How Refusing Treatment for Injuries Can Hurt Your Car Accident Case

In the heat of the moment following a car accident, you may believe that you don’t need to seek any medical attention. The severity of your injuries may not present themselves for several days or weeks after the accident. Given the stressful environment of the scene at a car accident, you may not fully acknowledge any injury at all. Or you may simply decide to forego seeking medical attention for the sake of saving money or avoiding the doctor’s office altogether. 

Unfortunately, refusing or not seeking treatment for any injuries sustained at the scene of an accident could put any future settlements at risk. Read on to better understand how refusing medical treatment could hurt your case. 

Insurance companies do not advocate for policyholders

For insurance companies, it is in their best interest to keep as much money as possible. Aside from state laws, we have insurance as a safety net to keep ourselves protected. Despite what you might believe, insurance companies will do almost anything in order to NOT pay out your insurance claim. 

By refusing medical treatment related to your accident, you risk giving the insurance company additional grounds to minimize or reject your insurance claim. 

Lack of documentation can hurt your case

Since we know that the insurance company is not on our side, we must take collecting accident-related documentation very seriously. This includes documenting the medical treatment and any related diagnoses. By refusing treatment, you lose out on a crucial element of your case. Obtaining medical evidence will help give weight to your claim. By bypassing this step, your claim may be drastically reduced or completely dismissed for lack of sufficient evidence. 

There are many car accident injuries that can go unnoticed at first. Symptoms may take a bit to set in or emerge. We always recommend that you seek medical attention as soon as possible, even if you believe that you’re fine. 

Read More: “NO-FAULT” & DETERMINING WHO’S AT FAULT AFTER A CAR ACCIDENT

Insurance companies can use your words against you

By claiming that “you’re okay” and that you don’t need to see a doctor, you could be setting yourself up for the insurance company to refuse to pay any future claims. This gives them evidence to indicate that your injuries are unrelated to the accident because you said that you were unharmed at the scene.

The same goes for any statements regarding refusing treatment based on avoiding hefty medical bills. An insurance company could use these statements as an argument regarding fault. They may argue that if you were not at any fault of the accident, you wouldn’t be concerned about related costs.

Fighting insurance companies for fair claims can be tricky! They have a lot of experience when it comes to reducing or refusing to pay out for medical bills. No matter where you are after an accident, we recommend seeking medical attention as soon as possible, even if you initially opted to refuse treatment. 

Don’t go at it alone

Working with an experienced attorney can bring expertise as it relates to getting the compensation you deserve. 

Call us today to speak with one of our attorneys to discuss your options.