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Shoulder pain after a car accident is more serious than many people realize. What may feel like minor pain today because of the initial shock after a crash, may actually be a more significant shoulder injury that will continue to worsen without treatment. Below we discuss some of the most common shoulder injuries from car crashes, why you should seek medical help without delay, and when you should consider speaking with an attorney to see if you have an injury claim.
At PKSD, our experienced car accident lawyers in Milwaukee help crash victims every day, something we have been doing for decades. We are deeeply committed to holding at-fault parties accountable for their negligence and making sure our clients recover the full and fair compensation for theird damages, including medical costs, lost wages, and pain and suffer.
Don’t wait to get help or try to manage on your home. An initial consultation with our firm is completely free – even if you don’t decide to hire our services.
Call 414-333-3333 to request a free consultation to discuss your shoulder injury.
Car accidents put tremendous force on your body, even in seemingly minor collisions. Shoulders are especially vulnerable during a crash because of how your body is positioned in the vehicle. When the impact occurs, your body jerks suddenly and violently, first throwing your shoulder forward, and then either backward or to the side with intense force.
Seatbelts, while lifesaving, can also contribute to shoulder injuries. The diagonal strap crosses directly over your shoulder, and during a collision, it locks and restrains your body with significant pressure. Additionally, if you tense up or brace yourself against the steering wheel or dashboard, you’re putting extreme stress on your shoulder joint and surrounding muscles. Even the deployment of an airbag can cause blunt force trauma to your shoulder area. All of these forces can cause damage to the complex network of the bones, tendons, ligaments, and muscles in your shoulder.
Shoulder injuries from car accidents range from painful soft tissue damage to severe tears or fractures requiring surgery. Before you can get proper treatment, you need to find out what type of injury you might have.
Your rotator cuff is a group of four muscles and tendons that stabilize your shoulder joint. The sudden jerking motion in a crash can tear these tendons partially or completely. You might have trouble lifting your arm, experience weakness, or hear clicking sounds when you move your shoulder.
The force of a collision can break the collarbone (clavicle), shoulder blade (scapula), or upper arm bone (humerus). Fractures cause immediate, severe pain and often require immobilization or surgery to heal properly.
If the ball of your upper arm bone pops out of the shoulder socket, you have a dislocation. This extremely painful injury is common and often happens when drivers brace against the steering wheel during impact. Dislocations can damage surrounding ligaments as well, making your shoulder unstable.
The labrum is cartilage that cushions your shoulder socket. Tears to this tissue cause deep pain, a “catching” sensation, and reduced range of motion. Labral tears often require surgical repair and extensive physical therapy.
Muscles, tendons, and ligaments can stretch or tear during a crash, causing significant pain, swelling, and stiffness. While soft tissue injuries might sound minor, they can take weeks or even months to heal. Shoulder injuries that don’t get treated can develop into chronic problems, impacting your ability to lift and move without pain.
While we are not doctors, we can tell you that yes, your health is a priority, so you should always see a doctor after a car accident, even if your shoulder pain seems mild. Here’s why: adrenaline and shock can mask serious injuries immediately after a crash. You might feel fine at the accident scene, only to wake up the next day in severe pain as swelling and inflammation set in.
Shoulder injuries are particularly deceptive. A small rotator cuff tear might cause only minor discomfort at first, but without proper treatment, it can worsen into a larger or complete tear requiring surgery. Inflammation can spread, scar tissue can develop, and what started as a manageable injury can become a chronic condition affecting your ability to work, sleep, or enjoy daily activities.
If you intend to seek compensation for your damages (medical costs, lost wages, property damage, and more), seeking immediate medical care also protects your legal claim. Insurance companies look for any reason to deny or reduce compensation. If you wait days or weeks to see a doctor, they have room to argue your injury wasn’t serious. They may even try to say that your injury wasn’t caused by the accident. Medical records created immediately after your crash provide critical evidence linking your shoulder injury directly to the collision.
If someone else caused your car accident, you have the right to seek compensation for your shoulder injury. This includes payment for medical bills, lost wages, future treatment costs, and pain and suffering.
The key is establishing the other driver’s negligence. To do this you, or your attorney, need to prove they violated traffic laws, drove recklessly, or failed to exercise reasonable care behind the wheel. Common examples of driver negligence includes:
At PKSD our knowledgable car accident lawyers are prepared to protect your rights and best interests from day one. When we represent you, we fully investigate your crash, gather evidence – like police reports and witness statements, and build a strong case showing how the other party’s actions directly caused your injuries.
In Wisconsin, you should seek medical treatment immediately after a car accident—ideally within 24 to 72 hours. While there’s no strict legal deadline for getting medical care, delays weaken both your health outcomes and your legal claim.
Wisconsin also has a three-year statute of limitations for filing a personal injury lawsuit. This means you have three years from the date of your accident to file a lawsuit. However, you don’t want to wait that long to take action. Evidence disappears within hours to days, witnesses’ memories fade, and insurance companies become more difficult to negotiate with as time passes.
Dealing with treatment for a shoulder injury is overwhelming enough without trying to navigate complex insurance claims and legal procedures on your own. Insurance companies often have teams of adjusters and lawyers working to minimize what they pay you, even when your injuries are serious and clearly caused by their policyholder. The reason for this is that they don’t make money if they pay in full for every claim. Their goal is to maintain profitability by paying as little out on a claim as possible
An experienced car accident attorney levels the legal playing field. When we manage your case, we handle all communication with insurance companies, ensuring you don’t get manipulated into saying something that could hurt your claim. We will also accurately assess and calculate the true value of your case, including future medical costs and long-term impacts you might not have considered. Most importantly, we will fight to get you the full compensation you deserve while you focus on healing.
Remember, most injury lawyers, including PKSD, work on a contingency fee basis, meaning you pay nothing unless we win your case. For you, this means there is no financial risk in getting legal advice, but there is significant risk in going it alone.
Your shoulder injury deserves serious attention—both medically and legally. At PKSD, we’ve spent years helping Milwaukee drivers recover from car accident injuries and get the compensation they need to move forward.
We know the physical, emotional, and financial toll a shoulder injury can take on you and your family. That’s why we’re committed to providing compassionate, strong representation that puts your needs first. Our team has the resources, knowledge, and dedication to take on insurance companies and fight for every dollar you deserve.
Don’t let shoulder pain control your life, and don’t let insurance companies take advantage of you. Call PKSD today for a free, no-obligation consultation. We’ll review your case, answer your questions, and help you understand your options. Your recovery starts with one phone call.
Call PKSD today. Let our family help yours. 414-333-3333
This page has been written, edited, and reviewed by a team of legal writers following our comprehensive editorial guidelines. This page was approved by attorney Jeffery A. Pitman, who has more than 28 years of legal experience and handled thousands of personal injury cases while obtaining millions of dollars in verdicts and settlements in Wisconsin, Illinois, Iowa and New Mexico.
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