Every car accident is different, but one rule of thumb applies to all: the sooner you go to the hospital, the better. While you may feel fine immediately after a crash, “invisible” injuries like concussions, internal bleeding, or whiplash can take hours or even days to appear. Prompt medical care not only protects your health but also creates critical documentation for any insurance claim or lawsuit that may follow. This article explains the recommended windows for seeking medical care, why timing matters, and how delays in treatment can affect both your recovery and your case.
Recommended Windows for Seeking Medical Care
After a car accident, the safest option for you is to seek medical attention immediately, even if you don’t think you are hurt. A hospital or urgent care visit can reveal hidden injuries that may not be immediately apparent.
There are explanations for not going to the emergency room or urgent care immediately. For example, imagine if Lindsey were rear-ended in St. Louis and felt some general shoulder stiffness after the crash. She had a history of shoulder arthritis and usually saw an orthopedic doctor she trusted. Within 24 hours, she was able to get an appointment with her trusted specialist. Her doctor ordered imaging and confirmed the accident had torn her rotator cuff on top of her pre-existing arthritis. Because Lindsey sought care quickly from a specialist familiar with her condition, her delay in skipping the ER can be considered reasonable.
If you don’t seek medical care immediately, it is generally recommended to do so within 24-72 hours. From a health perspective, untreated injuries may lead to long-term complications or permanent damage. From a legal perspective, waiting too long allows insurance companies to argue that your injuries were not caused by the crash or that they aren’t as severe as claimed.
Specific symptoms to look out for, and be cautious of, that require immediate care can include:
- Loss of consciousness
- Severe or worsening headache
- Dizziness and/or confusion
- Abdominal pain or swelling
- Numbness or tingling in arms or legs
- Visible deformity
If you are experiencing any of these, it’s best to go to the emergency room and get checked out right away. When it comes to your health and safety, it’s always better to be cautious.
Why Timing Matters When Visiting the Hospital After an Accident
First and upmost, the timing of your hospital visit is important to ensure your health. Seeking care promptly makes it easier for your doctors to diagnose and treat injuries, potentially decreasing pain. Early imaging and testing can detect problems before they worsen, leading to better recovery outcomes. Delaying treatment can increase the risk of future complications. According to the Missouri State Highway Patrol’s 2022 Traffic Crash Statistics Report, about 35% of all crashes in Missouri involved at least one injury, 48,833 injuries out of 138,433 crashes. In other words, roughly one in three Missouri traffic crashes results in someone being injured. This shows just how common accident-related injuries are, and why it’s so important not to wait before getting checked out.
Many common injuries from car accidents can take hours or even days to manifest. These are examples of common injuries and how delays can make them worse:
- Whiplash and Spinal Injuries: Rear-end crashes often lead to neck and spine strain.
Example: After a fender bender, David felt only mild stiffness. He waited a week before seeking care. By then, an untreated disc bulge had progressed into severe nerve compression, requiring months of physical therapy.
- Concussions or Traumatic Brain Injuries: These are commonly not identified immediately, as they may not show symptoms right away. According to a crash study published with the National Library of Medicine in the Annals of Advances in Automotive Medicine, concussions occur in about one out of every 61 tow-away crashes.
Example: Emily hit her head on the side window in a St. Louis collision. She skipped the ER because she “felt fine,” but two days later developed nausea and memory problems. Doctors confirmed a concussion that could have been diagnosed earlier.
- Soft Tissue Injuries: Even in low-speed crashes, ligaments, tendons, and muscles can overstretch or tear.
Example: Marissa thought her shoulder pain was minor after the crash, and it was just general soreness. She delayed treatment for several weeks with no relief from over-the-counter medication or ice. The injury developed into tendonitis, which limited her mobility and required months of rehabilitation.
