By David B. Pittman, Attorney At Law and Founder of Pittman Law Firm, P.L.
Yes, you can absolutely make a car accident claim in Florida even if your post-crash MRI shows a preexisting injury or natural aging in your spine. The insurance company cannot deny your claim or refuse to pay your medical bills just because your back or neck wasn’t perfectly healthy before the collision.
Under Florida law, a negligent driver is legally responsible for any new injuries they cause, as well as the worsening of any medical condition you already had.
When an insurance adjuster looks at your post-accident MRI report and points out common medical terms like “degenerative disc disease” or “arthritis,” their immediate goal is to offer you a low settlement or deny your claim entirely. They want you to believe that the pain you are feeling today is simply from old age, rather than the violent impact of the crash.
This is a standard defense tactic, but it does not hold up when challenged with the right medical evidence. Here is exactly how Florida personal injury law looks at preexisting injuries, how we prove your case, and what you need to do to protect your right to fair compensation.
The Truth About “Wear and Tear” on Your Spine
If you are over the age of thirty and get an MRI of your neck or lower back today, the scan will almost certainly show some level of natural wear and tear. Just like the tires on a car, spinal discs dry out and change shape as we age. Many adults walk around with minor bulging discs or narrowing in their spine and never experience a single day of back pain. In the medical field, this is called an asymptomatic condition—meaning it is there on paper, but it doesn’t hurt.
After a crash on US-41 (Tamiami Trail) or I-75, the emergency room or your treating doctor will order an MRI to check for internal damage. The radiologist reading the scan will write down every single detail they see, including that natural aging.
Insurance companies use these routine notes as a shield against paying you. Their playbook looks like this:
- Highlight the phrase “degenerative changes” in your medical chart.
- Claim that your current pain is strictly from old age, not the rear-end collision.
- Use automated software to spit out a generic denial completely ignoring the human reality of your pain.)
- Offer a tiny settlement that barely covers your visit to a Lee Health emergency room.
Understanding the difference between a quiet, painless condition and an active, painful injury caused by a car crash is how our office defeats this defense.
You Don’t Need a Perfect Spine: The “Eggshell” Rule
Florida civil law does not require you to have the physical durability of a twenty-year-old athlete to recover damages after a crash. The legal system follows a long-standing principle that simply means a negligent driver takes the injured person exactly as they find them.
When an injury case goes to court in Lee County or Collier County, the judge explains this to the jury plainly: if a defendant worsens a preexisting disease or defect and causes pain or disability, the defendant is responsible for that worsening. If the jury cannot neatly separate the new injury from the old condition, the at-fault driver is on the hook for the entire condition.
This gives injured drivers two clear paths to financial recovery:
- Direct Worsening: If you had a manageable bad back that was made significantly worse by the impact, the responsible driver pays for that worsening. This includes your new medical treatments, physical therapy, surgery, and your increased pain.
- Inseparable Injury: If your doctor cannot divide where the old condition stopped and the new injury began because the force of the crash was so severe, the negligent driver pays for the full injury.
How We Prove the Crash Caused Your Pain
You cannot beat an insurance adjuster’s denial by just arguing with them over the phone. You need plain, objective medical proof that connects the vehicle collision to your current physical pain.
Before and After Pictures The strongest piece of evidence is a side-by-side comparison. If you had an X-ray or MRI taken a few years before the crash for a separate issue, a radiologist can compare that old scan to your new post-crash MRI. This clearly shows the fresh damage—like soft tissue inflammation or a new disc tear—that simply was not there before the crash.
Your Daily Life (The Baseline) If you have never had an MRI before the crash, your daily routine becomes your best evidence. If your primary care doctor’s records show that you worked a full-time job, played golf in Bonita Springs, and never complained of neck pain in the three years leading up to the crash, we establish a clear baseline. It proves that even if you had aging in your spine, it was not causing you pain until the negligent driver hit your car.
Your Doctor’s Word Insurance companies hire their own medical reviewers to write reports claiming your injuries are just old age. To fight this, your actual treating Southwest Florida doctors must provide a clear medical opinion explaining exactly how the mechanical force of the crash triggered your symptoms.
The 14-Day Rule
Florida law requires you to seek initial medical care within 14 days of your auto accident. Doing so unlocks your Personal Injury Protection (PIP) benefits to help cover immediate bills.
Many people feel sore after a crash but assume it is just a minor flare-up of an old ache. If you wait more than two weeks to get checked out at a local Bonita Springs urgent care, the insurance company will deny your PIP benefits. Even worse, they will argue that your delay proves the crash didn’t actually hurt you. Getting checked out right away creates a direct, unbroken paper trail from the crash to your medical treatment.
Bonita Springs Case Result: Defeating the “Age-Related” Defense
A local Bonita Springs driver was stopped at a red light on Bonita Beach Road when he was struck from behind by a commercial truck. His post-crash lower back MRI showed a herniated disc sitting right next to preexisting wear and tear.
The insurance carrier refused to offer more than a fraction of his medical bills, arguing his condition was purely age-related. Our office secured objective medical opinions from his treating orthopedic surgeon proving that the crash caused a fresh, structural tear in his spine. Faced with this evidence, we forced the insurer to drop their defense and secured a $215,000 recovery for our client.
What to Do If the Adjuster Blames Your Past Health
If you receive a call or letter from an insurance adjuster stating your claim is being limited because of your MRI findings, take these steps:
- Stop talking to the adjuster about your medical history: Adjusters are trained to twist your words to make minor past soreness sound like a chronic, lifelong disability.
- Do not sign blank medical authorizations: Insurers will use these forms to dig through decades of your unrelated medical records looking for excuses. Only legally required, relevant records should be provided.
- Keep your doctor appointments: Follow your doctor’s treatment plan strictly. Missing appointments gives the insurance company an excuse to drop your claim.
About David B. Pittman, Esq.
David B. Pittman has spent over 30 years handling severe personal injury claims across Southwest Florida. A graduate of The Citadel and the University of South Carolina School of Law, he established Pittman Law Firm, P.L. to provide aggressive, hands-on advocacy for injury victims. He holds an AV-Preeminent rating from Martindale-Hubbell, is a member of the Multi-Million Dollar Advocates Forum, and has been a licensed Florida Real Estate Broker for 25 years, giving him a deep understanding of the local landscape and court systems in Lee and Collier Counties.
Contact Pittman Law Firm, P.L. for a Free Consultation
If the insurance company is trying to blame your car crash injuries on a preexisting condition, do not let them have the final word. Contact our office today to discuss your case directly with a seasoned local attorney.
Phone: 239-992-8259
Office: Windsor Place, 3525 Bonita Beach Rd, Suite 107, Bonita Springs, FL 34134
Consultations are completely free, confidential, and you pay no legal fees unless we win your case.
Disclaimer: The information on this website is for general information purposes only. Nothing on this site should be taken as legal advice for any individual case or situation. This information is not intended to create, and receipt or viewing does not constitute, an attorney-client relationship.