Slip and fall injuries can lead to various painful and debilitating injuries, including many different types of ankle injuries. If you’ve suffered an ankle injury caused by another party’s negligence, you may wonder how much your personal injury is worth. This question is more complex than it may seem and mostly depends on your type of ankle injury and its overall severity.  

A few factors that can affect your settlement are whether you were partially liable, whether the hazard was open and obvious, the cost of medical bills, any wages you lost while injured, whether you can provide sufficient evidence for your case, and more. These issues can be complex, and in order to more effectively navigate your case to receive the most compensation possible, you need to enlist the expertise of slip and fall personal injury attorneys.

Here’s what you need to know about slip and fall ankle injuries and potential settlements for these different injury types. 

Types of Ankle Injuries After a Slip and Fall Accident

There are many different types of ankle injuries, and a slip and fall accident has the potential to cause minor injuries that don’t require much medical attention or severe injuries that need emergency attention. 

If you suffer from a slip and fall, you’re at risk of the following ankle injuries: 

Ankle Sprains

Ankle sprains occur when the ligaments that connect your ankle bones become damaged. This is an incredibly common injury and can result from a variety of hazards that involve the twisting or rolling of the ankle, including a slip and fall. 

Symptoms include:

• Pain
• Tenderness to the touch
• Bruising 
• Swelling
• Limited range of motion
• Ankle instability
• A popping sound or feeling during the slip and fall incident

Fortunately, these injuries are usually not serious. You should seek medical treatment to ensure that you’re on the right track to making a full recovery, but you’ll likely only need ice, rest, pain medications, and possibly physical therapy.

Ankle Strains 

Strains are similar to sprains, but rather than involving the ligaments that connect the bones, strains involve the ligament that attaches the muscle to the bone. 

Ankle strains have similar symptoms as sprains and include:

• Muscle cramps 
• Muscle weakness
• Pain
• Swelling or redness
• Loss of motion

Medical treatment on a strained ankle resembles that of a sprained ankle — seek medical attention, but you’ll likely only need rest, ice, anti-inflammatory medications, and physical therapy.

Ankle Fractures

Fractures are far more serious than sprains and strains. Contrary to popular belief, a bone fracture and break refer to the same type of injury, and there are many different types of ankle fractures including:

• Lateral malleolus fracture
• Medial malleolus fracture
• Posterior malleolus fracture
• Bimalleolar fracture
• Trimalleolar fracture 

Bimalleolar and trimalleolar fractures are serious injuries and usually require surgery. Bimalleolar refers to two of the malleoli becoming fractured. The malleoli include the lateral malleolus, posterior malleolus, and lateral malleolus. A trimalleolar fracture refers to all three malleoli fracturing. 

How Much Can I Receive for My Slip and Fall Ankle Injury?

The amount you can recover in compensation directly corresponds to the cost of your medical treatment and how the injury impacts your life. 

For example, if you suffer from a strain or sprain and you don’t require much medical attention, the amount you can recover will obviously be far less than if you suffer from a serious bimalleolar or trimalleolar fracture. 

Slip and fall ankle injuries that don’t require surgery will have relatively low settlement values.

If you suffer from a single bone fracture that requires surgery, you could recover more depending on the extent of your medical care and how the injury affects your work.

Additionally, bimalleolar and trimalleolar fractures are sometimes worth even more. You’ll also likely recover more if you require an ankle fusion. 

In addition to the cost of your medical bills, you can receive other damages in your settlement, such as lost wages, loss of future earnings, pain and suffering, and more.

Contact an Indiana Slip and Fall Injury Lawyer

If you injure your ankle in a slip and fall, you need to recover the money you deserve. You may be eligible for the average settlement for a slip and fall injury, or even more. To maximize your settlement, you need a legal team at your side that can help you prove your case. For Indianapolis slip and fall injury lawyers you can count on, contact the lawyers at Poynter & Bucheri Accident Recovery Attorneys at Law. Call our office at 1-800-265-9881, or you can click here for a free case review.