Medical Treatment After Motorcycle Accident
In the last post I discussed what a motorcyclist should/should not consider doing at the scene of their accident. In this post, I will discuss the motorcyclist’s initial medical treatment after a motorcycle accident, and I am going to assume that the motorcyclist has been transported to the local emergency department. The investigating officer may come to see the motorcyclist in the hospital if the officer could not talk to the motorcyclist at the scene. If that happens just make sure that you are in a coherent state of mind to answer any of the officer’s questions. In the emergency department your health and treatment you receive is the most important thing, so an officer should understand if you will need to get back with him or her at a later date to answer their questions. Also, please remember not to guess/speculate to the officer about any aspects of how the collision occurred, only tell the officer the facts that you are certain about.
If you are taken to the emergency room, have someone take photographs of your injuries, but only if it is an appropriate time and place and it does not interfere with any treatment. Also, tell the attending physician about every part of your body that is hurting and/or injured. Don’t just stick to the parts of the body that are hurting the worse.
Medical Bills
At some point during your emergency room visit, the hospital will talk with you about your bill. If you have health insurance, Medicare, or Medicaid, you need to give that information to the hospital. Even though the insurance company of the driver who caused your accident will be sent your medical bills, it is preferable that your health insurance be billed in connection with any emergency room visit (and any follow up medical treatment).lease be aware that your hospital will not want to accept your health insurance information because they want to bill the other driver’s motor vehicle insurance directly. If so, do not argue with them. If you speak to a lawyer about your accident, this issue can be discussed further.
Damaged Personal Property
If the hospital has items of your clothing that have been damaged, cut off by EMS at the scene, etc., tell the hospital that you want those items to take with you. Even if those items of clothing are stained, ripped, etc., tell the hospital that you want them. Having the actual damaged items which can be photographed makes it easier to process the claim for damaged personal property with the insurance company of the driver at fault.
In the next post, I will discuss what a motorcyclist should do (or not do) after they get home from the hospital.
If you have been in a motorcycle accident or a car accident, don’t hesitate to give me a call at 919-942-1181 and we can discuss the accident, your injuries, do you even need an attorney, etc. The telephone consultation is free.
Gary Poole – North Carolina Motorcycle Accident Lawyer “On the Side of Those Who Ride”