Yes, if you can present enough evidence that your traumatic brain injury, or TBI, has caused you a permanent disability, you may qualify for disability payments. However, many disability claims are denied for various reasons, and submitting your application to the right agency is essential. People who received a TBI while at work will seek disability benefits through the worker’s compensation system in most circumstances. In the majority of other situations, you will go through the Social Security Administration.
How a Brain Injury Lawyer Can Help
A Georgia brain injury attorney can be crucial in getting your claim approved for several reasons:
Ensuring Your Application Has the Best Chance of Being Approved
Applying for disability involves submitting multiple forms, which can be complicated. Many people don’t know how to answer all the questions correctly or what documentation they might need to submit. Others may have difficulty navigating the SSA’s website. Getting everything filled out and submitted correctly can be hard enough if you don’t have a TBI disability that affects your concentration or memory, but even more difficult if you do.
A brain injury lawyer knows the ins and outs of SSA applications and will ensure your forms are filled out and submitted correctly. They will let you know any documents you need and offer assistance if you have trouble acquiring them. For example, they might review your case and determine that your application will be more robust with a letter from your doctor or more of your medical records. Your attorney will also stay on top of deadlines and communicate any additional requests from the SSA, such as further documentation requests.
Identifying Other Potential Sources of Compensation
If your TBI resulted in a permanent impairment significant enough to cause a disability, this is almost always a lifelong condition. Many people who become disabled from a TBI will need medical care or in-home assistance for the rest of their lives. They will also need a way to cover basic living expenses like rent and groceries if they cannot work.
If everything goes smoothly and you are approved for social security disability benefits (SSDI), these will be calculated based on your average indexed monthly earnings, or AIME, and your lifetime earnings before becoming disabled. Most monthly disability payments range from $800 to $1,800. For 2019, the SSA reported that the average monthly payment they distributed was $1,234, or a little more than $12,000 a year. For many people, SSDI benefits simply aren’t enough to support the basic needs of one adult, let alone pay for extensive medical and in-home care or support a family. As a result, you may need help figuring out how to pay for medical care and other necessities.
Exploring All Your Options
A TBI lawyer can help you explore other options for receiving compensation for your damages. They will look into the circumstances of your injury and determine if another party may have contributed and, if so, what insurance coverage is available. Even if you think your injury was simply bad luck, it doesn’t hurt to seek the opinion of a knowledgeable personal injury attorney. They may notice things about your case that suggest another party was to blame.
Here are some common scenarios in which you may be able to seek compensation for your brain injury:
- Car accidents. Was the accident your fault? You might think this is always clear, but it isn’t in many cases. We’ve met people who believed an accident was their fault because they made a minor driving error, but when we looked into the accident, this mistake had nothing to do with causing the crash that caused their head injury. Other people may believe they were at fault because the accident report says so or they received a ticket, but those decisions are often made with limited information. Have a lawyer review your case before deciding not to pursue a claim with the other driver’s liability insurance policy. Additionally, your own insurance may cover some of your medical costs if you have a specific type of policy called MedPay, regardless of fault.
- Falls. This is another major cause of TBI, especially in older adults. It’s easy to think that no one is to blame for a fall. Who hasn’t tripped over their own feet once or twice? But in many cases, we find that falls occur because of a hazard on the floor – a puddle, a rake, a garden hose, etc. Sometimes the property owner is liable for failing to address the hazard, especially if there is evidence that it was present for a significant time. Another common scenario is when a patient falls and hits their head in a hospital. The patient may tell us that it happened because they were dizzy or unsteady on their feet, but this often represents a failure of the hospital staff to identify the patient as a fall risk and take precautions. In such a case, the hospital might be at fault and we would make a claim on their liability insurance.
- Firearm injuries and assaults. We’ve grouped these together because many firearm injuries are also assaults, but accidental gunshot injuries may also fall into this category. Frequently, we meet people who want to sue the person who shot or assaulted them. This is understandable, but it isn’t the best solution in many situations. You can sue someone for assault, but unless they’re incredibly wealthy, they won’t be able to pay the damages you’re likely to have after becoming disabled from a TBI. However, there may be other avenues for seeking compensation. If you were assaulted at a commercial property, such as a store or restaurant, the business may be liable for negligent security or failing to provide a safe environment for customers. In this case, we could pursue compensation from their business liability insurance.
How Much Compensation Do You Get for Traumatic Brain Injury?
It depends on the severity of your injuries and several other factors. If your lawyer finds sufficient evidence of another party’s negligence, you can seek damages for your past, present, and future expected medical expenses. This is important because many people who become disabled from a TBI will need continued care for the rest of their life. We always carefully estimate a client’s future costs because we never want you to go without healthcare or other assistance. You can also seek compensation for other damages, such as pain and suffering, lost income, and lost earning potential. Your attorney will review all potential damages with you and help you determine a reasonable figure to seek from the insurance company.
Find a Brain Injury Law Firm Today
Whether you are just beginning the disability application process, trying to appeal a claim denial, or need to know if a civil suit for negligence is possible, the CEO Lawyer Personal Injury Law Firm is here to help. Attorney Ali Awad and his team will investigate your case and identify all options to get you the compensation you deserve. Your initial consultation is free, and if we take your case, we won’t charge any fees until we secure your settlement.
