Car crashes in Missouri can cause a wide range of eye injuries, from corneal scratches and eyelid lacerations to retinal detachment and permanent vision loss. These injuries can result from broken glass, airbag deployment, blunt impact, or a traumatic brain injury that disrupts how your brain processes sight.
Eye injuries are often more serious than they first appear, and symptoms can take hours or days to show up after a crash. If someone else caused the accident, Missouri law gives you the right to pursue compensation for your medical treatment, lost income, and the long-term impact on your vision and quality of life.
Common Eye Injuries After a Car Accident
Car crashes expose your eyes to forces and hazards that most people never expect. Glass, airbag chemicals, blunt impact, and sudden head movement can all damage your vision in very different ways.
Corneal Abrasion and Foreign Body
A corneal abrasion is a scratch on the cornea, the clear front layer of your eye. It is usually caused by glass fragments, dust, or airbag particles hitting your face during the crash. Most corneal abrasions heal within a few days, but they are painful and require prompt treatment to avoid infection.
Hyphema and Traumatic Iritis
A hyphema is when blood pools in the front of your eye after a hard blow. Traumatic iritis is inflammation of the iris, the colored ring around your pupil. Both conditions require a doctor’s evaluation right away because they can cause lasting vision problems if left untreated.
Orbital Fractures and Eyelid Lacerations
An orbital fracture is a broken bone in the socket surrounding your eye. Eyelid lacerations are deep cuts to the skin that protects your eye. These injuries often happen when your face strikes the steering wheel, dashboard, or window, and they may require surgery and can leave permanent scarring.
Retinal Detachment
A retinal detachment is when the retina, the light-sensing tissue at the back of your eye, pulls away from the wall of the eye. This is a medical emergency. Without immediate surgery, it can cause permanent blindness.
Traumatic Optic Neuropathy
Traumatic optic neuropathy is damage to the optic nerve, the connection between your eye and your brain. It can cause partial or total vision loss, sometimes with no visible injury on the outside of your eye. This type of injury is easy to miss without a specialist evaluation.
Do Airbags, Glass, or Blunt Force Cause Eye Injuries?
Broken Glass and Debris
Shattered windshields and side windows send tiny glass fragments flying at high speed. These can cut the surface of your eye or become embedded in the tissue.
Airbag Deployment
Airbags save lives, but their rapid deployment releases hot gases and chemical residue. That residue can burn or abrade the surface of your eye on contact.
Blunt Impact
Striking your face against the steering wheel, dashboard, or window can fracture your eye socket and cause internal bleeding in the eye. Flying objects inside the car can also penetrate the eye directly.
TBI and Vision Changes
A traumatic brain injury (TBI) is a brain injury caused by a blow or jolt to the head. It can disrupt your vision even when your eyes themselves are completely uninjured. Common TBI-related vision symptoms include:
- Blurred or double vision: Your brain struggles to combine the images from both eyes into one clear picture.
- Light sensitivity: Bright environments suddenly cause pain or severe headaches.
- Convergence insufficiency: You have trouble focusing on close objects like your phone or a book.
- Visual field loss: You notice blank patches or blind spots in your normal line of sight.
Do I Need to See a Doctor Right Away?
Yes, even if your vision feels normal right now. Some eye injuries do not show symptoms until hours or days after the crash, and waiting to get checked can permanently cost you your sight.
Go to the emergency room or an eye doctor immediately if you notice any of the following:
- Blurry, double, or completely lost vision
- Blood visible inside your eye
- A pupil that looks irregular in shape or size
- Your eye not moving smoothly when you look around
- A cut or torn eyelid
- Persistent pain, redness, or swelling
Your medical records from these visits are also the foundation of your legal claim. The sooner you get evaluated, the stronger your case.
How Are Eye Injuries Treated?
Treatment depends on the type and severity of your injury. Minor injuries like corneal abrasions are typically treated with prescription eye drops, a protective patch, and rest. More serious injuries often require surgery to repair a fractured eye socket or reattach a detached retina.
Some victims need ongoing vision therapy to retrain their eyes and brain to work together again. In the most severe cases, occupational therapy helps patients adapt to permanent vision loss. All of this necessary care adds up to significant medical costs over time.
Who Pays Your Medical Bills After a Missouri Crash?
Missouri is an at-fault state, meaning the driver who caused the crash is responsible for your losses. In practice, that means their insurance company should cover your medical bills. But insurers rarely make that process easy, and bills often arrive before any settlement money does.
There are several sources that may cover your costs:
- MedPay: Optional coverage on your own auto policy that pays your bills right away, regardless of who was at fault.
