If you’re driving along a Texas road and another vehicle hits you, the next hours, days or months of your life may be quite stressful. In fact, if you suffer severe injuries, the moment of impact in a collision could affect the rest of your life. In additional to the emotional and physical injuries you might suffer in a car accident, there are often economic damages, as well, especially those associated with medical care.
Expenses associated with a motor vehicle collision often begin compiling from medical care provided at the scene. If you’re transported to a hospital by ambulance or helicopter, a bill for the services will eventually arrive in the mail. Numerous other billable services may be provided to you from ER doctors and radiologists to orthopedic surgeons (if you broke any bones) or, perhaps a neurosurgeon (if you suffered a skull fracture or spinal cord injury).
If another driver’s negligence was responsible for the collision
Driver negligence is often a causal factor in a motor vehicle collision. If it was not your own negligence but another motorist’s, you shouldn’t have to bear the full financial burden that might arise in connection with the incident. If a driver was intoxicated or distracted at the wheel, he or she may be deemed liable for damages.
Recovering victims of a car accident are able to seek restitution for numerous types of damages that may have occurred. Such damages often include physical injuries, emotional trauma, loss of income, medical expenses and future medical bills. Regarding the latter, you would have to prove that the injuries you suffered as a result of the collision will require ongoing medical care.
If the person who suffered damages is a minor
In cases where a car accident victim is a minor, a driver deemed responsible for the collision may still be held accountable and ordered to pay compensation to provide economic recovery to the victim. Because a minor is unable to file a legal claim, a parent or legal guardian may act on his or her behalf. You may also seek restitution if your child suffered fatal injuries in a car accident.
Texas law provides recourse for minors whose parents or legal guardians incur medical bills because of injuries they suffered in a car accident. A parent or guardian may act on behalf of the child to seek restitution in court. The law also enables an immediate family member of a fatally injured victim of legal adult age to file a wrongful death claim against the driver deemed responsible for the collision that resulted in the loved one’s death.
Be ready to provide evidence
If you hope to hold another driver accountable for your medical bills, you’ll want to keep organized records that show any and every expense you’ve incurred in connection with the accident that resulted in your need for medical care. Texas, as well as every other state, has its own guidelines regarding maximum compensation for economic recovery after a car accident, and the court may act by its own discretion in accordance with the merits of each case.