What If the Insurance Company Says You Had a Pre-Existing Condition?
One of the most common issues that comes up in personal injury cases is this:
The insurance company says your injury was “already there.”
This usually happens when an MRI shows things like degenerative disc disease, arthritis, or normal wear and tear in the spine. The insurance company will point to those findings and argue that your pain was not really caused by the accident or that they should not have to pay for all of your treatment.
That argument comes up a lot, and it is one we deal with every day.
What the Insurance Company Is Really Saying
When an adjuster talks about degeneration or pre-existing conditions, what they are really saying is:
“You were not perfectly healthy before the accident, so we want to pay you less.”
They may claim your discs were already worn down, that your spine was not in perfect shape, or that some of your treatment would have happened anyway. Many times, this is said even when the client has not needed medical care for years before the accident.
We see this all the time.
Degeneration Does Not Mean You Were Injured Before
Here is the reality.
Most people over the age of 35 have some level of degenerative changes in their spine. That does not mean they were in pain. It does not mean they needed treatment. And it does not mean the accident did not make things worse.
We have many clients who have MRI findings showing degeneration but had not seen a doctor, chiropractor, or specialist for five years or more before the crash. They were living their lives just fine until the accident happened.
That matters.
The “Broken Window” Example
I like to explain this with a simple example.
Imagine a kid throws a baseball through a window. That window might be five or ten years old, but it was working just fine before it was broken. No one would say, “I only want to pay half the cost because it was an old window.”
Doing what is right means fixing the window.
Insurance companies try to do the opposite with injuries. They say the window was old, so they do not want to pay to fix it properly. Our job is to make them do what is fair.
What We Focus On in These Cases
When pre-existing conditions or degeneration come up, it does not end your case. It simply means the case has to be handled correctly.
We focus on:
- Whether you needed treatment before the accident
- How the accident changed your condition
- What your doctors say about aggravation or worsening
- The difference between normal wear and tear and accident-related injury
Most orthopedic doctors will tell you that degeneration is common and often painless until trauma makes it symptomatic.
The Bottom Line
Having a pre-existing condition or degenerative disc disease does not mean you do not have a valid case.
It means the insurance company is trying to reduce what they pay, and it means you need someone willing to fight back and demand a fair result.
If you are dealing with this issue or have questions about an MRI or prior conditions, we are happy to talk with you.
In pain? Call Shane at 980-999-9999.
