We handle arm fracture cases throughout Massachusetts and Georgia, where our offices are located.

A Broken Arm Is Not a Minor Injury

The first thing insurance adjusters will likely tell you about a broken arm is that it’s going to heal. They say it like that’s the end of the story.

Arm fractures run from a clean wrist break that heals in a cast to a shattered humerus that requires surgery, metal plates and screws, a second surgery to remove the hardware, and physical therapy. Some people come out of it with permanent weakness, limited range of motion, nerve damage, or chronic pain.

Insurance adjusters know the difference between these injuries. Their opening offer is built on the hope that you don’t.

At Lionhart Injury Law, Rob Hartigan has handled these cases for years and knows how to build them so the full cost of the injury is on the table, not just the version the insurance company wants to pay for.

You can contact our office today for help, or read on to learn more.

What Makes an Arm Fracture Case Worth Pursuing

A lot of people underestimate their own case because it’s “just” a broken arm. The value of an arm fracture case depends on several factors.

Severity of the fracture and the treatment it required. A clean break that heals in a cast is typically a lower-value case, though it can still be worth pursuing. A fracture that required surgical fixation (plates, screws, rods, bone grafts, or multiple operations) is worth significantly more.

Nerve and joint involvement. Fractures that damage the radial, ulnar, or median nerve often produce lasting symptoms. For example, numbness, tingling, weakness, or pain that persists long after the bone itself has healed. Fractures that extend into the elbow, wrist, or shoulder joint can cause chronic stiffness or arthritis. Insurance adjusters won’t price these complications into their offer unless the case is built to document them.

Lasting loss of function. This is the part of an arm fracture case with the biggest effect on value. Things like reduced grip strength, limited range of motion, chronic pain, and weakness that doesn’t resolve.

Impact on your work and earning capacity. If the fracture has kept you out of work, forced you into a lighter role, or permanently changed what you can do for a living, that lost income is a major part of your damages.

 

Arm Fractures from Car, Truck & Rideshare Accidents

Car accidents are one of the most common causes of arm fractures. The at-fault driver is the obvious defendant, but often not the most important one. Many drivers carry only the state minimum in liability coverage, which is rarely enough to cover a serious arm fracture with surgery and lasting effects.

The cases that pay fair and reasonable compensation are usually the ones where we identify additional parties with insurance behind them. That can mean:

• The driver’s employer, if the driver was working at the time. For example, a delivery driver, a commercial driver, a sales rep on the road. 
• A trucking company. Federal law requires some commercial trucks to carry between $750,000 and $5 million in liability insurance depending on what they’re hauling. 
• Uber or Lyft. Rideshare accidents can involve up to $1 million in coverage depending on the driver’s status at the time of the crash. 
• A bar or restaurant that overserved a drunk driver, under Massachusetts or Georgia dram shop law.

Part of what we do is find every party that could be responsible. That’s often the difference between a settlement that covers your medical bills and one that covers your whole loss.

Arm Fractures from Construction Site Accidents

A lot of injured construction workers assume workers’ comp is the only path. Workers’ comp covers medical bills and a portion of lost wages, with no need to prove fault. What it doesn’t cover is pain and suffering, full lost earnings, or the long-term impact on your ability to work. These are often the largest components of what a serious arm fracture case is worth.

If someone other than your employer contributed to the injury, you can bring a third-party personal injury claim, in addition to your workers’ comp claim. On a busy construction site, that often includes:

• Other contractors or subcontractors whose negligence created the hazard. 
• A general contractor or property owner who allowed dangerous conditions to persist. 
• The manufacturer, distributor, or seller of a defective tool, piece of equipment, or safety gear.

Figuring out whether a third-party claim exists requires digging into the facts of the site. Who was there, who controlled what, and what went wrong. That’s what we do.

(Lionhart Injury Law does not represent clients in workers’ compensation cases. We handle the third-party personal injury claims that arise alongside workers’ comp. These are the claims that recover what workers’ comp can’t.)

Arm Fractures on Someone Else’s Property

The legal question is whether the property owner or occupier kept the place reasonably safe.

This area of law is called premises liability. Property owners owe a duty of care to people lawfully on the property. If they knew about a hazard, or should have known about it through reasonable inspection, and didn’t fix it or warn people, and that hazard caused your injury, they can be held responsible.

Property owners don’t get off the hook just by claiming they didn’t see the ice patch, didn’t notice the broken step, or didn’t know the handrail was loose. Whether the owner is liable depends on the specific facts, including how long the hazard existed, how visible it was, and what the owner did or didn’t do to address it.

Premises cases can involve a wide range of defendants, from landlords and property management companies, to grocery stores, retail chains, restaurants, hotels, office buildings, municipalities, and housing authorities. The defendant is usually whoever controlled the property conditions, which isn’t always the same as whoever holds the title.

If you were hurt on someone else’s property and believe the condition that caused it should have been addressed, we can look at the facts and tell you whether there’s a case.

Other Ways People Break Arms

We’ve focused on the scenarios we handle most often. But arms get broken in a lot of other ways. This can be dog attacks that knock a person to the ground, recreational accidents on poorly maintained property, incidents involving defective consumer products, and more.

We’re Here to Help

If you or a family member has broken an arm because of someone else’s negligence, contact Lionhart Injury Law to discuss your situation. We will tell you whether you have a case, what it might be worth, and what the next steps look like. There’s no fee for the consultation, and no fee at all unless we win.