Following a car accident, many victims are unaware of the importance of keeping track of their medical bills. Unfortunately, without any proof of your injury-related expenses, you will have a hard time collecting fair financial compensation for the cost of your medical treatment. According to a publication by Consumer Health Ratings, the average cost of being seen by a doctor in an emergency room was $1,774, which does not include any treatment. In order to maximize your recovery after a traffic accident, you need to have formal documentation of all your expenses, including co-pays for doctor appointments, prescription medications, lab testing, and physical therapy. Keeping track of your medical bills and other paperwork can be challenging, but keeping your bills and receipts in a dedicated and organized folder can make a huge difference in the amount of financial compensation you receive. The experienced Virginia Beach car accident lawyers at Shapiro, Washburn & Sharp have been helping clients recover full financial compensation following car accidents that were not their fault. If you were recently injured due to another driver’s negligence, call us today to schedule a free case review.
In the meantime, you can keep track of your accident-related medical bills by:
Keeping a Daily Journal
If the injuries you sustained in your car accident were serious, it could be months or even years before you completely recover. The more time passes, the harder it will be to recall exactly what medical treatments you needed and when you received them. You can circumvent this problem by keeping a daily journal. It does not need to be extremely detailed, but should, at a minimum, be regularly maintained and contain the dates of all of your medical procedures and appointments, including check-ups, what medications you were prescribed and when, as well as any other details you feel might be important. Your journal should also contain daily updates regarding any pain you are experiencing and the impact your injuries have had on your day-to-day activities.
Making Copies of Your Medical Bills and Receipts
Although hospitals and other medical establishments keep expansive records regarding your diagnosis and treatments, you might be seeing more than one doctor and traveling to and from different medical facilities for various treatments. This makes it much more difficult to keep track of all of your paperwork. By making copies of all your receipts, bills, and other documentation, and keeping them separate from the originals, you will have a detailed account of all of your expenses.
Keeping All of Your Documents Together
By using a folder, or binder, or for the more tech-savvy, scanning your documents and keeping electronic copies will ensure that your medical bills and receipts do not get thrown out, mislaid, or mixed in with unrelated paperwork.
Sorting Your Documents by Injury Type
Most car accident victims sustain more than one type of injury. When you go to file your lawsuit or submit your insurance claim, you need to make sure that everything is accounted for. For the hyper-organized, cross-referencing your bills and receipts by injury type will allow for quick reference of any one particular document, rather than digging through the lot.
Giving Copies to Your Lawyer
Since your attorney is going to need copies of all your medical bills, receipts, and medical records anyway, this can also serve as a backup for your backup if something should ever happen to the original documents and your copies.
What Medical Bills Should I Document After a Car Accident?
Maintaining accurate and consistent records of your medical bills will help support and strengthen your compensation claim. Your records will also help your attorney calculate the medical damages you incurred due to the accident.
Medical expenses you need to document include:
- Emergency room visits
- Ambulance services
- Hospital stays
- Imaging and diagnostic tests
- Surgical procedures
- Specialist appointments
- Prescription and over-the-counter medicines
- Physical therapy and rehabilitation costs
- Medical devices
- Medical equipment
- Counseling
- Transportation costs to and from appointments
- Home modifications
- Caregiver services
If your medical costs are necessary and reasonable, the insurer will have a difficult time arguing against paying you compensation.
Contact a Virginia Beach Personal Injury Lawyer Today
Over the past 40 years, the Virginia Beach car accident lawyers at Shapiro, Washburn & Sharp have helped countless car accident victims keep track of their medical bills and collect maximum compensation for their injuries and other damages. One example of this is the $1 million settlement we achieved for one of our clients after he was left permanently injured by a driver who failed to yield the right-of-way. If you or a loved one were recently injured in a car accident, you can schedule a free consultation with one of our skilled car accident lawyers by calling (833) 997-1774 or by filling out the simple contact form on our website. Our offices are located in Virginia Beach, Hampton, Norfolk, Portsmouth, and Chesapeake.