- Psychological Trauma (PTSD): Not all injuries are physical. Anxiety, nightmares, or fear of driving may show up weeks after a crash. According to a study published through the Crash Injury Research and Engineering Network and archived with the National Library of Medicine, 27.5% of crash survivors developed PTSD symptoms six months post-accident, and 24.3% still had symptoms one year later. Early intervention can likely provide coping strategies that help prevent long-term psychological challenges.
Example: Raymond walked away from a crash feeling “uninjured.” But within weeks, he developed panic attacks whenever he tried to drive. His fear grew so strong that he stopped commuting to work and began to avoid social events. Early counseling might have prevented long-term anxiety related to the collision.
How Delays in Hospital Visits Can Affect Your Injury Claim
Delaying medical care can also impact your injury claim. Insurance companies closely examine the gap between the crash and the start of medical treatment. The longer the delay, the more room for argument that your injuries weren’t caused by the crash or as serious as we claim.
To succeed with a personal injury lawsuit in Missouri and Illinois, we must prove that the other party owed you a duty of care, that the duty was breached, and that the breach caused your injury. This connection is known as causation. Delays in treatment provide insurers and defense attorneys with an opportunity to challenge causation. If you wait days or weeks before seeking care, it becomes easier for them to argue that your injuries were caused by something else.
Causation is especially important when you have pre-existing conditions. If you are trying to prove that a crash aggravated a prior condition, any delay in treatment opens the door for the defense to argue that your symptoms were unrelated to the collision.
Severity is another angle that insurers take when evaluating a claim. Gaps in treatment or delays in seeking medical care can be used to argue that the injuries weren’t severe enough to require immediate attention. This argument can significantly weaken the value of your case, even when the injuries later prove to be severe.
Failure to Mitigate is a legal standard that requires you to take reasonable steps to minimize your own harm after an accident. In Missouri, it’s treated as an affirmative defense, meaning the other side must prove that you unreasonably delayed care and that the delay increased your damages. If proven, the jury may be instructed to reduce your compensation based on your failure to mitigate. In Illinois, juries can be directly instructed on this issue. The Illinois Pattern Jury Instructions specifically state: “In fixing the amount of money which will reasonably and fairly compensate the plaintiff, you are to consider that an injured person must exercise ordinary care to obtain medical treatment. Damages proximately caused by a failure to exercise such care cannot be recovered.”
Example: John waited weeks to see a doctor after being involved in a rear-end crash. By then, his back injury required surgery. The defense argued that some of his costs and recovery could have been avoided, and thus, lower compensation should be awarded.
Frequently Asked Questions About Hospital Visits and Car Accident Injuries
Do I Need Medical Records to File an Injury Claim?
Yes. Medical records are the foundation of a personal injury claim. They provide an insight into the injuries that you sustained and document the causation through detailed records.
What If I Feel Fine Immediately After the Accident?
You should still see a doctor. Adrenaline and shock activate the body’s “fight or flight” response, which releases stress hormones and endorphins that can suppress pain. This reaction can cause you to not notice the full extent of an injury following a traumatic event.
What if I Experienced Delayed or Hidden Symptoms?
While seeking medical care immediately is important, it is also crucial to seek medical attention as soon as your symptoms appear. Even if some time has passed, don’t assume it’s “too late”, and seek medical care to protect yourself and your potential claim.
Get Help from A Personal Injury Attorney at Brown & Crouppen
When dealing with a car accident claim, it is crucial to consult with an experienced attorney who can guide and advise you through the claim. Early legal intervention can help protect your rights and improve your chances of compensation. The choice of a lawyer is an important one and should not be made without careful consideration.
Our legal team is here to help you learn more about your legal options and evaluate the strength of your car accident claim. We care about our community and have dedicated our practice to helping injury victims recover justice, accountability, and compensation.
Get started today with your free case evaluation by visiting Brown & Crouppen online or by calling us at (314) 501-9510. Our St. Louis and Kansas City personal injury lawyers have helped clients recover over $1 billion in settlements and verdicts. And remember, there are no upfront costs or legal fees – we only get paid if you win.
