Gators Player Sustains Spinal Injury
Florida's football team lost a player at least temporarily in early November, when third-string quarterback Cameron Newton was involved in a car accident. The Miami Herald reported that Newton's vehicle was rear-ended by a truck on Election Day, putting him in a neck brace and taking him out of the following day's practice. The News-Press of Fort Myers added that Newton suffered from headaches the next day. Fortunately, his coaches believe his injuries aren't serious.
Both papers reported that Newton's injuries ended up being more serious than his coach originally had thought. As an experienced Florida auto accident lawyer, I am not surprised. Because he plays for a top football team, Newton is probably very cautious about his health, but many people who are rear-ended don't realize right away that they're injured. That's especially true if they have minor head injuries, or minor neck injuries like Newton's. It's only in the next week or so, after they start noticing pain and other symptoms, that they finally see a doctor.
This delay can hurt not only their recovery, but also their insurance claim. Because some insurance companies will take any excuse not to pay expensive claims, delaying your claim may be taken as evidence that you are lying or exaggerating your injuries. It doesn't matter that you were honestly feeling fine, or that even doctors say symptoms of concussions and whiplash-like neck injuries don't always manifest right away. This is why I, as a Florida car accident attorney, tell my clients to start their insurance claims as soon as they reasonably can. It is much better to be perceived as fussy or a hypochondriac than it is to be stuck with tens of thousands of dollars in medical bills that you have already paid an insurance company to cover.
Rear-end accidents are notorious for causing painful and expensive neck injuries, even at parking speeds. Insurance companies are notorious for downplaying or even outright refusing to cover those injuries. If you're a victim of this type of accident, it pays to be as careful as possible about your medical treatment and how you interact with your insurance company. But if you feel your insurance company isn't treating you fairly after you've made a claim in good faith, you still have rights. To speak with an experienced Florida attorney about those rights and your case, please contact my firm, Cohn, Smith & Cohn, for a free consultation.
