Let’s face it; life gets busy. As you start to feel better after an auto accident, you might be tempted to put other things ahead of attending your post-accident medical appointments. However, as every experienced car accident attorney will tell you, gaps in medical treatment may aggravate your injury, delay your physical recovery or harm your post-accident in jury claims.
Following an accident, your doctor or chiropractor decides how to treat your injuries. It is important to follow through with these decisions even if the initial pain subsides. You risk re-injuring yourself if you stop treatment before the doctor decides it’s ok.
In addition to jeopardizing your health, having a gap in treatment prescribed by your health provider can seriously damage the amount you can recover. Insurance companies can argue that your injury could not have been very bad if you were able to skip appointments.
When things come up in your life that legitimately interfere with treatment, for example, an illness in the family, explain the circumstances to your doctor and ask that it be noted in your records. You should also politely ask your doctor to please write the reason you missed treatment in your records so that you know the information is there for sure. Busy doctors may accept your excuse but not realize that it is important that you have written proof in the records to protect the value of your bodily injury claim.
You can obtain a free download of a book by car accident attorney John P. Burns named 9 Mistakes That Can Ruin Your California Car Accident Case to learn more about this and related car accident issues.
At the Law Offices of John P. Burns, we effectively handle your car accident claim so you can focus on recovering emotionally and physically without dealing with the details. It’s free to ask questions, so contact us directly at 949-496-7000, or email us at john@johnburnslaw.com. We’ll be sure to get back to you within 24 hours.