There are many types of personal injury claims made all throughout the United States over the course of a single year. Personal injury cases regarding auto accidents are particularly commonplace. Such claims, as a matter of fact, make up more than half of all personal injury claims seen over the course of the year (around 52% of all personal injury claims, to be just a little bit more exact on the subject matter at hand). It only makes sense, after all, that this is the case.
For one thing, there are more than five and a half million auto accidents that take place in the span of time mentioned above. And while some of these will be quite minor indeed, many will also be much more serious. As a matter of fact, the average number of injuries sustained on a yearly basis from such incidents reaches three million, many of which are serious and life altering. More than one third of all cases of paralysis and spinal cord injuries, for instance, result of motor vehicle and motorcycle crashes. And this paralysis is often permanent, necessitating the victim of this injury to change their way of life utterly.
Deaths are also far too common in regards to motor vehicle accidents. It is for good reason that wrongful death cases make up many personal injury claims, especially in relation to car accidents. In just one single year, as many 40,000 people can lose their lives to motor vehicle accidents. In the year of 2017, even more people did. Filing personal injury claims in the aftermath of such a tragedy can help to ensure that justice is meted out and that the victims of such motor vehicle accidents have compensation, at least in some way, for the loss that they have sustained.
And there are personal injury claims that extend far past car accidents alone. For instance, wrongful death claims can be made for workplace accidents as well. Slip and fall accidents are far too common in many a work space and actually cause up to 15% of all accidental deaths seen throughout the United States over the course of a typical year. This means that only motor vehicle accidents cause more accidental deaths than slip and fall accidents. Therefore, it should come as no real surprise that slip and fall accidents result in a good many personal injury claims.
Personal injury claims are also common in cases of medical malpractice. Medical malpractice claims do, in fact, make up as much as 15% of all personal injury claims filed. And with as many as 20,000 – if not more – medical malpractice claims filed in just a single year, it is clear to see that, like car accident cases, cases of medical malpractice can originate in a number of different ways. For instance, botched surgical cases can lead to medical malpractice claims. So too can birth injuries that result from medical error. Negligent medical care can also provide grounds for a personal injury case. At the end of the day, many actions on the part of medical professionals can result in the filing of a personal injury claim, of this there is little doubt.
Of course, other common issues can also lead to personal injury claims. In addition to those issues mentioned about, premises and product liability cases are leading causes of personal injury claims. They fall within the top five most prominent reasons for a personal injury claim to be filed and are certainly something that all manufacturers should be keeping an eye on. Ultimately, nothing is too small to pay attention to when it comes to various personal injury claims, as many have learned.
At the end of the day, of course, filing your personal injury claim on time is critical to success surrounding it. Ideally, you’ll know the statute of limitations for such a claim. In Idaho, for example, you have two years to file but in other states, this might not be the case. Therefore, being knowledgeable about personal injury law in the state in which you live is something that will benefit you quite greatly down the line.