A common situation is that people who are in car accidents do not feel the pain from car accidents until hours later or sometimes even days later.
Under the law, there are primary elements of proof necessary to prove in a car accident.
1) fault.
2) damage.
3) causation.
This question usually pertains to causation.
As discussed on previous blogs, there is a law that requires proof of “permanent injury” in order to recover non-economic damages like pain and suffering and so forth, generally. The more time there is between an accident and treatment will open the door for the defense to argue that your injuries were not caused from the accident.
There is no law in Florida that states that when a policeman writes in the accident report that a driver or passenger is “not injured,” that a claim or lawsuit cannot be made. Thus, while it may be ideal to have the policeman report a driver or passenger as injured if they ultimately present a claim, this fact alone does not prevent the case. So yes, you can still sue the at fault vehicle if you are injured in an accident but the police report says you were not injured.
Of course, every case is different and has to be judged on the facts of the case. The advice in this blog is intended to be general in nature and should not to be construed as specific advice for a case, as the most slight difference in the facts could ultimately change the result. Also, this blog is based on Florida law and the laws of any other states or another country could vary significantly from Florida.
