An eye injury can make it difficult to work, drive, and go about your day-to-day life. If you sustained an eye injury because of someone else’s negligence, a Cartersville personal injury lawyer can help you seek damages.
Eye injuries often require extensive medical treatment. An eye injury lawyer in Cartersville from Van Sant Law can help you build a strong claim and obtain compensation for your medical bills and other losses.
Why Hire a Cartersville Eye Injury Lawyer?
After an eye injury, insurance companies may argue that your vision problems existed before the accident or attempt to minimize the seriousness of your condition.
A Cartersville eye injury lawyer can help by:
- Investigating the accident: We can gather evidence and interview witnesses to determine what caused your injury and who is at fault.
- Calculating your damages: We can evaluate both your economic and non-economic damages and calculate the value of your claim.
- Negotiating a fair settlement: We can handle conversations with insurance companies and push for a fair settlement.
- Preparing for trial: If negotiations fail, we can present your case in court and fight for the compensation you deserve.
Common Causes of Eye Injuries
Eye injuries can occur in many different types of accidents.
Some of the most common causes of these injuries include:
- Motor vehicle accidents
- Commercial truck accidents
- Motorcycle accidents
- Bicycle accidents
- Pedestrian accidents
- Slip and fall accidents
- Construction accidents
- Workplace accidents
- Explosions and fires
- Dog attacks
Types of Eye Injuries
Some of the most common types of eye injuries are:
- Corneal abrasions: Scratches on the cornea can cause severe pain, blurred vision, sensitivity to light, and an increased risk of infection.
- Chemical burns: Exposure to hazardous chemicals can permanently damage the eye if the wound is not immediately treated.
- Penetrating eye injuries: Sharp objects, flying debris, or shattered glass may puncture the eye, creating a wound that often requires surgery.
- Retinal detachment: A severe blow to the head or eye can cause the retina to separate from the back of the eye, potentially leading to permanent vision loss.
- Orbital fractures: Trauma may fracture the bones surrounding the eye, resulting in swelling, double vision, nerve damage, and cosmetic deformities.
- Traumatic optic nerve damage: A violent impact may damage the optic nerve, compromising or completely eliminating vision in the affected eye.
- Hyphemia: Bleeding in the front chamber of the eye can increase pressure inside the eye and may lead to permanent vision problems if left untreated.
Symptoms of an Eye Injury
Not every serious eye injury is immediately obvious. You should seek medical attention if you experience:
- Blurred or double vision
- Sudden vision loss
- Eye pain
- Persistent redness
- Bleeding inside the eye
- Swelling around the eye
- Sensitivity to light
- Flashing lights
- Floating spots in your vision
- Difficulty moving the eye
- Fluid leaking from the eye
- Visible cuts or puncture wounds
How Do You Prove Negligence?
To prove negligence in an eye injury case, you typically must establish four legal elements:
- Duty of care: The defendant had a legal responsibility to act with reasonable care under the circumstances.
- Breach of duty: The defendant failed to meet that responsibility through careless or reckless conduct.
- Causation: The defendant’s actions directly caused your eye injury.
- Damages: Your injury resulted in measurable losses, such as medical expenses, lost income, pain and suffering, or permanent vision impairment.
Evidence that can help you prove liability may include medical records, expert testimony, accident reports, photographs, witness statements, and employment records documenting lost wages.
Types of Compensation Available After an Eye Injury
The value of your eye injury claim will depend on the severity of your injury and its long-term effects.
You may be able to recover compensation for:
- Medical expenses: You can seek compensation for emergency treatment, hospital stays, surgeries, medications, follow-up appointments, rehabilitation, and future medical care.
- Lost wages: You can recover income you lost while you were unable to work during your recovery.
- Reduced earning capacity: You can pursue compensation if permanent vision loss limits your ability to earn a living in the future.
- Pain and suffering: You can recover damages for the physical pain and emotional distress associated with your injury.
- Loss of enjoyment of life: You can seek compensation if your vision impairment prevents you from participating in hobbies and everyday activities you once enjoyed.
- Permanent disability or disfigurement: You can recover damages for lasting physical impairments, blindness, or visible facial injuries.
- Assistive devices and accommodations: You can pursue compensation for visual aids, adaptive technology, home modifications, and other expenses related to living with vision loss.
- Punitive damages: In cases involving particularly reckless or intentional misconduct, you may be awarded punitive damages intended to punish the wrongdoer and discourage similar behavior.
How Long Do You Have to File an Eye Injury Lawsuit in Georgia?
In most cases, Georgia law gives injured individuals two years from the date of the accident to file a personal injury lawsuit. Missing this deadline may prevent you from recovering compensation altogether.
However, certain exceptions may shorten or extend the filing deadline for your case. For example, you may have a different deadline if your case involves a government entity, an injured minor, or the delayed discovery of injuries.
Consult an Eye Injury Attorney in Cartersville
If someone else’s negligence or recklessness caused your eye injury, you shouldn’t be on the hook for the expenses that follow. A Cartersville eye injury attorney from Van Sant Law can guide you through the process of filing a claim and help you recover compensation for your losses.
Book a free consultation to find out how you can pursue justice.
