The First Weeks After a Life-Changing Injury
The patient's care comes first. Nobody expects all of this at once. Relatives can take on most of it.
- Stay with the treatment plan. Emergencies mean 911. From the first night at Spartanburg Medical Center, or wherever care begins, through inpatient rehab and outpatient therapy, follow what the doctors lay out.
- Ask for the report. Spartanburg Police, the Sheriff's Office, the Highway Patrol or a town department may have one. A shop, apartment complex or rental house may have written its own incident report; ask for a copy.
- Take pictures. Photograph the injuries as they heal, plus the scene and the vehicle or hazard. Relatives can handle that.
- Save it all. Bills, records, discharge papers, pay stubs and insurer letters, along with damaged helmets, clothing or gear.
- Journal it. Bad nights, what he or she can't do anymore, shifts missed, who had to help with what. Someone at home can keep it.
- Hold off on signing. Many people talk to a lawyer first.
Deadlines That Apply
For most personal injury claims, South Carolina's limit is three years.1 It is measured to the filing of a lawsuit, and an insurance claim doesn't pause it.2
Lawsuits under the South Carolina Tort Claims Act generally must be filed within two years after the loss was or should have been discovered. A three-year deadline may apply if a qualifying verified claim was first filed under the Act.3 Other procedures and caps on damages may come into play as well.4 A lawyer can tell you which limits fit your situation.
What a Claim May Cover
Depending on the facts, a serious injury claim may include past and future medical care, rehab, lost wages, reduced earning ability, ongoing personal care, changes to the home, pain and suffering and other losses. What's available depends on the evidence and the law, and no recovery can be promised.5
These cases often look ahead to future needs, beyond the bills already in hand. Medical, money and work records help show those needs.
Want someone to look at your situation?
Talk with our team about what happened and ask the questions on your mind.
When You're the One Holding Things Together
A spouse or grown child often ends up managing everything. One notebook for bills, letters and records helps. So does writing down every doctor, nurse and adjuster you talk to, with the date and what they said. Track the family's own costs as well: missed shifts, drives to appointments in Spartanburg or Greenville, and help at home.
Talk With Us
An injury this serious reaches the whole household, sometimes for years. We want to understand the injury and the person behind it: the job, the family and what a normal day looks like now. If you hire us, the insurers can usually deal with us.
We take cases across South Carolina, including Spartanburg County. For specific injuries, see brain injuries in Spartanburg and spinal cord injuries in Spartanburg, or the statewide page on catastrophic injury claims.
South Carolina Law on This
- Most personal injury claims in South Carolina must be filed within three years.1
- South Carolina's statute of limitations generally sets the deadline for filing a lawsuit in court. Simply opening a claim with an insurance company or negotiating with an insurance adjuster does not stop the statute of limitations from running.2
- Lawsuits under the South Carolina Tort Claims Act generally must be filed within two years after the loss was or should have been discovered. A three-year deadline may apply if a qualifying verified claim was first filed under the Act.3
- Claims against a South Carolina state or local government agency have their own filing deadline, which can be shorter, and there could be caps on damages under the South Carolina Tort Claims Act, depending on the facts of the case.4
- Depending on the circumstances, a South Carolina personal injury claim for a serious injury may include compensation for past and future medical treatment, rehabilitation, assistive devices, ongoing personal care, home modifications, lost income, reduced earning capacity, pain and suffering, and other losses caused by the injury. The amount and types of compensation available depend on the evidence and applicable law.5
- In South Carolina, being an injured adult's spouse, parent or adult child does not automatically give someone legal authority to settle a personal injury claim or make binding legal decisions for that person. Depending on the circumstances, authority may come from a valid power of attorney, a court-appointed conservator or another legally recognized arrangement, and a guardian ad litem may be required in certain litigation involving an incapacitated person.6
- Under South Carolina's discovery rule, the three-year period for most personal injury lawsuits generally begins when a person knew, or through reasonable diligence should have known, that they had a potentially actionable injury. A formal diagnosis is not necessarily required to start the period, and a later diagnosis does not automatically restart the deadline, but when the injury reasonably could have been discovered depends on the circumstances.7
Frequently Asked Questions
Which injuries count as catastrophic?
Nobody keeps an official list. People use the word for injuries that change daily life for years or permanently, like brain and spinal cord injuries, amputations and severe burns.
My husband can't manage his own claim right now. Can I sign for him?
You can gather records, talk with lawyers and help arrange his care. Being a spouse, parent or adult child doesn't by itself give you legal authority to settle a claim or make binding choices for an injured adult. That may take a power of attorney, a court-appointed conservator or another legal step, depending on the situation, and a lawyer can help sort out which.6
The adjuster opened a claim file. Doesn't that protect us?
No. The deadline is about filing suit in court, and an open insurance claim doesn't hold it.2
He's still in rehab. Is it too soon to call?
No. It's common to reach out while someone is still admitted or in rehab. The patient's job is healing and sticking with the treatment plan.
The spinal damage wasn't found until weeks later. Does the clock start then?
A later diagnosis doesn't automatically restart the deadline. South Carolina's discovery rule generally starts the clock when a person knew, or with reasonable diligence should have known, of a potentially actionable injury.7 Pinning down that date turns on the facts, so get a lawyer's read early.
Do we have to travel to Charleston?
The first conversation can happen by phone. Our office is on King Street in Charleston, and any family member can make the call.
Sources
- S.C. Code § 15-3-530
- S.C. Code §§ 15-3-20 and 15-3-530
- S.C. Code §§ 15-78-80 and 15-78-110
- S.C. Code §§ 15-78-110 and 15-78-120
- S.C. Code §§ 15-32-210 et seq. (punitive damages); South Carolina tort decisions on compensatory damages
- S.C. Code Title 62, Article 5 (guardianship and conservatorship) and §§ 62-8-101 et seq.; South Carolina powers of attorney law
- S.C. Code § 15-3-535
This page is general information about South Carolina law, not legal advice for your situation. Every case depends on its own facts.
