Who Can File a Claim for Dental Injuries From a Sacramento Crash?

The force of a car crash can cause drivers and passengers to hit their mouths against something in the car or clench their jaws hard enough to crack their teeth or cause other severe damage. If you suffered dental injuries from a crash in Sacramento, you may be eligible to recover compensation for these damages as part of your injury claim. To recover compensation for car crash injuries, including damage to your teeth, you will need evidence that links those damages to the crash. In the article below, Arnold Law Firm discusses more about crash claims that include dental injuries. Need help proving dental injuries for a car crash case? Contact our trusted law firm to learn more about your potential legal options today. Our auto crash attorneys in Sacramento have been helping injured victims for decades, recovering millions in compensation for our clients.

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Can You Include Dental Injuries in Your Car Crash Claim?

Under California state law, you may include the damages for dental injuries you sustained in a crash as part of your overall injury claim. However, the insurance company is likely to do all it can to deny compensation for any damages to your teeth. For this and other reasons, it is a good idea to consider hiring a lawyer to manage your claim. If you suffered dental damages in a car crash, you may not be eligible to file any injury claim if you are deemed responsible for the collision. If, however, another party was responsible for the crash and your injuries, you must be able to prove it. You must also be able to establish a link between your injuries and the crash.

What If I Am Partially At Fault for the Crash That Caused My Dental Injuries?

California follows a pure comparative negligence system, so you will not be barred from filing a claim just because you share liability for your crash. If you are partly to blame, you will be held liable for your percentage of the damages. In terms of compensation, any funds awarded to you in a settlement or jury-awarded verdict will be reduced by your percentage of fault.

How Much Value Could Dental Injuries Add to My Claim?

The value of every car crash case is unique, but it is impossible to determine its value early on. Many factors could impact the outcome of any compensation you may be awarded.  In general, however, if you or your attorney can prove that your dental damages were caused by another’s negligence, then the related medical costs should be fully covered by the liable party’s insurance. Dental injuries related to the crash, in addition to the damages for your other injuries, could reasonably cover:

• Emergency dental examination
• Repair or replacement of the damaged teeth
• Any oral surgery you may need to repair a tooth or injured jaw
• Follow-up appointments
• Mouth guard or appliances needed to aid your recovery
• Pain and suffering damages
• Disfigurement
• And more

Once you reach your maximum medical improvement, your attorney can calculate your claim’s value. To start with, any economic damages are easier to prove with tangible documents, like medical invoices. Pain and suffering damages, on the other hand, are not tangible and are therefore harder to prove. A skilled and experienced attorney knows how to calculate these damages fairly.

How Can I Prove My Dental Injuries Were the Result of a Car Crash?

While you are in the ER for your initial medical examination, you will likely undergo diagnostic testing to determine what injuries you sustained, including any specific injuries to your teeth and jaw area. The examination helps to link your injuries to the crash. Getting diagnostic testing helps to provide more specific details about your dental damages or other injuries. The results of these tests will be recorded in your medical records. Follow-up dental appointments and treatments will be recorded in your dental records. These records provide further evidence that, but for the driver’s negligence and the resulting car crash, these injuries would not have occurred. Proving your damages for dental injuries requires a knowledgeable attorney. The insurance company is not going to give you full compensation without a fight. They are likely to dispute paying for your dental injuries for reasons that may include:

• Your dental injuries were preexisting
• The damage was only cosmetic
• You are exaggerating damage to your teeth to get more money

If your attorney is knowledgeable, he or she will know how to dispute these arguments. After your treatment concludes, your attorney will be better able to determine the full value of your injury claim, which should include any dental injuries resulting from the crash. For younger crash victims, your attorney is likely to argue that the loss or significant damage of any teeth has a much greater value than if you were older. Many damaged teeth may take extensive time and multiple treatments to fully repair. Some teeth may create a residual cost. In other words, you will have to go back periodically to have further treatment and/or repair done on those previously damaged teeth. That residual cost may exist for the rest of your life.

What Treatment Can Be Provided for Dental Injuries Resulting From a Collision?

Medical treatments vary based on the type and severity of your dental injury. If you knocked out a tooth, you may need multiple treatments, as well as surgery and a bone graft to install an implant. A chipped tooth, however, may be minor in comparison. You may only need the chip repaired. However, even smaller dental repairs can be very costly. Before you can know what treatments are available for your dental injuries, you must first get a full assessment of the damages you sustained. To do this, you may need someone with more specialist knowledge than your dentist.

How Do Car Crashes Cause Dental Injuries?

A direct hit might cause damage if the driver forcefully struck his or her mouth on something hard during the crash, such as the dashboard, car door or steering wheel. The impact of a crash can be pretty intense and could cause significant dental injuries, such as knocking out one or more teeth. An indirect dental injury can also cause significant damage but it is typically the result of a victim clenching his or her jaw in anticipation of a collision. That tension could be enough, in some cases, to crack or break the victim’s front teeth or molars. Some crash victims cut into their lips, cheeks or tongues during a crash, causing severe lacerations. Additionally, while crash victims may sustain injuries to their natural teeth, any dental work could get damaged as well. For instance, if you cracked a veneer in a crash or damaged a bridge.

What Kind of Dental Injuries Are Common in Car Crashes?

Dental injuries can occur in minor crashes as well as more serious collisions. The impact of a car crash can force a driver or passenger to strike their faces or mouths against something hard in the cabin. This force could cause serious lacerations of the mouth, along with severe tooth damage. Vehicle occupants often clench their teeth in anticipation of a car crash. When this happens, the pressure can be hard enough to severely crack molars or front teeth. The most common dental injuries from a car crash include:

• Loose or dislodged teeth
• One or more teeth knocked out
• Cracked or chipped teeth or veneers
• Cracked crown
• Damage to dental implants
• And more

Need Legal Help After a Car Crash? Call Our Trusted Law Firm Today

At Arnold Law Firm, we have been helping victims injured by the negligence of others for decades. We work tirelessly to obtain the maximum possible compensation on our clients’ behalf. If you have a case and choose our firm to represent you, there are no upfront costs to pay. You also do not pay us throughout the course of the legal claim. We only get paid our fees if we win your case.

Call Arnold Law Firm 24/7 for experienced lawyers who get results. (916) 777-7777