A serious car accident in Schaumburg can lead to injuries that affect almost every part of a person’s daily life. When a crash causes several broken bones, treatment might include emergency care, surgery, orthopedic visits, rehab, and time away from work. I often see these injuries after major crashes on roads in Schaumburg and nearby suburbs. Multiple fractures can also cause problems that last long after the bones have healed. If another driver was at fault, Illinois law may let the injured person seek compensation for both immediate costs and long-term effects.
The human body can only handle so much force. In a high-speed crash, a person might hit the steering wheel, dashboard, door, seat belt, or other parts of the car. A side-impact can push the door into the person, while a head-on crash can put a lot of pressure on the legs, hips, arms, ribs, and spine.
Serious crashes often cause fractures in the femur, tibia, fibula, pelvis, ribs, wrists, arms, ankles, and spine. Some people break bones in several parts of their body in the same accident.
A fracture is not always just a simple break that heals in a few weeks. Displaced fractures might need surgery to put the bone back in place. Comminuted fractures mean the bone is broken into several pieces. Open fractures happen when the bone breaks through the skin, which can lead to a high risk of infection.
When someone has several fractures at the same time, treatment gets much more complicated.
People with multiple fractures often need care from many different doctors and specialists. This can include emergency doctors, trauma surgeons, orthopedic surgeons, physical and occupational therapists, pain management doctors, and others.
Medical bills can cover ambulance rides, emergency room visits, scans, hospital stays, surgeries, anesthesia, hardware like plates and screws, medicines, follow-up appointments, physical therapy, and even future treatments.
The costs can keep adding up even after leaving the hospital. Some people need more surgery to remove or replace hardware. Others may have trouble moving, develop arthritis, have ongoing pain, nerve damage, or lasting problems with mobility.
When I review a serious injury claim, I look at more than just the current medical bills. Future medical needs are just as important in figuring out the real financial impact of the accident.
Someone recovering from several fractures might not be able to work for weeks or even months. If their job involves lifting, walking, driving, climbing, or standing for long periods, the limitations can be even greater.
Lost income is often a big part of a car accident claim in Illinois. In serious cases, fractures might stop someone from going back to their old job or working as many hours as before.
I look at things like job records, pay stubs, and medical restrictions to figure out how an injury affects someone’s income. If permanent limits make it hard to earn as much in the future, those losses are also considered.
The impact of a serious car accident goes beyond just hospital bills. Illinois law allows for both economic and non-economic damages in personal injury cases. Non-economic damages include things like pain and suffering, disability, and disfigurement.
Depending on the situation, compensation for multiple fractures can cover medical bills, future treatments, lost wages, reduced ability to earn, physical pain, disability, disfigurement, and how the injuries affect daily life. Injuries to the hands or arms can affect an individual’s ability to work, drive, cook, care for children, or perform routine household tasks.
Those consequences can be important when assessing what the injury has actually cost the person involved.
Insurance companies sometimes argue that an injured driver contributed to the collision. Illinois follows a modified comparative negligence system under 735 ILCS 5/2-1116.
Under that statute, an injured person generally may recover damages when their share of fault is 50 percent or less, although the recovery is reduced according to their percentage of fault. A person found more than 50 percent responsible is barred from recovering damages.
For example, if damages were determined to be $500,000 but the injured driver was found 20 percent responsible for the collision, the recoverable amount could be reduced by 20 percent.
Because fault directly affects compensation, evidence from the crash can become extremely important.
Serious injury cases require documentation connecting the collision to the injuries and showing the full extent of the losses.
I may examine police reports, photographs, surveillance footage, vehicle damage, witness statements, medical imaging, surgical reports, physician opinions, employment records, and other evidence.
The severity of vehicle damage can sometimes help demonstrate the force involved in a collision, although the medical evidence remains critical for establishing the injuries themselves.
