Georgia Legal Guide: Eye Injuries After a Car Accident — What Are Your Rights When Another Driver Causes an Eye Injury?
Key Points:
- You’ll need to fight to prove that the other driver’s actions caused your eye injury. Insurers may argue that your vision problems are age-related, pre-existing, or unrelated to the crash.
- You can seek recovery even if your symptoms are delayed or you have a pre-existing condition, as long as a negligent driver is found responsible for worsening your condition.
- Do not settle before you know if your vision loss is permanent. Lasting vision problems can increase the value of your claim.
I Was Hit by Another Driver and Now Something Is Wrong With My Vision
There are many common causes of eye injuries during an accident, such as airbags and flying glass, which can lead to blurry vision, double vision, a shadow or persistent floaters, painful sensitivity to light, or trouble focusing.
Even after visiting an emergency department or medical specialists, you may not have a real diagnosis or outlook on your injuries. Alternatively, you might have been told that your eyes are permanently damaged.
You likely have a lot of questions about how to pay for your medical bills, recover damages, and handle life-altering injuries. Just know that Georgia law allows you to recover for both the immediate and future consequences of any injury. And with serious eye damage, the long-term effects can become a major part of the claim.
Who Is Responsible for Paying for My Eye Injury Caused by a Georgia Car Accident?
In Georgia, a driver owes everyone else on the road a duty of “ordinary care” — the care a prudent person would use when faced with the same circumstances (O.C.G.A. § 51-1-2). When a driver breaks that duty and injures someone, the injured person has the right to recover damages (O.C.G.A. §§ 51-1-6 and 51-1-8).
If another driver ran a red light (O.C.G.A. § 40-6-20), followed too closely (O.C.G.A. § 40-6-49), failed to yield while turning left (O.C.G.A. § 40-6-71), changed lanes improperly (O.C.G.A. § 40-6-123), or was distracted (O.C.G.A. § 40-6-241), that conduct is powerful evidence of negligence.
You can typically access additional insurance policies if the at-fault driver was driving a commercial or rideshare vehicle, or if they were driving for work. You can request the at-fault driver’s liability limits in writing. Under O.C.G.A. § 33-3-28, if you send the insurer a request under oath setting out the specific nature of your claim by certified mail or statutory overnight delivery, the insurer has 60 days to respond under oath with each insurer’s name, each insured’s name, and the liability limits of each policy. Separately, the at-fault driver or their attorney must disclose the name of each insurer providing coverage within 30 days of a written request.
What Compensation Can I Recover for an Eye Injury After a Car Accident?
Georgia divides damages into two categories (O.C.G.A. § 51-12-2), and damages are meant to compensate you for the injury actually done (O.C.G.A. § 51-12-4).
Special damages are a measure of tangible financial losses like past and future medical expenses, lost wages, and reduced future earning capacity. Itemized bills can be admitted as evidence with testimony that the charges were reasonable and necessary (O.C.G.A. § 24-9-921).
General damages are intangible losses, such as pain and suffering, permanent impairment — a lasting deficit in visual acuity, visual field, depth perception, or eye function — the loss of normal activities, decreased quality of life, and anxiety related to your condition.
Because retinal or optic nerve injuries can permanently affect your life, accounting for these intangible long-term effects is crucial to the value of your claim.
How Does Permanent Vision Loss Affect the Value of My Car Accident Claim?
Whether or not your vision loss is permanent is the single biggest driver of value in an eye injury claim.
- Degree of impairment. Blurry vision is a far cry from being declared legally blind.
- One eye or both. Losing one eye still impairs depth perception and peripheral vision.
- Your age. A 34-year-old lives with the impairment far longer than someone injured at 74, which affects both future care and lifetime earnings.
- Your occupation. Occupation plays a role too – a crane operator or surgeon may face career-ending consequences that an office worker won’t.
- Ability to drive. Losing your driver’s license or ability to drive at night can significantly affect your work, childcare, and independence.
- Future treatment. Decades of treatment lie ahead: monitoring appointments, repeat surgeries, and managing medications and devices all carry a heavy cost.
