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Most people who come to see me following an accident have some form of a pre-existing condition. Some people have a pre-existing condition and don’t even know it.
Research has shown that most people over the age of 30 have degenerative disc disease in their back and have absolutely no pain. By age 40, that number jumps to 68% and at age 50, the number increases to 80%.
In other words, you could be pain free and an MRI could still show spondylosis, foraminal stenosis, disc desiccation, and other scary sounding words.
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How Do Pre-Existing Conditions Affect Car Accident Claims?
What does this have to do with car accident claims you might ask? A lot.
The law requires the at-fault party to pay for the harm they caused, but not for the medical conditions that already existed.
Arguments the insurance company could make to deny your claim often involve attributing as much of your injury and pain as possible to a condition unrelated to the accident. Pre-existing conditions, whether symptomatic or not, are the main way they do this.
So does that mean you lose your rights if you weren’t in perfect health before the accident? Thankfully, no.
Under New Mexico law, you may recover for the aggravation or worsening of a pre-existing condition.
How Do You Prove a Pre-Existing Condition Was Aggravated?
The primary legal challenge with aggravation and worsening claims is proving them.
For example, two people can have identical MRI’s and very different lives. One may have no pain at all, while the other has severe symptoms. Likewise, a person’s MRI may look essentially unchanged after a collision, but their symptoms, function, and need for treatment can change dramatically.
An MRI may tell us what your spine looked like. It doesn’t tell us how you felt before the crash.
That’s why an MRI, or any other diagnostic scan, is only one piece of the puzzle. The more important question is whether the accident changed symptoms, ability to function, or the treatment needed.
For this reason, we don’t just look at MRI findings. We compare your symptoms, physical examinations, treatment, pain levels, and diagnostic testing before and after the collisions.
How Do Medical Records Help Show the Impact of a Collision?
We start by reviewing prior medical records. Sometimes they show the pain was in a different part of the body. Other times they show symptoms were much less severe, happened less often, or had largely resolved before the crash. We will compare pain levels before and after the accident, review prior imaging studies, and work with treating doctors to document exactly how the condition changed.
This process helps us demonstrate how the collision changed your condition. We’ve successfully obtained recoveries for clients that had prior back surgeries, shoulder complications, and knee problems among issues.
Why Can Aggravation Claims Be Complicated?
While the legal rule is straightforward, proving how much of your condition was caused by the accident is often more complicated. These are complex medical and legal issues that are most effectively handled by a personal injury attorney.
If you’ve got an issue with a pre-existing condition and aren’t sure what your next step should be, feel free to contact us.
Need Help? Have Questions?
Our dedicated personal injury team at The Injury and Disability Law Center is here to help you. Schedule your free initial consultation today by calling our office at 575-300-4000, starting a chat, or filling out our online form.
If you want even more information, feel free to check out my free book, Car Accident Cases Made Simple(r), where I discuss this topic and more.