- Health insurance: Covers your treatment upfront, but your insurer may place a lien on your settlement to recover what they paid.
- At-fault driver’s liability insurance: Pays for your damages once your claim is resolved.
- Uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage: Steps in if the at-fault driver does not carry enough insurance to cover your losses.
We coordinate all of these sources on your behalf so you are not left scrambling to pay out of pocket while your case is still pending.
What Compensation Can You Recover for an Eye Injury in Missouri?
Missouri law allows you to recover compensation for both your financial losses and the personal impact the injury has had on your life. You should not have to pay for an injury that someone else caused.
You can seek compensation for:
- Past and future medical bills, surgeries, and vision therapy
- Lost wages and reduced ability to earn a living going forward
- Permanent disability, facial scarring, and disfigurement
- Loss of enjoyment of life when injuries prevent you from doing the things you love
Vision loss is also a deeply personal trauma. Many victims experience depression, anxiety, and PTSD after losing or significantly damaging their sight. These mental health impacts are real, and Missouri law allows you to recover compensation for that pain and suffering as well.
What Affects Your Settlement Amount
No two cases are exactly alike. The value of your claim depends on several factors, including how severe your injury is, how much treatment you have needed, and whether your vision loss is permanent.
| Factor | Lower Settlement Range | Higher Settlement Range |
| Severity | Temporary blurry vision, full recovery | Permanent partial or total blindness |
| Treatment | Eye drops, basic monitoring | Multiple surgeries, ongoing vision therapy |
| Work impact | Brief time off to recover | Career change or complete inability to work |
| Visible scarring | Minor cuts that fade | Permanent facial disfigurement |
| Insurance available | State minimum policy limits | High limits or multiple active policies |
How We Build Your Eye Injury Case
Insurance companies fight hardest against injuries they cannot see on a simple X-ray, and eye trauma claims fall into exactly that category. Building a strong case requires the right evidence and the right experts.
We gather your full medical records, including ophthalmology notes, visual field tests, OCT scans, and neuro-ophthalmology evaluations. We document how your vision loss affects your ability to drive, work, read, and care for your family.
When needed, we bring in eye specialists, vocational experts, and accident reconstructionists to show exactly how the crash caused your injury and what it will cost you over a lifetime.
What If You Were Partly at Fault?
Missouri follows a rule called pure comparative fault. This means you can still recover compensation even if you were partly responsible for the crash. Your payout is simply reduced by your percentage of fault.
For example, if you were 20% at fault and your total damages are $100,000, you would recover $80,000. We fight to minimize any fault the insurance company tries to assign to you.
How Long Do You Have to File in Missouri?
Missouri gives you five years from the date of the crash to file a personal injury lawsuit. Missing that deadline means losing your right to any compensation, no matter how serious your injuries are.
Waiting also creates other risks. Evidence disappears, witnesses forget details, and medical records become harder to obtain. Contact us as soon as possible so we can start building your case and protecting your rights right away.
Talk to a Missouri Eye Injury Lawyer for Free
Losing your vision, even partially, changes everything. It affects how you work, how you drive, and how you experience daily life. You should not have to carry that burden alone, especially when someone else caused the crash.
At Beck & Beck Missouri Car Accident Lawyers, we focus exclusively on auto accident cases in Missouri. We have been helping crash victims for decades, providing experienced, compassionate legal representation. As a family-run practice, we handle your case personally and make sure you always know where things stand.
We offer free consultations, and you pay no fees unless we win. Call us or contact us online today to get started.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I Sue If a Defective Airbag Caused My Eye Injury?
Yes. If a defective airbag caused or worsened your eye injury, you may have a claim against the vehicle or airbag manufacturer in addition to the at-fault driver.
What Are the Warning Signs of a Serious Eye Injury After a Crash?
Sudden vision loss, flashes of light, new floaters, severe eye pain, or a pupil that looks misshapen are all signs you need emergency care immediately.
Does Not Wearing a Seatbelt Affect My Eye Injury Claim?
It can. If you were not wearing a seatbelt, the insurance company may argue that your injuries were worsened by your own choice, which could reduce your compensation under Missouri’s comparative fault rules.
What Is a Neuro-Ophthalmologist and Do I Need One?
A neuro-ophthalmologist is a specialist who treats vision problems caused by nerve and brain injuries. If your crash involved a head injury and you are experiencing vision changes, their evaluation can be critical evidence in your claim.
How Do I Document Pain and Suffering From Vision Loss?
We build that documentation for you through medical records, therapy notes, photographs, and statements from family members and coworkers about how your daily life has changed since the crash.
