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Kentucky Car Accident Rib Fracture Lawyer

Car accidents along a Kentucky Interstate or rural highway can carry enough force to break bones anywhere in the body. The ribs are designed to prevent more serious damage to internal organs, but in an impact, they can be cracked to cause a devastating injury.

Rib injuries can sometimes be less serious than other bone breaks. But a rib fracture might also cause extreme pain when a patient tries to move or tries to take a breath. In this debilitating condition, victims might find it impossible to go to work or participate in their favorite hobbies for days or weeks.

It’s critical that rib injury victims in Kentucky car accidents receive the financial support they need to recover and to support their families when they start to miss paychecks.

Schedule a Free Consultation with a Kentucky Rib Fracture Lawyer

A traumatic rib fracture can endanger the lungs, heart, and the other organs they protect. They can also take weeks to heal and leave a victim unable to escape pain no matter how they sit or lay.

After being forced into a frightening Kentucky car collision and suffering broken bones, you should never have to face the expense of recovery alone. To make sure you aren’t held responsible for the costs of your comeback from a rib fracture, contact Kaufman & Stigger, PLLC, of Kentucky.

We offer a free, no-obligation case consultation to all Kentucky car accident victims. It’s an easy way to understand the benefits available to you and how to secure those benefits from an unhelpful car insurance company.

Rib Injury Dangers in a Kentucky Car Accident

The ribs form the main structure of the chest. They protect organs in the chest and also play an important part in how we breathe.

The Mayo Clinic reports that most broken ribs end up being cracked in traffic collisions. A cracked rib is painful but it’s not as potentially dangerous as a rib broken in pieces. The sharp edge of a broken rib can cut into major blood vessels and also damage internal organs. A punctured lung is a dangerous outcome in a car accident. This is when the lung collapses and can’t expand on its own.

The ribs may be damaged in several ways during the force of impact in a Kentucky roadway accident. Victims could strike the steering wheel or door during a crash and fracture their ribs. Even safety devices can lead to broken ribs. Victims can experience trauma when their chest cavities are compressed by a seat belt or when an airbag deploys.

For more information on rib injuries and the complications they cause, check out our informational page here.

Outlook for Rib Injury Car Accident Victims

Cracked ribs generally heal on their own in six weeks or so, but the pain can be quite debilitating. Laying down, coughing, or laughing will likely be excruciating. Victims may have to miss time at their jobs while they are unable to move without pain.

During recovery, rib injuries often lead to breathing issues. Being unable to take deep breaths can lead to pneumonia for some patients. In some cases, surgery is necessary to remove fragments of bone causing pain after a rib injury. When ribs don’t heal properly, plates and screws may have to be installed to hold them in place.

The bill for a trip to the emergency room for cracked ribs can easily reach a thousand dollars or more when x-ray and doctor’s fees are added. When surgery is necessary the costs reach into the tens of thousands of dollars.

It’s critical that car accident victims get checked out in an emergency room and later with their own doctors. A rib with a hairline fracture may not hurt until a day or two later after an accident after the shock of what’s happened has worn off. Right after you’ve told an insurance company that you aren’t hurt, you could start to feel intense pain. An x-ray may be the only thing that can reveal a serious rib injury.

Insurance companies can cast doubt on your injuries and claim that your fractured rib was caused by something other than a careless driver. Make sure you have a skilled Kentucky bone fracture injury lawyer on your side. Your attorney presents strong evidence, and holds a car insurance company responsible for every pain and financial hardship a collision has caused you.

Compensation Available After a Rib Injury in a Kentucky Car Accident

Unfortunately, a painful car accident rib injury will also come with a lot of financial worries for victims. Victims can receive a stack of medical bills all while losing valuable hours at work as they heal.

Kentucky personal injury laws allow car accident victims to file injury claims against at-fault drivers and their auto insurance companies. These claims ask for basic help for victims and their families. And yet, insurance companies still try to avoid taking the blame for rib injuries simply to save money.

Your Kentucky car accident lawyer would make sure they are held accountable for these hardships and others:

  • All medical bills now and in the future.
  • Compensation for physical pain. This can include the intense pain felt for weeks after a rib injury. The possibility of chronic pain and arthritis can also factor in.
  • Compensation for emotional trauma. Depression, fear and anxiety can follow a scary car accident and a difficult recovery from rib damage. A loss of enjoyment of life would factor into any car accident settlement.
  • Money for car repairs or replacement. Compensation for other property damage.
  • Compensation for paychecks lost while missing work and income expected to be lost in the years ahead.
  • Wrongful death benefits. With severe damage to internal organs after a rib injury, patients can easily lose their lives. Kentucky allows families who have lost a loved one to a car accident to seek support from an at-fault party. This would include financial assistance with burial costs and leftover medical bills. The weekly income the deceased can no longer provide close family members in the future would also be reimbursed.

Contact a Kentucky Car Accident Rib Injury Lawyer

If you or a loved one have suffered fractured ribs due to a driver’s carelessness, don’t feel like you must cope with the pain and the financial burden of care alone. Kentucky accident victims have up to one year to file an injury claim with a car insurance company. It’s always best to act quickly. Taking action immediately gives your attorney the best chance to build a strong case for you.

Schedule a free, no-obligation case review today with a Kentucky Car Accident Lawyer you can trust to be on your side and fight for your fair compensation. You’ll speak with a real Kentucky lawyer at Kaufman & Stigger, PLLC. If you decide we can help you earn the most for your rib fracture injury claim, you won’t need any money. We don’t get paid unless we win your case.