A chest contusion is a type of bruise that occurs when a person suffers a severe blow to their chest – or when they fall to the ground and land on their chest. When an individual sustains a blow that’s forceful enough, they might also injure their lungs, airway, blood vessels, or heart in an accident. Sports injuries, bicycle accidents, motorcycle crashes, slip-and-fall accidents, and car accidents can all cause chest contusions and related injuries. In most instances, a chest contusion is a treatable injury. When an accident victim suffers a chest contusion, they should go to an emergency room or local urgent care center immediately. The physician on duty can order a chest X-ray or MRI to properly diagnose the accident victim and provide them with the treatment they need to recover from their injury.Accident victims may also need to undergo additional treatment following their initial emergency room visit. This is because victims who suffer chest contusions frequently experience ongoing pain resulting from injuries to their cartilage, muscles, or ribs. In fact, ordinary coughing and breathing may cause these symptoms to become worse.After seeking prompt medical treatment following an accident, you should consult with a knowledgeable injury attorney as soon as possible. The skilled legal team at Cesar Ornelas Injury Law can meet with you to discuss the circumstances of your accident and the injuries which you suffered. We could then determine if you are eligible to file a personal injury claim seeking monetary compensation and damages for your injuries. If you are eligible, our legal team can file a claim on your behalf and help you maximize the monetary damages you recover. For a free legal consultation and case evaluation with a skilled personal injury attorney, please give us a call or contact us online for more information.
Accidents that May Cause a Chest Contusion
Chest contusions may result from accidents that negligent and careless individuals cause. Some of the most common accidents that lead to chest contusions include:
- Motor vehicle accidents, such as those that involve trucks, cars, bicycles, motorcycles, or pedestrians, where a negligent driver operates their vehicle in a negligent manner, while distracted, or while under the influence of alcohol or drugs
- Sports injuries, where a coach or referee refuses to take an injured child out of a practice or game following a chest injury
- Slip-and-fall accidents, where a premises owner fails to reasonably care for their property and fails to warn about or repair a dangerous hazard that exists on the property, causing a slip-and-fall accident
If you suffered a chest contusion in any of these occurrences that resulted from someone else’s negligence, you have several legal options you may be able to consider. Our experienced legal team can discuss the circumstances surrounding your accident and injuries with you and, if necessary, retain an accident reconstructionist to investigate your accident. If you are eligible to file a personal injury claim, we can assist you throughout every step of the claims-filing process and help you recover the full monetary damages you deserve for your injuries.
How do Accidents Occur?
Accidents like motor vehicle crashes and slip-and-falls typically result from others’ negligence. A person or entity behaves in a negligent manner when they deviate from the applicable standard of care. In most instances, a negligent party acts unreasonably when they do something that a hypothetical “reasonable person” would not have done in the same situation. Alternatively, they might fail to do something that a hypothetical “reasonable person” would normally have done in the same scenario.An accident victim has the sole legal burden of proof in their personal injury claim or lawsuit. Conversely, the at-fault individual or entity does not need to prove anything in the case. To recover monetary damages, the injured accident victim must show that the at-fault party owed them a duty of reasonable care which they violated. In the context of a slip-and-fall accident, for example, a restaurant owner who was aware of a spill on the floor might have failed to warn about or clean up the spill within a reasonable period of time, causing someone to fall on the ground and suffer a chest contusion.In addition to proving the duty and breach elements of a negligence claim, an injured accident victim must demonstrate that the at-fault party’s carelessness was both the actual and the foreseeable cause of their chest contusion injury. Finally, the accident victim must demonstrate that their chest contusion directly resulted from their accident.To establish the legal burden of proof, an accident victim or their lawyer may need to retain one or more experts to testify at a discovery deposition or jury trial. For example, an accident reconstructionist may be able to visit the scene of the occurrence, speak with witnesses, review police reports, and testify that the at-fault party’s negligence likely caused the accident.In addition, a medical expert may be able to causally relate an accident victim’s chest contusion injury directly to the accident. If the accident victim suffers ongoing damage to their ribs, blood vessels, heart, or other bodily organs, the medical expert may be able to testify that they suffered a permanent injury. A permanent injury is one that is unlikely to get better with time and which will likely cause the accident victim to experience pain and other symptoms for the rest of their life.The knowledgeable Texas attorneys at Cesar Ornelas Injury Law can meet with you to discuss the circumstances of your accident and, if necessary, retain an expert to help you prove the legal elements of your claim or lawsuit. We can then assist you during settlement negotiations and help you pursue the maximum monetary compensation available to you in your case.
Filing a Claim with the Insurance Company
The first step to recovering monetary damages for a chest contusion is for your lawyer to file a personal injury claim with the appropriate insurance company. After most accidents, your lawyer can file this claim with the insurance company for the at-fault individual or entity. For example, if you suffered your chest contusion in a car accident, we could file a claim with the responsible driver’s insurer. As part of your settlement demand package, our legal team could submit copies of your medical records, medical bills, lost wage documents from your employer, police reports, witness statements, photographs of your injuries, and other potential evidence. Once the insurance company adjuster reviews this information, they might make an offer to settle your case.In most personal injury claims, initial settlement offers are far less than the actual case value. Therefore, we will likely need to negotiate with the insurance company adjuster several times before they increase their offer meaningfully. If that increase does not happen, we could threaten the insurance company with litigation.If we need to file a lawsuit in your case, we can continue settlement negotiations, but if necessary, take your case all the way to a jury trial or binding arbitration hearing. Our legal team can answer all of your questions and help you make informed, intelligent decisions throughout your personal injury claim or lawsuit.
Recovering the Monetary Damages You Deserve for a Chest Contusion
If you sustained a chest contusion or other injury in an accident that resulted from someone else’s negligence, you might be eligible to recover various monetary damages. The types and amounts of monetary compensation you may recover for a chest contusion will depend upon several factors, including the extent of your chest contusion, the specific medical treatment you underwent, the cost of your medical treatment, and the permanency of your injury. Generally speaking, an accident victim who suffers a permanent injury will likely recover higher damages than an accident victim who suffers a temporary injury. Our legal team can help you determine the range of monetary compensation you may be eligible to recover in your case.Some of the most common monetary damages that accident victims recover for chest contusions include compensation for:
- Related medical expenses and surgical procedures
- Revisionary medical procedures
- Permanent impairment or disfigurement
- Lost wages
- Loss of earning capacity
- Inconvenience
- Past and future pain and suffering
- Emotional anguish
- Loss of use of a body part
- Loss of life enjoyment
Our legal team can review the extent of your injuries with you and determine which of these monetary damages you may be eligible to recover in your case. We can then assist you during settlement negotiations – and, if necessary, during litigation – and zealously advocate for you at all stages of your personal injury case.
Call an Experienced Personal Injury Lawyer in Texas Today
If you suffered a chest contusion or other injury in an accident that resulted from someone else’s negligence, your first priority should be seeking the medical treatment that you need to get better in a timely manner. Your next call should be to a knowledgeable personal injury attorney. At Cesar Ornelas Injury Law, our legal team prides itself on thoughtful, thorough, and result-oriented legal representation for our clients. After investigating the circumstances of your accident, we can help you file a personal injury claim right away with the at-fault party’s insurance carrier. We can also assist you during settlement negotiations and, if necessary, file a lawsuit in the court system on your behalf. Our legal team will do everything possible to maximize your monetary compensation by highlighting the strengths of your personal injury claim, downplaying any weaknesses, and aggressively advocating for your legal interests. For a free case evaluation and legal consultation, please call us or contact us online to learn more.
