If you've been injured in a car wreck, you may need to pursue a personal injury claim to be compensated. Unfortunately, insurance doesn't provide you with compensation for things like pain and suffering, lost wages, and more. You should know that there is one form of evidence that is so vital to the success of your claim that without it, you may as well take what the insurance company is offering. Read on for a better understanding of why that evidence is so important and how to get your hands on it quickly.
Why is this evidence so important?
When it comes to car accidents, there are several types of damages. You will lose time for work, you will loose some of your personal property and you will likely incur a lot of medical treatment for your injuries. In most cases, you may not have to actually pay for the cost of your medical treatment out of your own pocket, since that should be a covered expense. That does not mean, however, that this particular type of damage is not important.
In fact, the dollar amount of your medical expenses, no matter who had to pay for it, is one of the key factors that go into estimating how much you will be offered. The dollar amount equates to the seriousness of your accident, and every penny spent on your treatment could be used as a multiplier in a calculation to offer you money damages. In order to show proof of your medical treatments, you must have your medical records.
The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996
This act, known as HIPAA, gave consumers the right to have copies of their medical records in a reasonable amount of time and at a reasonable cost. The facility has to right to retain the originals, but they must provide you with a copy (either paper, disk or other) within 30 days, or inform you by mail of the reason why they cannot comply.
Procuring those records
While the law gives clear instructions and guidelines to health care providers, you may still encounter some issues when attempting to get your medical records. In some cases, the request simply gets overlooked. In other cases, the records arrive, but are incomplete. If you have a good case against the at-fault driver, then you need a good legal professional on your side as well. Car accident attorneys are experienced at working with medical facilities to gain access to the right records in a timely manner. Moreover, they know exactly what records are the most valuable, so speak to one today and get started on your quest to be compensated.
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