Suffering from a serious bodily injury can impact the rest of your life, often resulting in huge medical costs and life-long medical care. Bodily harm will be classed as serious when it causes severe physical damage to the person affected, causing disfigurement or creating a risk of death. There are many reasons a person may have suffered a serious personal injury, including a car accident, medical malpractice, or battery, amongst others.
If you or a loved one has suffered serious bodily harm in Clearwater, Florida, you should contact us at The Law Place Today. Our law firm has over 75 years of combined experience in multiple practice areas, including serious bodily injury cases. Our team of Clearwater personal injury lawyers is skilled in managing cases like this and can provide you with the highest standard of legal advice. We offer a free consultation where you can speak to a personal injury lawyer from our firm with no strings attached.
We know that suffering an injury that impacts the rest of your life is traumatic and stressful, and we want to help you receive the compensation you deserve.
Contact us today to schedule a free case evaluation at (941) 444-4444. Our lines are open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
What Is Serious Bodily Injury Under Florida Law?
A serious bodily injury is similar to typical physical harm, except it is much more extreme. Florida Statute 316.027 defines a serious bodily injury as harm:
“which consists of a physical condition that creates a substantial risk of death, serious personal disfigurement, or protracted loss or impairment of the function of a bodily member or organ.”
When an incident causes a serious bodily injury, the person responsible will often face more severe penalties. This is because personal injuries of this nature create a higher risk of death or the accident victims’ life being seriously impacted.
Injuries Classed as a Serious Bodily Injury
For your personal injury to be classed as serious bodily harm in Clearwater, it must have a long-lasting effect. Some of the injuries that will be considered as serious include:
- Seriously broken or fractured bones.
- Injuries to the spinal cord.
- Loss of limbs.
- Loss of muscle or motor function, including paralysis.
- Injuries to the head or brain.
- Injuries to the neck.
- Disfigurement.
- Serious scarring.
- Internal injuries have a long-lasting effect.
These are just some examples of what will be classed as a serious personal injury, but there are many others. If an incident has resulted in serious physical pain and suffering for you, you may be entitled to financial compensation for serious bodily harm.
If you have been seriously injured and someone else is at fault, we recommend speaking with one of our personal injury attorneys from our Clearwater office as soon as possible. They can help file a personal injury claim on your behalf to help you receive compensation for medical bills, lost wages, or any other financial costs that have resulted from the harm you have suffered.
Establishing Liability for a Serious Bodily Injury
Just like all personal injury cases, you must file a personal injury claim to receive any compensation. To have a successful claim, you must establish liability on the person responsible. A Clearwater personal injury attorney can help establish liability by proving the following:
- A duty of care – In order to find another party liable for your personal injury, it must be shown that they owed you a duty of care. If your harm resulted from a motor vehicle accident, the driver involved would have an automatic duty of care to you.
- A breach in this duty – It must be proven that the party responsible for your harm breached their duty of care to you. Examples of this could include failing to have the requisite safety measures in place in a public space or a person driving recklessly.
- Causation – In order to receive compensation, injury lawyers must prove that your injuries were a direct result of the other party’s breached duty.
- Damage – It is necessary to prove that you suffered damages as a result of the incident in order to receive any compensation.
Depending on the particular circumstances of your accident, whether it was a truck accident, a slip and fall accident, or medical malpractice, an experienced personal injury lawyer can help you build a strong personal injury case and receive the compensation you are owed for the harm you have suffered.
We’re Florida’s top litigation team with over 75 years of combined experience
Common Causes of a Serious Bodily Injury in Clearwater, Florida
Severe personal injuries are a common occurrence in Clearwater, and they can happen due to a number of different reasons. Our team of injury lawyers has seen these types of injuries result from a wide range of accidents, including:
- An auto accident.
- A slip and fall accident.
- Medical malpractice.
- An animal attack.
- Battery.
Although harm of this nature can result from any type of accident, our personal injury attorneys have most commonly seen them from accidents on the road. However, regardless of what caused your serious bodily harm in Clearwater, Florida, you should schedule a free consultation to speak with our personal injury law firm in order to assess what damages may be available to you.
From the initial call to updates on your case status, we are here to get you answers.
Common Damages Awarded for Serious Bodily Injuries
Depending on the particular circumstance of your accident in Clearwater, Florida, there may be a wide range of damages available to you. With serious bodily harm, it is possible for you to receive a large amount of compensation, given the severity of the situation and the huge costs you will likely have to incur.
