Traumatic Brain Injury Car Accident Lawyer in Huntington WV

Yes. A traumatic brain injury car accident in Huntington, West Virginia can be pursued through a personal injury claim. Whether a claim moves forward depends on how the crash caused the injury and on the medical records that show it. This page explains what that means and what to gather right away.

Can a Traumatic Brain Injury From a Car Accident Be Pursued Through a Claim?

Yes. A brain injury caused by a crash can be pursued through a personal injury claim. Big Bubba handles car accident and traumatic brain injury matters for people across West Virginia, and we serve Huntington injury victims.

Collisions with commercial trucks also cause serious head injuries.

West Virginia sets a time limit. A personal injury action generally must be brought within two years after the right to bring it arose, under W. Va. Code § 55-2-12. Brain injuries can take weeks to fully show. A free case review is one way to talk through the crash, your symptoms, and your treatment so far.

What Is a Traumatic Brain Injury?

A traumatic brain injury is damage to the brain caused by a sudden blow, jolt, or outside force. The brain can bruise, tear, or bleed when the head hits something or shifts inside the skull during a sudden stop.

Several injuries fall under this label:

Concussion: a temporary disruption of brain function from a blow or jolt, often with headache, confusion, or dizziness.
Contusion: a bruise on the surface of the brain.
Diffuse axonal injury: tearing of the nerve fibers that carry signals between brain cells.
Skull fracture with brain involvement: a broken skull where the brain is also hurt.

The physical injury is only part of the picture. Many people notice changes in memory, focus, mood, or sleep weeks or months later. This page is written for injured drivers and passengers, pedestrians, and families of people hurt in crashes.

What Can a Brain Injury Claim Cover?

A brain injury claim can seek compensation for losses the injury caused. What a claim covers depends on the facts. Common categories include:

Emergency care, hospital stays, and surgery
Rehabilitation, therapy, and medication
Future medical care that a doctor documents as needed
Lost wages and lost ability to earn over time
Help with daily living, at home or elsewhere
Pain, memory loss, and changes in personality or mood

Families who lose a loved one in a crash often have many questions about what comes next, and you can reach out to the firm to talk through your situation during a free case review. The personal representative brings the action. Damages can include sorrow and mental anguish, lost income and services, care and hospital costs, and reasonable funeral expenses, under W. Va. Code § 55-7-6.

West Virginia uses modified comparative fault. Your fault bars recovery only if it is greater than the combined fault of all others. Otherwise, your recovery is reduced by your share of fault, under W. Va. Code § 55-7-13c.

W. Va. Code § 55-7-32 limits the maximum amount recoverable by each person injured or killed against an employer defendant of a commercial motor vehicle as compensatory damages for noneconomic loss to $5 million for each occurrence, regardless of the number of claims or theories of liability, in a civil action for personal injury or wrongful death involving the operation of a commercial motor vehicle requiring a commercial driver’s license. Beginning January 1, 2026, that limit increases each year to account for inflation by the Consumer Price Index, not to exceed 150 percent of the amounts specified in subsection (b). The limitation does not apply in the situations listed in subsection (d), including when an operator or driver is found to have operated the commercial motor vehicle with an alcohol concentration of .04 or more at the time of the incident. The cap is not available to an employer that does not have commercial motor vehicle insurance in the aggregate amount of at least $3 million for each occurrence covering the personal injury that is the subject of the action (W. Va. Code § 55-7-32). Subsection (d) of W. Va. Code § 55-7-32 states that the section does not apply when a commercial motor vehicle case arises from an incident in which the operator or driver is found to have done any of several listed things. Among them are driving, at the time of the incident, with an alcohol concentration of .04 or more, or driving in willful or wanton disregard for the safety of persons or property. It applies to causes of action arising after July 1, 2024.

Long-term effects can also affect public benefits. The Social Security Administration describes disability benefits for people whose condition limits their ability to work. The West Virginia Bureau for Medical Services describes home and community-based waiver services, including a Traumatic Brain Injury Waiver, with their own eligibility rules.

Which Medical Records Does a Brain Injury Claim Usually Need?

