at the following:
- The cause of your condition
- Whether it has been worsened by your accident
- The level of increased pain and discomfort
- How your condition impacts your life
- Whether you’ve lost earnings because of the accident
- The financial cost of further treatment
The claims process is the same for new and pre-existing injuries. Our solicitor will get your authority to access medical records and then instruct experts to assess you. They will write a medical report evaluating the impact of the accident.
How your medical records can affect the claim
Medical reports form the basis for your solicitor (and the insurers defending the claim) to discuss what level of compensation you should receive. However, evaluating the amount of compensation due can be a little more complex when claiming for a worsened pre-existing health condition or injury.
When a medical expert conducts a detailed examination, they may well find that the injured claimant has a pre-existing condition that would, in due course, have become an issue anyway. Therefore it is not possible to state that the long term implications of injury were caused by the accident. Of course, such an outcome from a medical is often unwelcome.
In these cases, experts are saying that the accident has simply caused an earlier onset of symptoms. Because of this, a claim can be made for the exacerbation of symptoms. However, the claimant cannot hold the defendant responsible for them in full.
Having said that, it’s not always the case that you would get a lower settlement than someone suffering a fresh injury. Indeed, it could be more, it all depends on the medical evidence available.
Don’t feel embarrassed to make a claim
People living with pre-existing conditions often feel reluctant to claim due to being embarrassed. They may like to live life privately and do their best to hide their health problems from the outside world. Many feel (wrongly) that they may lose their job if their disability is discovered. They learn to work through it and manage their health issues. However, when the situation is worsened by an accident, it can become more difficult to hide the problem.
We’re used to handling these delicate issues. We work closely with claimants to give them the confidence to pursue their legal right to compensation.
It’s usually really quick for us to find out if you have a valid claim, just call us on 01225 430285, or we can call you back. We’ll listen to how your pre-existing condition was affected and advise you as to whether or not you have grounds to pursue a claim on a no win no fee basis.
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