Steering wheel injuries are common outcomes of many different types of car accidents. The severity of steering wheel injuries may range from mild to life-threatening, and may affect a driver at any point of the body from head to hip, and in some cases may even involve the knees and thighs, depending on the circumstances. Individuals who sustain steering wheel injuries often suffer considerable financial as well as physical impacts. If you received steering wheel injuries in an accident that was someone else’s fault, you may be able to receive compensation to help cover the costs of your medical care and missed wages resulting from the accident. Schedule a consultation with an experienced Mississippi car accident attorney from Lott Law firm today by calling (228) 215-2787 to speak with a member of our team.
Causes of Steering Wheel Injuries
A steering wheel injury can theoretically occur in any situation that puts a person in close proximity to a vehicle’s steering wheel. In practice, however, the vast majority of steering wheel injuries are sustained in motor vehicle accidents, and usually while the vehicle is in motion – although steering wheel impacts can also occur in parked car accidents, particularly if the stationary vehicle is rear-ended. An impact with sufficient force on the rear of a vehicle can throw an occupant in the driver’s seat forward onto the steering wheel, even when only one of the vehicles in the collision is in motion.
Both frontal impacts and rear-end collisions commonly result in steering wheel injuries. Steering wheel injuries resulting from an impact to the side of the vehicle are somewhat less common than those arising from front-end collisions, as the driver in a T-bone or other side collision is only likely to be thrown forward against the steering wheel when the initial impact occurs at particular angles. Front-end collisions as well as impacts to the rear of a vehicle, however, can result in steering wheel injuries for essentially inverse reasons: A rear-end collision can alter the driver’s momentum within the vehicle and throw them sharply forward, then back (often causing whiplash during the process, while a front-end collision can result in the car stopping abruptly as the driver’s inertia carries them forward to impact with the steering wheel.
Types of Steering Wheel Injuries
Steering wheel injuries may occur in several different varieties, depending on their cause, the driver’s size and position within the vehicle, and a number of other factors. Some of the most common types of steering wheel injuries include:
- Concussions: Sharp impacts of the forehead or jawbone to any portion of the steering wheel can in turn cause the brain to impact against the inside of the skull, resulting in the impact injury known as a concussion. Concussions have come under scrutiny in recent years for the role they are thought to play in the development of chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE), especially among individuals who sustain concussions repeatedly. Even after a single incident, however, concussions can sometimes result in a troubling condition known as post-concussion syndrome (PCS). According to the Cleveland Clinic, PCS can significantly extend an accident victim’s project recovery time – with numerous implications for the individual’s income potential and medical expenses.
- Broken teeth or jaw: Depending on the part of the face that makes initial contact with the steering wheel, a facial or cranial impact can result in broken teeth or a broken or dislocated jaw, with or without concussion.
- Whiplash: Whiplash is a very common car accident injury across many different types of car accidents. In the context of a steering wheel accident, whiplash can easily occur when a driver is thrown forward in an initial collision, then sharply backward upon connecting with the steering wheel. Whiplash usually heals in a few days to weeks, but serious cases may take longer or involve additional complications.
- Thoracic and abdominal injuries: Fractured ribs may be more common in drivers whose ribcage sits at a level to impact with the rim of the steering wheel during a collision. This correlation in physical position can be influenced not just by the relative sizes of driver and vehicle, but also by the angle at which the steering wheel is positioned and a variety of other factors. Drivers who experience fractured ribs as a result of steering wheel impacts during a car accident may be more likely to also sustain abdominal injuries, as the same types and angles of impact that are likely to fracture ribs can also lead to bruising of the internal organs. Monitoring for signs of internal bleeding is important in these cases.
Steering wheel injuries can take a number of other forms, depending on the circumstances. The location and severity of the injury will likely contribute to a medical professional’s estimate of your recovery time. Seeking medical attention as soon as possible after an accident is crucial in order to develop a realistic prognosis, as well as to gain information about symptoms that could indicate additional complications from steering wheel injuries in the days or weeks immediately following the initial incident.
Recovering Compensation for Steering Wheel Injuries
Since most steering wheel accidents happen in the context of a car accident, it is very common for the injured person to seek compensation from the other driver (or from the driver’s auto insurance company) to help cover the costs of medical care and missed work resulting from their injuries. The steering wheel injury claim process may be relatively straightforward if law enforcement reports from the scene and insurance investigations performed after the fact concur about who was responsible for the accident. However, there are a couple of factors that can complicate the process for seeking compensation, depending on the circumstances.
Contributory Negligence
Mississippi Code § 11-7-15 establishes that the state follows a doctrine of contributory negligence. In contributory negligence states, generally speaking, people who are injured in accidents in which their own negligence was a contributing factor can still seek compensation from the other party involved – but the amount of compensation a plaintiff can recover in this type of case will be reduced in proportion to the degree their own negligence is found to have contributed to the accident or other incident in which they were injured. This contributory negligence may limit the total compensation recovered after any type of accident, but because steering wheel injuries are, broadly speaking, likely to be more severe when the individual injured is not wearing a properly fastened seat belt at the time of the accident and Mississippi law mandates wearing a seatbelt whenever the vehicle is in forward motion, many Mississippi residents who are aware of the contributory negligence statute may hesitate to pursue damages in court if they were not wearing their own seat belts at the time of the crash. Additional considerations can come into play and you may certainly wish to discuss your situation with a Mississippi car accident injury lawyer at Lott Law Firm – but you may find it encouraging to note that M.S.C. § 63-2-3 specifically excludes failure to wear a seatbelt from the comparative fault or contributory negligence rules.
Equipment Failure
In fortunately unusual cases, steering wheel injuries may be caused or exacerbated by a manufacturing defect in the steering wheel mechanism, or in its housing or attachments within the vehicle. In these cases it may be necessary to pursue compensation from the vehicle’s manufacturer, either as well as or instead of from the auto insurance company of the other driver involved in the accident. When what looks like a comparatively simple car accident injury claim becomes, upon further investigation, a product liability case, it may be necessary to pursue additional avenues of inquiry in order to gain a clear understanding of all relevant facts.
Speak with a Mississippi Car Accident Attorney to Ensure Your Legal Rights are Protected
Steering wheel injuries are very common after car accidents, although the type of collision can affect both the probability that a driver will strike the steering wheel during a crash and the relative severity of injuries he or she is likely to sustain as a result. Some steering wheel injuries can be life-altering or even life-threatening, while others may take weeks to months before the accident victim can expect a full recovery. The costs of medical care, both immediately after the accident and during the often lengthy recovery period that follows, can be considerable. Especially when combined with wages lost as a result of missed work due to the injuries, steering wheel injuries can have a devastating financial impact in addition to the physical pain they cause. If your steering wheel injuries occurred in an accident caused by someone else’s negligence, you may be able to pursue compensation to help buffer these financial losses. Schedule a consultation with Lott Law Firm by reaching out to any of our conveniently located Mississippi offices. Call (228) 215-2787 today.