Consistent medical treatment is also important. When someone stops attending appointments or fails to follow medical recommendations, an insurance company may argue that the injuries were not as serious as claimed or that later problems resulted from something other than the crash.
Time limits are another important consideration after a Schaumburg car accident. Under 735 ILCS 5/13-202, Illinois generally provides two years to bring an action for personal injuries.
There can be exceptions and different deadlines depending on the parties and circumstances involved, so waiting until the end of the statutory period can create unnecessary problems.
Evidence can also disappear long before the legal deadline arrives. Video may be erased, witnesses may become harder to locate, vehicles may be repaired or destroyed, and memories can fade.
For that reason, investigating a serious collision as early as possible can help preserve evidence that may later become important.
There is no fixed dollar amount for a multiple-fracture car accident claim. I would need to evaluate the type of fractures, treatment required, length of recovery, medical expenses, lost income, future medical needs, permanent limitations, pain, disability, disfigurement, and the strength of the evidence showing who caused the crash.
A person who suffers two fractures that heal completely within several months may have a substantially different claim from someone who suffers a shattered pelvis, multiple leg fractures, several surgeries, permanent walking limitations, and an inability to return to work.
Insurance coverage and the number of potentially responsible parties can also affect the amount that may realistically be recovered.
Potentially, yes. A serious fracture claim should not necessarily be evaluated based only on medical bills that have already been incurred.
Some patients need additional orthopedic surgery, physical therapy, injections, mobility equipment, pain management, or replacement of implanted hardware. Severe fractures can also increase the risk of arthritis and other long-term complications.
When physicians reasonably anticipate future medical treatment, I may consider those projected expenses when evaluating damages. Medical opinions and treatment plans can be especially important in establishing why future care will likely be necessary.
Multiple surgeries can substantially increase both the medical cost and physical burden associated with an accident.
Surgical fracture repair may involve rods, screws, plates, pins, or other hardware. Recovery can include hospitalization followed by weeks or months of restricted movement and rehabilitation. Additional procedures may sometimes become necessary because of infection, poor bone healing, hardware complications, or other medical problems.
When evaluating a claim involving several surgeries, I would consider not only the bills themselves but also the pain, recovery periods, inability to work, physical limitations, scarring, and possibility of future treatment.
Lost income may be recoverable when injuries caused by the accident prevent someone from working.
Documentation can include pay records, tax records, employer verification, medical restrictions, and disability documentation. If the injuries permanently reduce someone’s ability to work or force that person into a lower-paying occupation, future loss of earning capacity may also require evaluation.
This issue can become especially significant for construction workers, nurses, delivery drivers, tradespeople, warehouse employees, and others whose occupations involve substantial physical activity.
Being partially responsible does not automatically prevent recovery under Illinois law.
Under 735 ILCS 5/2-1116, a person whose fault does not exceed 50 percent can generally still recover damages, although the award is reduced according to that person’s percentage of responsibility. If the injured person is found more than 50 percent responsible, recovery is barred.
Insurance companies may therefore have a financial incentive to shift as much blame as possible toward the injured person. Crash evidence, witness testimony, photographs, video footage, and other records can be important when disputed fault becomes an issue.
Multiple fractures can turn a single car accident into months or years of medical treatment, rehabilitation, lost income, pain, and uncertainty about the future. If another driver caused your injuries, I can evaluate the circumstances of the crash, the available insurance coverage, your medical treatment, your financial losses, and the long-term consequences of your injuries.
If you suffered multiple fractures or other serious injuries in a car accident, contact SJ INJURY LAW, a Schaumburg car accident law firm serving injured people throughout Schaumburg, Chicago, Arlington Heights, Buffalo Grove, Des Plaines, Mount Prospect, Northbrook, Palatine, Prospect Heights, Wheeling, Park Ridge, Rosemont, Glenview, and all of Illinois. Contact our Schaumburg high-impact accident attorney at SJ INJURY LAW by calling (847) 434-3555 to receive your free consultation and discuss your car accident injury claim.
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