Should You Hire an Attorney After a Minor Accident?

Even after an apparently minor accident you should be examined by a physician. Symptoms of some injuries may be delayed, and you may not realize that something is wrong. With the help of an exam you may find that you were, in fact, injured and what appears to be a minor injury might be something more serious.

Elderly vehicle occupants may suffer injuries more easily than younger, healthier occupants.

Whether you’re seriously injured in a minor vehicle accident depends not only on the nature of the collision, but also who you are. The human body isn’t built for car accidents. Energy applied to the body unexpectedly and at odd angles can result in injuries.

This is especially true if the vehicle occupants are older or are coping with serious health challenges at the time of the accident. Although elderly car occupants may have a lower risk of being involved in an accident, if they are involved they have a considerably higher risk of being severely injured or killed than younger car occupants, according to a study by German researchers.

As our population ages, the elderly will increasingly be involved in motor vehicle collisions. Elderly collision victims have an increased risk of fatality because of increased fragility, according to Australian researches who published an article on the issue in the Emergency Medicine Journal. They looked at statistics of vehicle accidents, injuries and fatalities in the Australian state of Victoria and found that age is an important injury risk factor, increasing the rate of injury and its severity.

Elderly vehicle occupants were more likely to suffer chest injuries in accidents. This may be connected to seatbelt use, osteoporosis, decreased muscle mass and thinning of discs in the spine.

A low-speed accident could cause a concussion, especially if the occupant has already had one.

A concussion is caused when the brain strikes the inside of the skull when the head moves violently back and forth due to the force of a vehicle accident. Inside the skull, there’s a layer of protection formed by fluid and the lining of the skull, but sometimes that’s not enough protection.

A person with a history of past concussions is more likely to suffer another one, compared to those who have never had a concussion. A study found that if a college football player had suffered a concussion in the past, future ones were more likely and recovery from subsequent concussions took longer.  

In the short term, a concussion can cause dizziness, headache, blurred vision and loss of memory. Potential long-term problems include being more susceptible to future concussions, chronic headaches and mental impairments.

Serious soft tissue injuries may be caused by low-speed vehicle accidents.

Often those involved in low-speed accidents can suffer soft tissue injuries such as whiplash, especially if the passenger is tall and a head rest is too low. Whiplash is a neck injury caused by forceful, quick back-and-forth movement of the neck and head -- like the cracking of a whip. It often occurs during rear-end vehicle collisions, and symptoms include neck pain, stiffness and headaches. Though most people suffering from whiplash caused by a vehicle accident improve within a few weeks after getting medical treatment, some suffer chronic neck pain and other complications.

How quickly whiplash symptoms will resolve can be hard to predict. Chronic health problems are more likely if after the accident your symptoms were intense, started rapidly and included the following:

• Severe neck pain
• Headaches
• Pain that spread to your arms.
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Some of us are more likely than others to have long-term issues with whiplash after a low-speed accident:

• Those who have had previously suffered a whiplash injury
• Older individuals
• People who were dealing with low-back or neck pain at the time of the accident.

Whether you should hire an attorney after a minor accident depends on the severity of the injuries it caused -- because even a minor accident may cause serious injuries. After such an accident, you should be seen by a physician; if you’ve been injured, you should at least contact an attorney and discuss the situation. You can talk about the accident, your injuries and decide whether retaining an attorney would be a good choice for you. Normally initial consultations are free.

Don’t let the nature of the accident guide you as to what you should do next. Think more in terms of how it has impacted your life now and how it may affect you in the future.