Auto Insurance Claims: No more treatments but still have pain, soft tissue injuries, home chores

Question
QUESTION: I do not think my back pain has been going forever after the treatments since the auto accident. Occasionally I still have a slight pain in the night. The doctor has no way to stop that occasionally slight pain though the therapy has been through long enough. I think only time can prove I will have pain free or not. It is unnecessary for me to continue the therapy because the doctor has said the pain stop injection is the only choice if I want to try, but that is just temporary relief. How shall I list such a slight back pain in my BI claim though it does not bother my normal activities? Thank you for your answer.

ANSWER: Hi Iuo,

You have asked three excellent questions.  
#1. Should you take the shot, or is it just temporary?
#2. How should I discuss this slight pain in my demand letter?
#3. When should I send in the demand letter—now or after a year of shots?

Here are my answers, although there is little to go on in the few facts you have presented.

#1. TAKE THE SHOT.  First, it MAY be temporary, BUT you do get sufficient relief that your back might relax so it can heal.  Being able to live a normal life for a year might allow the back to heal itself.  Plus, a soft tissue claim is worth a lot more if one can prove the seriousness of the injury, and having a shot demonstrates to the adjuster that this is a serious nagging problem.  


#2. Discuss it just as you have here, EXCEPT WITH A LOT MORE DETAILS.  Tell about the problems at work and your hobbies and activities and home chores.  YES, you can do those things, but you pay for them at night or the next day.

DO NOT MAKE LIGHT OF SOFT TISSUE INJURIES.  This is a REAL injury, and in time it could grow worse.  Hence, document and if there is a witness, have her make a statement.


#3. I would wait a bit to send in the demand letter.  Wait until after that first shot and send it in then.  Hence you will have the proof of the seriousness of this nagging pain.  And, you will have some idea after a couple of months just how effective that shot will be in providing pain relief.  

Does that make sense?  I trust that my time here has produced some information that has been of value to you, and thus I would respectfully request that you take the time to locate the FEEDBACK FORM on this site and leave some feedback for me.


Dr. Settlement, J.D. (Juris Doctor)
http://www.SettlementCentral.Com


---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Hi, Dr. Settlement. I have a follow up question. How shall I state the nagging pain in my BI claim if treatments are over? Should I state it such as the nagging back pain under the General Damages, General Pain and Suffering or what else? Thank you for your answer.

ANSWER: Hi Iuo,

Thank you for the nice feedback. I appreciate that.  Now, if I could just get you to TAKE THAT SHOT!!

You have done a good job of identifying your pain, but make sure to put it in terms as I suggested in my answer: with a lot of details.  Make mention of it in two places.

First, right at the end of your discussion of the treatments you have had.  Explain that you elected to forego the shot.  It is important to tell the adjuster that you were offered the shot.  But also tell why you decided to go without it (unless you listen to me and get the shot).

THEN, tell the adjuster about these continuing episodes, and give some specific examples.  That is the first place to mention them.

Then, as you properly pointed out, use the general damages part of your letter to hit those continuing pains once again.  

That ought to cover your situation pretty well.

Best Wishes,


Dr. Settlement, J.D. (Juris Doctor)
Www.SettlementCentral.Com


---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Hi Dr Settlement! Can you answer last two follow up questions?

1) Can I list the nagging back pain is the chronicle back pain in a BI claim or they are considered different? 2) In addition, how shall I claim the pains due to the auto accident but they have already been gone after the treatments?


Answer
Hello again, Iuo,

Thanks again for your nice feedback.  I appreciate that, but maybe I did not earn it if my answer was not clear to you.  Let's start by going back and reading my last answer to your questions.

Really, there is little more to say.  There is NOT any hard and fast rule as to "where" you stick your descriptions of the pain in your letter.  Nobody really cares, so long as you do make the entry with full details as I discussed.  

I hate to say it, but these days, with the computer program analysis of claim values, the adjuster is more driven by the diagnostic and treatment codes entered by your doctor than she is about what the injured victim has to say.  Hence, just tell how those pains impacted your life and let the adjuster have the information she needs.  She is not particular about the format you use.

Note the use of "chronic" and look it up online if you want to use it in your letter.  It is not "chronicle".  In direct answer to your question, no they are not considered different inasmuch as the chronic nature of the pain is a natural result of a soft tissue injury that has not healed.  

The second part of your answer is also addressed in my previous answers: just list the pains you used to have and describe what you went through. If the pains "have already been gone after the treatments", that is fine.  It shows that the treatments worked for those particular pains.  Just list what impact they had on your life and your activities during the time you suffered them.  

I trust that this has cleared the issue up for you and wish you good luck!

Dr. Settlement, J.D. (Juris Doctor)
Http://www.SettlementCentral.Com