- Everyday life. Everyday life is affected – reading, screens, stairs, cooking, sports, and recognizing faces are all impacted.
How Do I Prove My Eye Injury Was Caused by the Accident?
You will need to show the crash “more likely than not” caused your injury with records and paperwork such as medical records from emergency department visits, specialist care, and diagnostic testing.
Make sure you keep a record of when symptoms like blurring, floaters, or pain first appeared and who you shared them with. A treating physician’s written opinion can help connect your diagnosis to the collision. As far as medical records are concerned, you will also need to demonstrate consistency with follow-up treatments.
Because insurers may point to your age, medical history of diabetes or glaucoma, or prior refractive error as alternative causes, specialist opinions and medical records are especially important in establishing causation.
Additional evidence includes photographs from the scene, prior medical and optometry records, and testimony from you, family, coworkers, and supervisors about concrete changes in your vision. For example, they can speak to whether you have stopped driving after dark or enlarged the font on your devices.
What If My Eye Injury or Vision Problems Did Not Appear Until After the Crash?
It is common for vision problems to develop well after a car accident or be ignored entirely because of other more critical injuries. Luckily, delayed care doesn’t necessarily prevent recovery if the proper steps are taken.
Make sure you always promptly report new vision symptoms to your doctor and document when they began. Keep all follow-up appointments and maintain any medical records.
What If I Had Eye or Vision Problems Before the Accident?
You can still recover if the collision aggravated your eye condition, and the at-fault driver is legally responsible for the worsening caused by the crash.
You can still pursue a claim even if you have glasses or contacts, received prior LASIK or cataract surgery, or have glaucoma or diabetic retinopathy. In these cases, the focus of your claim shifts to how your vision changed after the collision.
Maintain pre- and post-accident records to establish changes to your eye health due to the crash. Always talk to your attorney and doctors about your eye history to avoid damaging your credibility down the line.
Can I Recover Compensation If My Eye Injury Affects My Ability to Work or Drive?
You can seek recovery if your injury affects your ability to drive or work normally, especially if you work in a career that relies heavily on sight like driving, healthcare, or aviation. Recovery in this scenario covers lost wages and diminished earning capacity.
Lost wages are income lost due to the accident, while diminished earning capacity relates to a reduction in future earnings. If you’re relegated to a lower-paying or lower-skilled position, work fewer hours, or have to give up overtime and promotions, you’ve suffered a tangible loss recoverable under Georgia law.
Additionally, if you can’t drive at night or lose your license, the associated loss of independence and ongoing transportation costs are compensable.
Who Pays for My Future Medical Care If My Eye Injury Is Permanent?
Georgia damages are compensatory, meaning they aim to place you in the position you would have been in had the negligence not occurred (O.C.G.A. § 51-12-4). Damages in Georgia will cover future medical expenses you’ll reasonably need, such as ongoing monitoring, diagnostic testing, surgery, prescription medications, lenses or prosthetics, vision rehabilitation, occupational therapy, or treatment for related complications.
These future costs must be proven with a treating physician’s opinion paired with demonstrated costs.
Do not sign a general release without talking to a lawyer. A general release closes out all claims arising from the crash, including claims for future care you have not yet identified and potentially your UM/UIM claim. When you settle for the at-fault driver’s policy limits, a statutory limited release under O.C.G.A. § 33-24-41.1 is the appropriate instrument.
What If the At-Fault Driver Doesn’t Have Enough Insurance to Cover My Eye Injury?
Georgia’s $25,000 liability coverage per person is likely not enough to cover the costs of a serious eye injury. When your claim exceeds the at-fault driver’s policy limits, you can access uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage.
This is part of your own auto policy that pays when the responsible driver has too little insurance or none at all. You can potentially stack UM/UIM on top of liability limits, depending on the the type of UM/UIM on your how to papolicy.
Don’t sign a general release from the at-fault driver’s insurance company as this might prevent you from accessing additional coverage. Georgia law allows a limited release, which lets you accept the insurer’s limits without giving up your UM/UIM claim.
