Meniscus tears are one of the most common knee injuries that occurs when your knee is twisted or rotated with force. Meniscus tears can cause swelling and stiffness, preventing the victim from being able to walk or fully extending their knee.
While some people can recover from this injury on their own, many victims require extensive medical treatment that includes surgery and hospitalization, which can easily cost thousands of collars. If you’ve been injured in an accident caused by a negligent or careless person or entity, the best way you might be able to recover for your damages is by filing a personal injury claim. But how much compensation can you expect to receive from such a claim?
The answer is that it depends on the specific facts of each case. The amount a person can recover in an injury claim depends on various factors.
1. Type of Accident and Liability
Having a successful claim ultimately rests on whether you can prove that another party is legally responsible. Some accidents are easier to establish fault than others. For instance, car accidents can be more straightforward than other types of accidents because they tend to be caused by driver errors. Additionally, the police often have already investigated the accident and provided an opinion on who caused the accident. Other cases, such as a trip-and-fall accident on an allegedly dangerous condition, may be more difficult to prove. If liability is uncertain, or if the at-fault party is a large company with its own team of lawyers like a trucking company, for instance, it could be more challenging to secure maximum compensation without an experienced personal injury attorney.
2. Severity of Injury
The more serious an injury is, the more compensation a victim can hope to receive based on the amount of pain and suffering and medical costs involved in treatment. A simple sprain that can heal on its own is likely to warrant less compensation than a spine injury resulting in permanent paralysis, for example. If your torn meniscus is deemed severe by your doctor or is accompanied by other injuries from your accident, you may be able to advocate for a higher amount of compensation. Additional factors in the amount of compensation is how much insurance coverage or other available assets the responsible party has.
3. Whether Your Injury Interrupts Your Job/Life
A torn meniscus can cause temporary or permanent disability and prevent a person from being able to walk around easily. If you have a job that involves manual labor or movement, your injury is likely to put you out of work until you can heal, which may take weeks or months. If you’re able to show that your injury has dramatically altered your life or prevented you from being able to make a living, you may be able to receive more compensation to cover your lost wages or income.
4. Recovery Period
Larger settlements can be awarded to injury victims when their medical treatment proves to be more costly and extensive. Not all meniscus tears require surgery and some can heal on their own, so it’s safe to assume that you’ll get a higher settlement value for your case if you required surgery to treat your injury.
5. Whether You Have an Attorney
Unfortunately, many victims of accidents assume they can manage their case on their own and will accept the first settlement offer they can get. The reality is that insurance companies take advantage of people by offering unreasonably low settlements that do not encompass all the damages available to an injured party, such as pain and suffering, lost wages, and the total amounts paid for medical treatment. Instead, the insurance carriers will often offer only to cover the victim’s out-of-pocket expenses. Keep in mind that once you accept a settlement, you can no longer file a claim or go back to ask for more. By hiring an experienced attorney who knows how to navigate claims, you can have your rights protected and have a better chance at securing the amount of compensation you deserve.
At Casper, Meadows, Schwartz & Cook, our lawyers are able to meet with you to explain all the factors that affect the value of your injury claim and craft a strategy about how to obtain maximum compensation for you.
After a serious injury, you deserve to be represented by a firm that has served its community faithfully for decades. Contact Casper, Meadows, Schwartz & Cook online or by phone at (925) 275-5592 for a free consultation to get started on your case