Loss of Hearing after a Slip and Fall or Car Accident

Slip and falls and car accidents have the potential to cause devastating injuries, including permanent disability. However, some of these injuries are not obvious right away, which is why it’s important to pay attention to abnormal changes in your body, like hearing loss. If you are experiencing hearing loss after a car accident, there’s a good chance that you have a serious injury, which must be treated right away. The same can be said for loss of hearing after a slip and fall or trip and fall.

Seeing a doctor immediately is crucial if you have loss of hearing after a car accident of falling down unexpectedly. Hearing problems are usually a sign of serious injury inside your ear, brain, and other parts of your body. You should also speak with a personal injury lawyer if your accident was caused by someone else’s negligence, like water on the floor or a careless driver. The lawyers of Normandie Law Firm have decades of experience in auto accidents, including injuries to pedestrians. We also have a dedicated team of slip and fall attorneys, who can help you file a claim against an irresponsible property owner.

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What Causes Loss of Hearing after a Car Accident?

There are numerous injuries that can cause you to lose your hearing after a car accident. In this section, we will go over three of the most common health conditions that may be causing this problem. However, it’s possible that your hearing loss is due to another reason altogether, so you must see a doctor right away to determine the actual cause.

Here are the leading causes of hearing loss for those who were involved in a car accident:

• Airbag deployment– Though an airbag can save your life in the event of a crash, there’s no denying that they are extremely loud when they go off. Most airbags exceed 140 decibels (dB) when they deploy, and that can actually cause people to lose their hearing on a permanent basis. Some vehicles have airbags that are louder than 170dB, and the sound is even louder if both the driver and passenger front airbags go off at the same time.
• Head trauma– Those in the driver’s seat can end up with damage to the bones inside the ear if their head makes contact with the steering wheel, dashboard, or windshield. The trauma from this event is likely to result in TBI, i.e., traumatic brain injury. Damage to your brain can lead to significant hearing loss, along with tinnitus, which refers to a buzzing or ringing sound in the ears.
• Whiplash– this is a neck injury that’s very common in cases where the head jostles back and forth in an accident. The brain may be injured from hitting the inside of your skull as your head jerks back and forth, which can cause auditory transmission problems between your brain and ears. An accident serious enough to cause a neck injury can also damage the ear nerves and vessels, which is another possible cause of hearing loss from a car accident.

Hearing loss is a fairly common condition that can happen from old age and other circumstances, which have nothing to do with an accident. That’s why it’s challenging to prove that you have hearing problems as a direct result of being hurt in a car crash. Immediate medical care is essential to establishing the harm you suffered and ensuring that you are compensated from an insurance claim.

How can Slip and Falls Cause Hearing Loss?

Striking your head on the ground, floor, furniture, etc., during a slip and fall can cause injury to your brain, which can also affect your ability to hear and distinguish sounds. Along with hearing loss, you may have symptoms like nausea, vomiting, dizziness, headaches, and tinnitus.

Because hearing loss might not be obvious right after a fall accident, a lot of people are unaware that they have serious injuries for weeks or months. By seeing a doctor right after the accident, you can learn about the injury as soon as possible and begin the recommended course of treatment. Aside from injury to the brain, here are some other conditions that can compromise your hearing after a slip and fall:

• Bone misalignment in the inner ear – there are 3 bones inside the ear, called ossicles, that transmit sounds to the inner eat. If you fall down and your head hits the ground, this can cause misalignment of the bones, which will have an impact on your ability to hear things.
• Damage to the semicircular canals – the semicircular canals are tubes inside the cochlea that help you with balance and spatial recognition. Injury to the semicircular canals results in symptoms like dizziness, nausea, and motional sickness, along with hearing loss.

As you can see, loss of hearing after a trip and fall or slip and fall should not be ignored, as it may indicate a serious injury to one or more parts of your ear, and possibly, your brain.

Restitution for Those Injured in an Accident

The money from an injury claim isn’t just about your medical expenses, though that is certainly a considerable expense on its own. But there may be other forms of compensation you are entitled to, which we can talk to you about during a free consultation. Those injured from a slip and fall or car accident should explore the possibility of suing for:

• Medical expenses, including lifetime medical care
• Lost wages
• Loss of earning potential if you have severe, disabling injuries
• Emotional distress
• Pain and suffering
• Value of lost or damaged property
• Legal fees
• Punitive damages

Knowing what you are qualified to receive is the key to obtaining the highest possible settlement, whether you were in a car wreck of fell down from a dangerous condition on someone else’s property. You will also need skilled and aggressive representation from a personal injury attorney, which we can provide you with here at Normandie Law Firm.

How Long You have to File an Accident Claim

As someone with hearing loss following an auto accident or fall injury, you have 2 years to file a claim against the at fault party. Normally, the statute of limitations begins on the date of the accident, but there may be circumstances that will shorten or lengthen the amount of time for a claim. For example, if you are suing a government entity, like the police department or a school district, you only have 6 months to submit the appropriate claim forms.

he important thing is to verify the statute of limitations for a lawsuit as soon as possible. Contact our office and schedule a free case evaluation with a California slip and fall lawyer. Or, reach out to a car accident attorney to find out the deadline for an accident claim.

Contact Normandie Law Firm

Our hearing can worsen over time due to natural factors, but some people lose their hearing from an accident that could have been prevented. The party at fault should not be allowed to get away with their actions while you are left with lifelong health issues and financial hardship.

All of our attorneys work on contingency, so there is no need to worry about paying for a lawyer who can represent you in a fall injury or auto accident claim. At the point of recovering your settlement, a portion of it will be deducted to cover your legal fees. If we lose and you don’t receive payment from a lawsuit, the Zero Fee Guarantee is our promise to you won’t have to us a single dime.

A lawyer experienced with cases of hearing loss after an accident is waiting to speak with you, so give us a call as soon as possible.

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