(TBI) Traumatic Brain Injuries Don’t Need To Pass “Injury Threshold”
There is no doubt that injuries received from an auto accident tend to be severe and the likelihood of a brain injury increases substantially when compared to other accidents or other common causes of injuries. Believe it or not, there are millions of brain injures every single year throughout the United States. Most Americans cringe every time they need to go the doctor because of the high medical costs, just imagine how expensive diagnosing and treating a serious brain injury is. As you probably already know, Michigan utilizes a no-fault system. Unfortunately, by agreeing and adopting to this type of car insurance, drivers are severely limited in their ability to bring a 3rd party lawsuit against the driver who is actually responsible. Most people don’t realize this fact, but it’s certainly true. While nobody that has sustained a brain injury is fortunate, Michigan does have an exception for this law by using what is called a traumatic brain injury exception. Under normal circumstances, an injured victim must prove that that the injury passes a certain “threshold”. If the victim has a brain injury, then this threshold no longer applies to the injury.
Michigan Closed Head Exception Applies to Brain Injury Victims
The official term for this waived exception is the closed-head injury exception. I can’t get into the entire injury threshold which Michigan has, but all you need to know is that with a brain injury you no longer have to show that the injury was objectively manifested. Sounds simple right? Lawmakers and insurance companies have purposely made it extremely difficult to bring a 3rd party lawsuit even if your injury substantially alters your life. Anyways, objectively manifested means that under usual circumstances (no brain injury) that your injuries can be viewed or seen by others around you or your close friends/family. In other words it needs to be evident to others that you have a serious injury. Fortunately, Michigan lawmakers came to their senses and realized that some brain injuries are near impossible to detect by others. For this very reason, if you have suffered a brain injury from an auto accident you no longer have to prove the injury was “objectively manifested”.
TBI’s Are Usually Highly Contested By Michigan Insurance Companies
This exception is many times the difference between the ability to bring a 3rd party lawsuit and receiving a fair financial compensation or not being to able bring the lawsuit at all. It’s important to keep as many records following the accident and that you visit a doctor that specializes in head trauma. The more detailed and organized your records, the easier it is to show that you have indeed suffered a brain injury. For more information about brain injuries and the closed-head exception in Michigan, please call us today at (517) 347-6900 for a free consultation.
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