Seeking damages can be difficult in these personal injury cases, particularly because the amount of compensation you will require may be high. One of our personal injury lawyers can help you claim for the following damages:
- Medical bills – You can claim for any medical expenses incurred as a result of the harm you have suffered. This can include bills for hospital appointments, any future medical expenses for life-altering injuries, and transport to and from these appointments.
- Lost wages – If you have been left unable to work as a result of your serious injuries, you can make a personal injury claim for any wages you have lost. This can include any potential future earnings.
- Pain and suffering – You can get compensation for any emotional or physical distress you have suffered in the form of pain and suffering damages. This could include if you have been left unable to participate in a hobby that you previously enjoyed because of your serious injuries.
- Wrongful death – When you lose a loved one because of serious physical harm they have suffered in an accident, it is tragic, and no amount of compensation will remedy the trauma. One of our personal injury lawyers can help relieve any financial stress by filing a wrongful death claim for funeral expenses and the loss of income to a family household.
Our law office knows that being seriously injured in an accident is traumatic, particularly when the harm you have suffered will impact the rest of your life. No amount of compensation can change what happened. However, it is important that you receive some sort of damages in order to make the recovery process less stressful. Our personal injury attorneys want to ensure that you get the compensation you are owed and that the person responsible for your personal injury is held responsible. Call today to schedule a free consultation with one of our law firms’ attorneys.
Bodily Injury Claims Resulting From a Car Accident
Most of the serious cases our Clearwater personal injury lawyers see in our law firm result from accidents on the road. This is because the roads throughout the State of Florida are dangerous for drivers. When a road crash happens, and you suffer severe injuries, Florida law requires that you contact your own insurance company first. This is because Florida is a no-fault state, as provided under Florida Statute 627.7407.
This law provides that drivers are required to have personal injury protection (PIP) with a minimum of $10,000 in order to operate a vehicle on the road. This policy covers any bodily injuries that you sustain in a road crash. However, when you suffer a serious bodily injury, it is likely that the money you will need to cover any medical costs far exceeds the minimum policy requirements. It is possible to claim against the insurance companies of the other parties involved, but it is often the case that their insurance coverage will still be insufficient.
In these situations, the only way for you to receive the money you are owed will be to make a personal injury claim against the responsible driver. A personal injury lawyer can help you make a claim and build a strong case against the other driver to ensure that you are adequately compensated.
How Does a Bodily Injury Claim Work?
If the insurance coverage of the other party does not cover the costs of your medical expenses following a road crash, you will have to file a “Third Party Claim.” When doing this, a personal injury attorney will ask you to provide the following information:
- Any records of the incident.
- Photographs of your injuries following the accident.
- Receipts and documentation of all costs associated with the accident.
- Bills from hospital appointments and records from doctors or medical examinations.
Once all of this information is provided, and you have made a claim, you should expect the following:
- You should hear back from your Clearwater personal injury lawyer as soon as they hear anything, which is always within a reasonable time frame.
- It is expected that you are prepared to be open and discuss what happened in the accident a number of times. This is because insurance companies and Florida personal injury lawyers will require a lot of clarification on what happened.
- Depending on your particular accident, there may be a time limit in place in which you can make a claim.
- You will have to sign a release form. Do this only when your legal team has advised you to do so and when you feel comfortable. A lawyer from The Law Place will review the release form for you to ensure that you are receiving the right amount of compensation for the damages you have suffered.
Contact The Law Place Today
If you or a loved one has been seriously injured in an accident in Clearwater, Florida, you should contact us at The Law Place today. We know that accidents are extremely stressful, particularly when you have been seriously injured. Serious bodily injuries can impact the rest of your life and can create huge medical costs which could leave you bankrupt. Additionally, if you have lost a loved one due to them being seriously injured, we can help you file a wrongful death suit. It is important that you receive the compensation you deserve and that the party responsible is held accountable.
Here at The Law Place, we have over 75 years of combined experience in multiple practice areas. Our law office has a team of experienced personal injury lawyers who are here to help you build a strong personal injury case to ensure that you receive justice. We offer a free case evaluation with an experienced Clearwater attorney who will offer you skilled legal advice on how to proceed with your claim. We want to ensure that injury victims receive the maximum compensation that they are owed.
Don’t hesitate to call us. The sooner you do, the better chance we have at winning your case.
Call our law office today at (941) 444-4444 to schedule a free consultation with a Clearwater personal injury lawyer. Our lines are open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week for your convenience.