UM/UIM claims have their own notice and procedural requirements, so handle them as soon as possible.
How Can a Georgia Car Accident Lawyer Help Me With My Eye Injury Claim?
Serious eye injury claims require medical, employment, and insurance evidence. A lawyer can help you by:
- Investigating the collision and establishing any at-fault parties;
- Preserving photographs, vehicle data, witness statements, and police reports;
- Obtaining complete medical records;
- Documenting measurable changes in acuity, visual field, and depth perception over time;
- Consulting with medical specialists or other professionals when needed;
- Projecting the cost of reasonably anticipated future eye care;
- Calculating lost income and diminished earning capacity;
- Identifying every available liability, UM/UIM, and medical payments policy;
- Using documentation to counter arguments against your case;
- Documenting how the injury affects daily life;
- Negotiating with insurers; and
- Sometimes filing suit within the two-year deadline (O.C.G.A. § 9-3-33).
An Illustrative Example (Hypothetical)
Denise is rear-ended by a distracted driver on a Tara Blvd in Jonesboro. Her airbag strikes her face, and she’s treated at the ER for facial abrasions and a concussion.
Two days later, she starts seeing floaters and a gray shadow in her right eye that a specialist diagnoses as a traumatic retinal tear consistent with blunt-force trauma from a car crash. Despite this evidence, the insurance company attempts to dispute the connection, citing Denise’s age, history of wearing glasses, and the two-day delay in reporting vision problems. Luckily, her prior eye records show corrected 20/20 vision and no retinal problems just eight months before the collision.
A year later, Denise has a permanent visual field deficit and reduced depth perception that forces her to take a lower-paying job without as many opportunities for career growth. She recovers the full policy limits of the at-fault driver and she pursues and recovers additional UM/UIM benefits to cover her larger claim that reflects her long-term medical needs, lost earning capacity, permanent impairment, and changes to daily life.
Conclusion
Your eye injury claim following an auto accident likely includes medical expenses, lost income, permanent impairment, and other long-term effects. Make sure you determine the full extent of your injury and explore all insurance coverage available before settling your claim.
Even if your vision returns to normal, you can recover for medical care, lost wages, and pain and suffering (O.C.G.A. § 51-12-2).
A delay won’t necessarily defeat your claim, but prompt medical documentation of your symptoms will strengthen your case.
Wearing glasses or contacts won’t prevent you from recovering.
An injury to one eye can still impair depth perception, peripheral vision, driving, work, and daily safety, making you eligible for recovery with proper documentation.
Wait until your doctors can determine whether the loss is permanent before settling with the at-fault driver’s insurance company.
You can recover for long-term treatments or corrective devices as long as they are deemed necessary and reasonable.
You can recover for lost wages and diminished earning capacity if your injury limits overtime, career advancement, or the type of work you can perform.
Your own UM/UIM coverage may apply, but accept only a limited release from the at-fault driver’s insurance to avoid waiving your UM/UIM claim (O.C.G.A. § 33-7-11, § 33-24-41.1).
Myths and Facts About Eye Injury Claims After a Georgia Car Accident
Myth #1: You cannot recover compensation unless you permanently lose your eyesight.
Fact: Permanent vision loss isn’t required, and you can still recover for temporary impairment (O.C.G.A. § 51-12-2).
Myth #2: If you already wore glasses or contacts, the insurance company doesn’t have to pay for your vision problems.
Fact: Preexisting vision problems don’t prevent you from recovering for new or worsening eye health.
Myth #3: You cannot connect eye problems that develop well after the crash to your claim.
Fact: As long as you report symptoms promptly and have accompanying medical documentation, you’ll be able to connect your vision issues to the accident.
Myth #4: The insurance company only has to pay your medical bills.
Fact: Compensation usually extends beyond medical bills to lost income, reduced earning capacity, pain and suffering, permanent impairment, and future care.
Myth #5: You should settle once your current medical bills are paid, even if doctors don’t yet know whether your vision will fully recover.
Fact: You might not be able to seek compensation for future treatments and long-term impacts of your car accident if you don’t get a proper assessment from your doctors.
