A sudden accident can change your life forever. Serious injuries like spinal cord damage or traumatic brain injuries bring immense pain and stress. With mounting medical bills and lost wages, it can be hard to see a way forward. The legal system feels confusing, and insurance companies aren’t on your side.
This is where Recovery Law Center, a Honolulu catastrophic injury lawyer, can help. Our law firm specializes in personal injury cases and has a history of winning fair compensation for victims. We’ll fight for your rights so you can focus on healing.
Don’t let someone else’s negligence ruin your life. Contact our experienced hawaii personal injury attorneys for a consultation and legal representation to start your journey to recovery.
What Is a Catastrophic Injury?
A catastrophic injury is a severe injury that has a long-term or permanent impact on a person’s life. These injuries usually happen suddenly and can drastically change the way someone lives. Unlike minor injuries, catastrophic injuries can affect your ability to work, take care of yourself, or even move around. They often need extensive medical treatment, rehabilitation, and sometimes lifelong care.
The consequences of such injuries extend beyond physical damage. They can cause emotional distress, financial strain due to high medical bills, and loss of income if the person is unable to return to work. Families and caregivers also face significant challenges, as they often need to provide ongoing support.
Types of Catastrophic Injuries
Examples of catastrophic injuries include:
- Traumatic brain injuries (TBI): Injuries caused by forceful blows, jolts, or penetrating injuries to the head. A severe TBI can lead to damaged brain cells, comas, seizures, and long-term cognitive problems.
- Spinal cord injuries: Any kind of damage to the spinal cord can result in permanent losses of strength, sensation, muscle control, and other bodily function below the site of an injury. Severe spinal cord injuries may lead to partial or total paralysis.
- Severe burns: Second, third, and fourth-degree burns may leave victims with irreparable skin damage, scarring, and disfigurement. Catastrophic burn injury victims can permanently lose their physical sensation, ability to sweat, and ability to ward off infections.
- Amputation: Accident victims who lose one or more limbs may be permanently unable to move around or function as they once did, making it difficult to perform many different types of jobs.
- Brachial plexus injuries: A preventable type of catastrophic injury that can cause permanent disability in the arms and hands.
- Multiple fractures: In complex fractures, the bones shatter in multiple locations. These fractures are difficult to heal and sometimes lead to permanent disabilities.
Accidents That Can Cause Catastrophic Injuries
There are many different accident scenarios that can cause catastrophic injuries, such as:
- Car, truck, and motorcycle accidents: The extreme forces of a motor vehicle collision can easily cause catastrophic injuries to vehicle occupants, bicyclists, and pedestrians. Amputations, severe burns, broken bones, and injuries to the brain and spinal cord are all common injuries from car accidents.
- Slip and falls: People who experience a serious slip and fall accident on unsafe properties frequently suffer catastrophic injuries like bone fractures, spinal cord injuries, and head trauma.
- Medical malpractice: When medical providers are negligent, victims sometimes sustain catastrophic injuries such as brachial plexus trauma, organ damage, severe infections, and even accidental amputations.
- Construction and workplace accidents: Construction and work sites often have heavy machinery, equipment, and moving parts that can cause all kinds of catastrophic injuries.
- Sports accidents: High-impact sports such as football and hockey can leave athletes with catastrophic injuries such as TBIs, spinal cord trauma, and serious bone fractures.
- Recreational accidents: Hawaii provides residents and visitors with a wide array of recreational activities to enjoy, such as boating, surfing, parasailing, and more. If a rental company or other business is negligent in some way, a victim who suffers a catastrophic injury may have a case against the at-fault entity.
Should I Settle with the Insurance Company After a Catastrophic Injury?
If you suffered a catastrophic injury in Hawaii, you may be wondering whether an insurance settlement will provide you with the compensation you need to manage the effects of your injuries.
With a lifetime of potential disabilities on the line, it’s advisable to speak with an attorney before making any deals with an insurance company. There are several reasons why:
- Settling Fast: Insurance adjusters often push for a quick settlement, but settling too soon can be a mistake, especially after a catastrophic injury. A lawyer can help prevent premature settlements, ensuring you receive adequate compensation for your future needs.
- Valuing Your Claim: Some damages are easy to calculate, while others, like pain and suffering, are not. A lawyer can provide a reasonable estimate for your personal injury claim and fight for the maximum possible compensation.
- Evidence for Compensation: An attorney knows what evidence is needed to support your claim. In Hawaii, you can claim compensation for medical costs, rehabilitation, lost wages, home modifications, medical equipment, nursing care, lost earning capacity, pain and suffering, and more.
If the insurance company fails to offer a settlement that’s fair, a catastrophic injury attorney may recommend that you take the at-fault party to court. Even when a lawsuit is filed, most cases settle before going to trial.
How Are Catastrophic Injury Claims Handled in Hawaii?
If you decide to pursue compensation for a catastrophic injury in Hawaii, you should consider how the following laws and rules could affect your claim:
- Statute of limitations: Hawaii’s statute of limitations law provides catastrophic injury victims with two years to file claims for compensation. This two-year time limit begins on the date of your accident or the date when you knew or should have known about your catastrophic injury.
- Comparative negligence: The rule of comparative negligence in Hawaii states that if you were partially responsible for the accident that caused your catastrophic injury, the amount of compensation you can claim will be reduced according to your overall percentage of fault. If you were more than 50 percent at fault for the accident, you are prohibited from recovering compensation at all.
- Compensation limits: There is a $375,000 cap on pain and suffering damages in Hawaii. In addition, your ability to collect full and fair compensation could be affected based on the at-fault party’s insurance policy limits.
- Settlement tax policies: Any compensation you receive specifically for your catastrophic physical injury is not taxable. However, you may owe income taxes on any compensation you receive for pain and suffering that is not the direct result of your catastrophic injury.
Why Should I Hire a Lawyer?
Catastrophic injury cases often involve high-value compensation amounts, which means that at-fault parties have even more incentive to minimize or deny claims. An experienced personal injury lawyer can help you succeed in your catastrophic injury claim by:
- Providing experienced advice: A catastrophic injury lawyer can help you understand your rights as well as any laws or regulations that apply to your case. A lawyer also has years of experience handling similar cases and can advise you on how much your claim could be worth and whether it is likely to succeed.
- Locating compelling evidence: Attorneys can conduct investigations to uncover and preserve valuable evidence if the cause or effects of your accident are disputed.
- Consulting with experts: Lawyers often know medical professionals, occupational specialists, and accident reconstruction experts who can provide testimony to support your claim.
- Negotiating with insurance providers: Attorneys are seasoned negotiators who can communicate with insurance companies to argue for the maximum compensation you deserve for your catastrophic injury claim.
- Representing you in court: If insurance providers refuse to offer a reasonable settlement for your catastrophic injury claim, a lawyer can help you file a lawsuit to demand compensation in court.
Contact a Honolulu Catastrophic Personal Injury Attorney
If you or a loved one has suffered a serious injury or catastrophic injury in Honolulu, it’s essential to seek the right legal representation.
Recovery Law Center, a trusted Catastrophic Personal Injury Attorney in Hawaii, is here to help you through these challenging times. Our dedicated team understands the impact of spinal cord injuries, traumatic brain injuries, severe burns, and other catastrophic injuries.
We are committed to fighting for your rights and ensuring you receive fair compensation for your suffering and other damages. Schedule a free consultation today and take the first step towards securing the justice and recovery you deserve.
