Our client was seriously injured while riding as a passenger in a car driven by a friend in Kansas City, Missouri. The crash occurred when a distracted driver was checking his GPS navigation and collided head-on into the car in which our client was riding. Our client suffered a severe traumatic brain injury (TBI) and was unconscious at the accident scene. He remained in a coma and on life support for 6 days at a local hospital. It was later determined that our client had suffered a diffuse axonal injury (DAI), which is a severe TBI that can result from a car accident. A DAI occurs when the brain's nerve fibers (the axons) are torn. This often results when there is a sudden impact or rotation of the head.
Our client's family contacted our law firm based on our substantial experience in handling brain injury cases in the metro Kansas City area. We were quickly retained to investigate the crash, preserve evidence and begin building a case to get him the compensation he deserved.
Within weeks, we had obtained the identity of the at-fault driver and submitted a demand for the limits of his car insurance policy. Unfortunately, the at-fault driver did not have an insurance policy of his own. However, we were undeterred. After further investigation, we identified a policy of a household member who owned the automobile in which he was driving. After we proved this policy provided coverage, this insurance company paid the limit of that policy, which was $100,000.
While this was a victory, it was clear that our client's injuries and damages far exceeded the amount available under this policy. Our client's brain injury left him with physical limitations (vision and hearing loss) and facial scars. We retained a neuropsychologist as an expert to examine our client, and his report also identified several cognitive and mental health conditions that had arisen from the brain injury. Our client was beginning a long road to recovery, but it would take therapy and rehabilitation to help him reach is maximum level of improvement.
As a result, we continued our investigation to identify any other insurance available. Ultimately, we found that our client was covered under a provision in the policy of the car in which he was riding. Even though the driver of his car was not at fault, this driver had purchased underinsured motorist coverage (UIM), which provided additional coverage to drivers and passengers in the event the at-fault party had insufficient liability coverage. After guiding our client through many months of treatment and assembling reports and records to substantiate both his medical treatment and future needs, we submitted a policy limits demand for this UIM coverage. This policy limit was tendered pre-litigation in the amount of $1,000,000.
In addition to the above amounts, our review of the policy identified additional coverage for future medical bills in the amount of $900,000. This coverage will help our client get the medical treatment he needs so he can build a better life in future. As a result, the total recovery for our client in this case was $2,000,000.
Family members and survivors need to be aware that insurance company often discount, delay or outright deny paying claims related to brain injuries. The symptoms of brain injuries can have delayed onset. They can be subtle or difficult to measure or diagnose. For this reason, it is strongly recommended that you retain an experienced brain injury attorney to handle these cases. Our law firm in Kansas City, Missouri stands ready to assist you in maximizing your recovery after a brain injury. Call us today at 816-203-0143 for a free, no obligation consultation or download one of our free injury guides.
