Kopfler & Hermann represented a client who sustained an internal injury when a properly worn lap-and-shoulder seatbelt prevented her from being ejected during a collision but caused a bowel obstruction from the force of the harness across her abdomen. The injury required emergency surgical intervention and an extended hospitalization. The case was resolved in the 32nd Judicial District Court for Terrebonne Parish for $212,080.
Internal injuries from seatbelts — sometimes called “seatbelt syndrome” — are legitimate, well-documented mechanisms of injury that insurance adjusters routinely undervalue or dismiss. Documenting these cases requires medical experts who can explain to a jury how the harness, while saving the client’s life, also caused real and lasting internal damage. Our firm worked with the treating general surgeon and an expert in trauma medicine to establish the causal link between the collision and the bowel obstruction.
If you have suffered an internal injury, abdominal injury, or any injury that resulted from the force of a seatbelt during a collision, call Kopfler & Hermann.
