How Doctor Shopping Can Ruin Your Compensation Claim Sydney

Being injured at work, or in a motor vehicle accident is traumatic enough, let alone the often cumbersome process of seeking compensation. Many injured parties shy away from pursuing a compensation claim in Sydney due to the fact that the legal process can be rigorous and the fact that insurance companies are often loathe to pay out money. But the fact remains that if you suffered any loss in any type of accident, you should receive the full sum of compensation due to you to cover your medical expenses, pain, suffering and loss of quality of life.

Seeing a doctor is the first thing you should do after sustaining an injury, as proving that you were injured will comprise a large portion of the claims process. In most cases, the insurance company will also require that you see one of their doctors, too. This is a reasonable request, and usually not a problem. However, at times, insurance companies disagree with the opinion of the doctor, and arrange that you see yet another doctor. 

Being deliberately shunted from one doctor to another in order to find a doctor who will make a misdiagnoses in favour of the insurance company simply adds insult to the injury. Being legitimately injured is bad enough, without the added pressure of doctor shopping to delay the claim. Worse, they sometimes do this until they can find a doctor who will give them a legitimate reason to legally refuse to pay your compensation claim in Sydney.

Unfortunately, the law is rather vague where doctor shopping is concerned. Requesting an independent medical examination (IME) at reasonable intervals (for example once a year) is common practice. However, when you're forced to attend independent medical examinations at unreasonable intervals, such as monthly, it is important to get in touch with your personal injury compensation lawyer right away to discuss the options available to you.

Your lawyer will be able to determine whether the insurance company is acting within their rights, and if they are acting unethically, the lawyer will be able to take action against them for not adhering to the law. Some clients make the mistake of attending several monthly independent medical examinations without telling their lawyers about it, and an attemt to please the insurance company into settling, but it is important to avoid doing that if you feel they are acting unreasonably. Once you've attended several doctors, the damage has already been done. Avoid letting unlawful actions of insurers hamper your compensation claim in Sydney. Speak to your lawyer instead.