Will a Preexisting Condition Hurt My Personal Injury Claim?
If you have a preexisting condition and sustain an injury due to another party’s actions, you may worry about how that condition will impact your personal injury case. Will it prevent you from recovering the compensation you need? Fortunately, no. At least, not if you have a competent personal injury attorney on your side.
Examples of Preexisting Conditions
Preexisting conditions are medical issues, injuries, or illnesses you had before the incident that caused further injury. Examples of these conditions that could come up in your personal injury case are:
- Back and neck problems
- Arthritis
- Previous bone fractures
- Previous soft tissue injuries
- Medical conditions affecting connective tissue
- Chronic health issues
The good news is that these conditions cannot be used to deny or devalue your case. This is because the eggshell plaintiff rule allows victims to seek compensation for the additional harm they incur due to the at-fault party’s actions, regardless of their preexisting conditions.
What Is the Eggshell Plaintiff Rule?
According to the Illinois courts, the eggshell plaintiff rule states that “a defendant is liable for all of the damages proximately caused by his negligence, even if the plaintiff’s pre-existing condition results in the plaintiff suffering an injury that would not ordinarily be reasonably foreseeable.”
This means that even if the defendant’s actions wouldn’t have caused the average person harm, they’re still responsible for the harm they caused to the plaintiff. The defendant must take the plaintiff as they are, preexisting injuries and all.
How Insurance Companies View Preexisting Conditions
Despite the eggshell plaintiff rule, insurance companies often try to use preexisting conditions as an excuse to reduce the value of or deny claims. For example, after a car accident, the insurance adjuster may say that because you already had a back injury before the accident, the insurance company isn’t liable, even though you now experience increased pain and decreased mobility.
This is why working with an experienced and knowledgeable lawyer is essential. Your lawyer can push back against these claims and use evidence to demonstrate that your preexisting condition was worsened by the accident.
Proving Aggravation of a Preexisting Condition
To successfully prove that the incident aggravated your preexisting condition, your lawyer will gather various types of evidence, including:
- Medical records detailing your condition before and after the incident
- Testimony from medical professionals, including your treating doctor
- Diagnostic test results, such as X-rays and MRIs, that show the aggravation
- Testimony from you, your friends, and your family about how your injury worsened after the incident and how it affects your daily life
Steps To Take To Protect Your Rights After an Injury
If someone else’s actions aggravated your preexisting condition, taking the following steps can protect your right to seek fair compensation:
- Don’t speak to the insurance adjuster without your lawyer present.
- Be honest about your medical history and don’t exaggerate your condition or how the incident aggravated it.
- Seek prompt medical treatment for the aggravated condition.
- Follow up with your treatment until your doctor discharges you.
- Avoid posting on social media while your case is active, even if it’s not directly related to the incident or your injury.
- Speak with a skilled personal injury lawyer and let them handle your case.
Contact Our Illinois Personal Injury Lawyers
At Johnston Law Offices P.C., our lawyers have over 35 years of combined legal experience and take a strategic approach to each case. If you have a preexisting condition that was aggravated by someone else’s actions, contact our firm today for a free consultation. We’ll help you understand your rights under the eggshell plaintiff rule and the compensation you could recover through a personal injury lawsuit.