It is not uncommon for insurance companies to have their adjusters call people who are involved in an auto crash shortly after the accident. Insurance companies do this to try to get a statement from you as to whether you are injured within a few hours of the crash. Insurance companies are well aware that it takes time for the body to manifest the full extent of the injuries from an accident. If you have ever gone to an emergency room after an injury, you’ve likely been told by the doctors that you will be sorer the following day, and the pain and soreness will probably get worse for the next few days. The medical reason for this is that the tissues in your body start to swell from absorbing the impact of the crash. As those tissues swell, they begin to put pressure on your nerves. You may find it difficult to turn your neck, to move your back, or to bend your knees, wrists, ankles, or other injured body part.
Insurance companies know that the full amount of pain and injury will be unknown to an injured person for several days. The practice by these companies is to try to get you to make statements saying that you are fine or that your injuries are minimal right after an accident. This is a completely deceptive practice. Injured persons are not in a position to know the extent of their injuries, or even whether they are hurt at all in some cases, until time has passed. Usually, injuries do not manifest themselves for one to two days and the pain often increases as time passes. Sometimes this goes as far as the insurance companies preying on people who want to just bounce back from their injuries and who do not want to have their lives disrupted by a car crash. Many people will take the attitude of “I think I’m going to be okay” or “I’ll be all right,” when in reality, they are hurting and just hoping that the pain will go away soon.
