A driver, Alex*, crashed his car into a car in front of him, driven by Mike*. GEICO insured Alex. GEICO paid $21,000 to settle the case.
Date of Accident
The accident happened in June 2015.
Cause of Injury
Alex failed to stop for traffic ahead and caused a 3 car collision. Mike suffered injuries, which I’ll discuss below.
Liability
I argued that liability was clear. Just before the crash, Mike was stopped in traffic on South Dixie Highway (US 1). Alex crashed into Mike’s car.
Mike’s car was pushed into the car in front of him. The reporting officer investigating the scene of the crash gave Alex a ticket for careless driving.
The officer made the following diagram on the long form crash report.
The impact was hard. The photo at the top of this article shows the heavy damage to Mike’s car.
The Impact Shattered The Car Window
Below, a close up of his rear window shows the glass was shattered from the force of the impact.
The photo below shows the large cracks on the broken glass.
Nature of Injury and Medical Treatment
On impact, Mike’s head snapped back and struck his headrest. He felt dizzy and confused.
He later began to suffer from severe headaches, accompanied by pain in his neck, shoulders, mid and lower back. He also had pain in his left hip with the pain radiating into his foot.
Mike decided to get treatment with a local clinic, which was near his workplace in Homestead.
Mike Waited 6 Days to Go to Doctor
Six days after the accident, Mike was examined by Dr. Allen Garcia. He explained that on impact he felt his head, neck and trunk snap backwards and forwards violently.
He felt immediate pain, which worsened by the next day. His symptoms at the time of his initial evaluation were noted as follows:
- Headaches
- Neck pain– The pain is constant, aching, and equal on both sides with stiffness. The pain is increased by prolonged sitting or standing.
- Midback pain – The pain is constant, sharp and equal with stiffness. The pain is aggravated by bending, lifting, physical activity, prolonged sitting, standing or walking, driving, and sudden movements.
- Lower back pain with radiating buttock pain – The pain is intermittent, aching, and equal bilaterally with stiffness. The pain is made worse by bending, lifting, physical activity, and prolonged sitting, standing, or walking, sudden movements, and range of motion.
- Tingling in the right lower leg.
- Pain in both shoulders – The pain is intermittent and sharp with stiffness, weakness, and occurs with sudden movement.
- Left hip pain – The pain is intermittent and aching with stiffness. Prolonged standing or sitting, range of motion, sudden movements, and impact loading make it hurt more.
X-Rays Were Taken
X-rays showed that Mike had a decreased curvature of the cervical and thoracic spine, as well as a disc wedging with foraminal encroachment at L5-S1.
The pelvic crest appeared lower than the left. There was increased joint space in the right shoulder AC joint.
Mike Received Therapy
Therapy was recommended.
It consisted of physical therapy sessions and chiropractic treatments, which included joint manipulation, intersegmental traction, myofascial release, trigger point therapy, interferential, as well as cryotherapy, moist heat, and progressive resisted rehabilitation.
GEICO paid $21,000 to Settle Mike’s Personal Injury Case
Alex’s car insurance company, GEICO, paid $21,000 to settle Mike’s personal injury case. I represented Mike.
*The above names are not real name of the people involved.
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