A brain injury claim usually needs records that show the injury, the treatment, and how symptoms changed over time. Gather these as you go:

Emergency department records from the crash day, including triage and head injury assessment notes
CT and MRI reports, plus the images when available
Neurology, neuropsychology, and rehabilitation notes, including cognitive testing results
Follow-up notes on headaches, dizziness, sleep changes, mood, and memory
Prescriptions, bills, and mileage logs for medical visits
Wage records showing missed work and changed duties
Crash reports, photos, and witness names

An early scan can look normal even when symptoms are real. A normal scan does not automatically end a claim. Ongoing medical notes can help connect your symptoms to the crash.

How Does the Firm Help Gather Records and Move a Claim Forward?

The firm gathers records, reviews the crash facts, and moves the claim forward in steps:

Free case review: You share the crash facts, symptoms, and treatment so far.
Records requests: With your written authorization, the firm requests records from hospitals, imaging centers, and treating providers.
Crash evidence: The firm collects the crash report, scene information, and vehicle data when it is available.
Records review: The firm checks the diagnosis and treatment timeline against the records.
Insurer communication: The firm deals with insurers and, where needed, the other party’s representatives.

Commercial truck crashes add another layer. Federal rules require employers to test surviving drivers for alcohol and controlled substances after certain crashes. Under federal rule 49 C.F.R. § 382.303, a surviving commercial driver who was performing safety-sensitive functions must be tested for alcohol and controlled substances after a crash that involved the loss of human life, even if no citation is issued. Under 49 C.F.R. § 382.303, after an occurrence involving a commercial motor vehicle operating on a public road in commerce, each employer must test for alcohol each surviving driver who receives a citation within 8 hours of the occurrence for a moving traffic violation arising from the accident, if the accident involved bodily injury to a person who immediately receives medical treatment away from the scene, or one or more motor vehicles incurring disabling damage requiring tow away. Testing is also required for a surviving driver performing safety-sensitive functions when the accident involved the loss of human life, and the rule lists exceptions and sets a 32-hour limit for controlled substance tests, after which attempts to administer that test cease. The rule does not require delaying medical care, under 49 C.F.R. § 382.303.

A brain injury claim often takes months to organize. Medical recovery and records must be complete before the full picture is clear.

How Injured Residents Can Start a Free Case Review

Big Bubba handles car accident, truck accident, commercial vehicle accident, catastrophic injury, traumatic brain injury, spinal cord injury, and wrongful death matters.

The firm serves all 55 West Virginia counties, including Huntington and nearby Cabell and Wayne counties.
Support staff help organize records, appointments, and letters, so you can focus on recovery.
The firm reviews treating providers’ records with the medical timeline in mind.
The firm explains each step in plain language.
Truck, brain injury, and wrongful death claims need different records. The firm tailors the list to your facts.

Common Questions About Brain Injury Car Accident Claims

Do I need a formal brain injury diagnosis to pursue a claim?

Symptoms and medical evaluation both matter. The firm reviews what your records show.

What if my symptoms started days or weeks after the crash?

Symptoms can appear later. Prompt medical follow-up creates records that connect them to the crash.

Can I pursue a claim if I was partly at fault?

Possibly. Under West Virginia’s modified comparative fault rule, your recovery is reduced by your share of fault, unless your fault is greater than everyone else’s combined (W. Va. Code § 55-7-13c).

Do commercial truck crashes involve different rules?

They can involve more records and more parties. Certain commercial vehicle cases also have a damages cap under W. Va. Code § 55-7-32.

Who can bring a wrongful death claim after a brain injury death?

The personal representative brings the claim for the family. It must be brought within two years after the death, subject to the provisions of section eighteen, article two, chapter fifty-five (W. Va. Code § 55-7-6). W. Va. Code § 55-7-6 reads: “The provisions of this section shall not apply to actions brought for the death of any person occurring prior to July 1, 1988.”

Brain Injury Crashes: What to Know After a Serious Collision

Headaches, memory lapses, or confusion after a crash can be hard to sort out alone. Keep every medical record, appointment note, and bill from the crash onward. Those papers help show how the injury started and how it has changed. If headaches or memory trouble followed a crash on Huntington roads or I-64, you may have a claim, and Big Bubba can review it with you.