A pelvic fracture is an extremely painful injury that can sideline you for weeks or months depending on the extent of the damage. You may not be able to walk for some time, and if you are not careful, the fracture can lead to paralysis or atrophy. It is important that you find a doctor who can accurately and quickly diagnosis you with a pelvic fracture so you can start treatment and be on the road to recovery. Individuals who were harmed in accidents can also pursue the assistance of a skilled lawyer with experience in pelvic fracture lawsuits. Our team of attorneys at Normandie Law Firm has taken on numerous calls regarding pelvic fracture claims and we know the best methods to winning you the compensation you deserve.
Pelvic Fracture: What is it?
The pelvis consists of numerous bones, including the sacrum (lower back), coccyx (tailbone), ilium (jutting hip bone), pubis (front hip bone), and ischium (rear hip bone). The entire pelvis works together to allow hip mobility, enable walking and bending, and more. In women, the pelvis is shaped slightly differently to accommodate the birth canal. A pelvic fracture is, thus, a break in one of these areas.
Pelvic fractures may be stable, in which there is a single break that does not cause excessive bleeding, or unstable, in which there are multiple breaks that completely compromise mobility and result in excessive bleeding. Unstable fractures will take much longer to heal and can have more impactful effects on your future.
Symptoms of pelvic fractures include the inability to walk or stand straight up, intense pain in the hip and surrounding area, numbness, bleeding from orifices, difficulty going to the bathroom, pain that radiates upward, and more.
What are causes of pelvic fractures?
A pelvic fracture or broken bone in the pelvis can happen due to sudden impact or trauma to the area. You are not likely to experience a pelvic fracture from a soft impact unless you have a bone density issue or you have a deteriorating disease or condition. For example, individuals who suffer from osteoporosis and had similar conditions are at an increased risk for broken bones due to the degradation. There is also the chance that a pre-existing injury will influence a pelvic fracture; for example, weak or unstable hips from a surgery can lead to them not being able to accurately hold or support your weight, and if you fall, a lot more weight can fall on the already weakened bones, leading to fractures.
A few of the causes of pelvic fractures include:
- Motorcycle accidents: Motorcycle accidents are common causes of pelvic fractures because of the lack of seatbelts and safety gear on them. If a person is an accident, he will get pinned below the motorcycle and won’t be able to get up. He may also be flung from the motorcycle at a high speed. Pelvic fractures from motorcycle accidents can be devastating.
- Car accidents: Similar to motorcycle accidents, high speed car accidents can cause pelvic fractures because of the sudden impact and the likelihood of the interior of the car crushing the pelvis. It is not uncommon for doors, steering wheels, dashboards, and other parts to pin the individual to the seat and cause pelvic fractures.
- Slip and fall accidents: You may slip and fall on any surface. Sidewalks could be covered in ice or debris, offices may have torn carpeting on the floors, grocery stores could have spilled cartons of milk in the aisles with no wet floor signs, restaurants may have floods in the bathrooms, and more.
- Defective stairs: It is common for staircases and steps to be broken in some way, whether by having weak supports, no handrails, or slippery edges and surfaces. If you fall down the stairs, the risk of a pelvic fracture increases.
- Defective bath areas: In hotels and such, the bathrooms should be properly maintained. Defective tubs and showers, slippery tiles, and other issues can cause falls. Further, landlords should ensure that the bathrooms in renovated apartments are not broken. Too often, elderly individuals will fall in the bathroom and wind up with fractured pelvises.
You should always be careful no matter what activity you are undertaking. A pelvic fracture can cause you to suffer numerous issues. If the incident can be attributed to the negligent action of another party, such as an inattentive retail worker or an evasive landlord, you could sue for compensation from the incident.
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What should I do after a pelvic fracture accident?
After suffering a pelvic fracture in an accident, it is important that you take the necessary steps to get evidence and proof for a lawsuit. The very first step you should take, though, is going to the doctor to get treatment. The longer you wait, the more damage you will do to your health and to your claim. A delay between the incident and the treatment will be viewed negatively by the insurance agent, and some will even use it as grounds to dismiss your claim. When you go to the doctor, you should save all medical receipts and notes from the physician.
You will need to have photos to prove parts of the case were true. Pictures of your injuries (including X-rays and MRI images), pictures of the scene of the incident, security camera footage, pictures of the hotel or vehicle that was involved, and more can all be added to your claim to give it credence.
You should then interview anyone who may have seen the incident happen. These individuals can be eyewitnesses, bystanders, workers, other drivers, and more. Their statements and testimonies will come in handy. It is beneficial to have multiple perspectives supporting your claim.
If you have specific documents, like receipts and credit card statements, you should hold on to them. Further, if the police showed up to the accident (as in automobile accidents), you can request a copy of the police report.
It will be worthwhile for you to write down the personal information, contact details, and insurance policy number of the responsible party.
Lastly, you will be best served by hiring a skilled attorney with experience in pelvic fracture cases. You may not know the first thing about moving forward with a claim or negotiating a fair deal. Our lawyers can assemble your evidence, write the demand letter, and submit it to the insurance agency. We can then work to bring you the maximum compensation you need.
What is the average value of a pelvic fracture case?
The average value of a pelvic fracture case depends on the circumstances within it, not merely the fact that you suffered a pelvic fracture. When you hire an attorney to send the demand letter to the insurance agency, the agent will look over the evidence and make an offer depending on how he views the case. He will consider your injuries, the impact they had on your life and career, the kind of job you have, the level of fault you displayed in the incident, and more when making an initial offer. Then, he will submit the offer to the lawyer.
There is no way of knowing what the agent will offer. There is no calculator that determines the actual worth of a case, and even two similar cases can have wildly different values. Some cases may be worth over $1,000,000 because of the highly negligent actions of the defendant, while others may be worth less than $10,000 because the defendant should have known better.
In order to correctly ascertain what your case may be worth, you should speak with an expert attorney.
What can I win in a pelvic fracture lawsuit?
With the right representation, you can win an ample amount of compensation for your lawsuit. You should not expect that your case will earn a small amount. We will strive to win you coverage for every area, including:
- Medical expenses for past treatments and future procedures
- Missed income from time you could not go to work in the pat and in the future because of treatment and recovery time
- Property damage if any of your items or personal belongings were lost or needed to be replaced
- Pain and suffering damages for emotional trauma, anxiety, fear, PTSD, and more
What is the deadline to file a pelvic fracture claim?
In California, you have 2 years from the date of the injury to file a pelvic fracture lawsuit. If you do not take legal action in the 2 year window, you will not be able to secure any compensation in the future. With the help of our attorneys, you will never miss a deadline.
There is also the chance that your lawsuit statute of limitations can be extended past the 2-year mark. If you were underage at the time of the incident, the statue would not begin until you turn 18 years old. If you were left physically or mentally unable to file a claim, the statute will start when you return to health.
Further, the defendant must be present in the state or you cannot sue. Therefore, the deadline will not be set until he returns to the state.
Why Choose Us
Normandie Law Firm is one of the premier law firms in Los Angeles. We have a group of highly experienced attorneys with decades of combined experience. Our goal is always to bring you every penny you deserve, and if we need to, we will go to court to win your case.
To schedule a free legal consultation, call our offices today. We will discuss your case with you and how much we think we can win for you. If you want to hire us, we will give you our zero fee guarantee. This is the promise that you won’t have to pay anything out of pocket for our services. We won’t get paid unless and until we win, and the money will come from the settlement we bring you from the insurance agency. If we lose, we get paid nothing.
Get started on your pelvic fracture lawsuit case today with the help of Normandie Law Firm.
