6 Causes of Wrongful Death

Losing a loved one through an accident caused by a negligent person is very painful. In such situations, you may want to do everything in your power to ensure the deceased gets justice. As the surviving spouse or relative, you have the right to file a wrongful death suit and recover damages from the liable party.

A wrongful death case is a way of seeking compensation for the wrongful death of a loved one. If you believe that your loved one lost their life through an accident caused by someone else’s negligence, you can hire a wrongful death lawyer and recover the damages.

To be eligible for a claim from a wrongful death suit, you need to be aware of the different situations that make a wrongful death claim. Here are six causes of wrongful deaths.

Automobile Accidents

These are the most common causes of wrongful deaths in the United States. Automobile accidents may include car, truck, and motorcycle accidents. Inattentive or intoxicated drivers are among the leading causes of death on the road. 

Therefore, approved relatives of a pedestrian using the road can seek compensation for wrongful death if they get killed by a driver or motorcycle rider.

Medical Malpractice

Medical malpractice is another leading cause of wrongful death in the United States. If your relative loses their life and you can prove that the actions or omissions of the health care provider caused the death, you can sue them or the hospital for wrongful death. 

A person’s death can occur through wrong prescriptions, misdiagnosis, emergency room errors, and surgical mistakes, among others.

Product Liability

Manufacturers, distributors, and retailers of products owe a duty of care to all their products’ consumers. If your loved one lost their life because of a defective product, you could sue the manufacturers, distributors, and retailers for wrongful death.

You can also sue for wrongful death if the manufacturers failed to warn the consumers about their product. For example, manufacturers of dangerous products have to put warning labels to caution people to use their products carefully.

Workplace Accidents

Accidents are quite common in the workplace, especially where tools are used. The employer must ensure that all their workers are safe. If a worker loses their life while carrying out their duties due to company negligence, you can sue and recover damages. 

You can also sue the equipment manufacturer if your loved one was using defective equipment while carrying out their duties.

Airplane Accidents

Airplane accidents are also another cause of wrongful deaths. A plane will crash if the pilot is negligent, or if the airplane has defective parts, is poorly designed, and is poorly maintained. However, it is quite complicated to initiate a wrongful death suit because it can take time to establish the guilty party.

You have to wait until investigations are complete before you initiate legal proceedings against the liable party. You can sue the pilot, the airplane company, or the airplane manufacturer for wrongful death.

Nursing Home Accidents

Most people take their elderly relatives to live in nursing homes where they can be taken care of by experienced personnel. The health care providers have the duty of care to all people in their nursing homes.

Sometimes, healthcare providers might neglect their duties, and your relative loses their life because of it. For example, most older people have age-related ailments and need to take medicine to keep them under control. 

 If the nurse at home fails to give your relative their medicine on time, leading to their death, they should be held responsible for the death.

How to Manage Medical Bills When Dealing with a Malpractice Case

When a medical professional makes a mistake, it can lead to immense pain and suffering. It may also make your original condition worse if an infection or diseased body part is not removed. 

In addition to your physical pain and suffering, you may be unable to work or pay your bills. How can you deal with those bills while your medical malpractice case unfolds?

Ask to Defer Payment Until After the Case

In some cases, it may be possible to have your bills deferred until after your case is settled. If you win, the money from the settlement will be used to pay your doctors and other medical care providers. 

Professionals, like those at Otorowski Johnston Morrow & Golden P.L.L.C., know that these will be the first people to pay after the case is over. 

However, if you lose, you can start making payments on an installment basis or make other arrangements to pay your debts.

Creditors May Allow You to Settle Debts for Less

In the event that you paid medical debt with a credit card, it may be possible to settle that debt for less than you owe. 

If a creditor thinks that it won't get paid in a timely manner because you can't work or otherwise make money, it may be in its best interest to simply accept a settlement. 

However, it is important to remember that any forgiven debt could be viewed as taxable income by the IRS.

Government Benefits May Help Pay Other Bills

Government programs may be available to help you pay other bills such as your heat and light bill. 

Food stamps may help reduce the cost of meals for yourself and anyone else who lives with you. Benefits may also be available to help you pay rent or other housing costs to ensure that you don't become homeless while your case is ongoing.

Crowdfunding May Help You Pay Bills

If you don't want to rely on the government for help, you could ask others in your community to pitch in a few dollars each. 

In fact, you could offer to bake cookies, write music or perform other tasks in exchange for the money. Those who offer rewards should provide them after the case is over to ensure that they don't do anything to jeopardize their standing in court.

A mistake during surgery or a misdiagnosis of a physical condition could lead to large medical bills in the future. 

While you have the right to ask for compensation if an error is made, it could take months or years to settle your case. This means that you need to know where you can go right now to get help until your case is settled.

Medical Negligence Solicitors Can Help the Victims of Malpractice

 (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Medical malpractice is the result of a medical professional being negligent in the practice of medicine. Medical negligence is when a doctor does not comply with normal medical practices to keep a patient from harm. If a doctor does not follow normal medical practices, and the result is complications or serious injury, then the result is malpractice. 

How Does Medical Malpractice Effect the Elderly

Here are reasons seniors may need to file a medical malpractice lawsuit:

1.Wrong Medication Prescribed- You often hear of medical malpractice cases caused by someone given the wrong medication. You might be in a hospital and given too much of a medication, or you are given the wrong medication for your illness.   If you were ever prescribed the wrong medication and you became gravely ill, left handicapped, or die, you or your family can file a medical malpractice lawsuit.

2. Incorrect Diagnosis - If you go to a doctor for symptoms that you have, you expect to be given a correct diagnosis. If you are tested, but given the wrong diagnosis, you can file a lawsuit if the illness progressed and resulted in damage to your body.

3. Medical Equipment Failure- A medical device might not work properly, or give false signals. It might also not be properly cleaned, and the patient develops an infection and dies. A doctor or medical staff can be held responsible for any injuries resulting from defective equipment.

4. Wrongful Death - A wrongful death can occur from a doctor, or other health care professional acting in a way that goes against the standard of care that is guaranteed under a U.S. state or federal law. The same lawsuit can also be applied in the case of any doctor, who fails to act to an incident, and the patient dies as a result of the doctor's negligence.

What Should You Do if You Think You Are a Victim of Medical Malpractice?

First contact a medical malpractice attorney. They have free consultations, and you can tell them all the details of your case. They can inform you of your rights, and determine if your problem really is malpractice or not.

It always good to have separate discussions with several lawyers to get other opinions. If most of the attorneys believe you have enough evidence to file a medical malpractice suit, then it's time to choose the best attorney to help you with your case.

You should consider that medical lawsuits can take years to resolve. Even if you settle out of court, it can take a lot of time. Most people, who file a lawsuit, get worn down by all of the time it takes, and the amount it can cost them upfront.

Finally, over half of all medical malpractice suits that are filed are not successful. This is also something that needs to be considered before filing any lawsuit. In the end, use your judgment to determine what you really want to do. For more info see Pryers Solicitors.