Hearing Loss

Hearing loss can significantly impact a person’s ability to find employment or enjoy their favorite activities. Those suffering from non-congenital hearing impairment due to someone else’s negligence deserve compensation to assist them in their recovery.

A Chicago hearing loss lawyer from Rosenfeld Injury Lawyers will protect your legal rights and ensure you receive justice for your injuries.

Types of Hearing Loss

There are three main types of hearing loss, which are based on the causes and mechanics of the disability. They are:

• Sensorineural Hearing Loss – This type of hearing damage occurs in the inner ear, when the auditory nerve or the hair cells inside the cochlea are damaged. This is the most common type of age-related hearing loss, as well as noise-induced hearing loss.

Sensorineural hearing loss may occur due to workplace injuries, loud noises like gunshots, or gradual hearing loss because of age. Typically this is permanent hearing loss that cannot be cured by medical intervention, though hearing aids may help.

• Conductive Hearing Loss – Conductive hearing loss occurs in the outer or middle ear, where sound waves are unable to penetrate into the inner ear and reach the cochlea. They may be due to a foreign object trapped in the ear canal, infections, or bone abnormalities.

In some cases, the eardrum may have been damaged from infection or trauma, such as blunt force trauma from a workplace accident. Hearing loss caused by infection is a common disability that can often be treated through medical care.

• Mixed Hearing Loss – A mixed hearing loss case has components of both sensorineural and conductive damage. In some cases, a sensorineural issue, such as damage due to excessive noise, will take on conducive components, like repeated infections that damage the eardrum.

At What Point Is Hearing Loss Considered a Disability?

Sound is measured in decibels. The range is from 0 decibels, or total silence, to 140 decibels, which is the point of serious pain [1]. Long-term exposure to decibels above 70 can lead to hearing loss [2]. Noises measured as 150 decibels, such as a jet engine taking off at 25 meters, are capable of rupturing the eardrum due to the immense pressure [3].

Hearing loss is considered a disability if the person has a loss greater than 35 decibels in the better-hearing ear [4]. As a reference, a typical whisper is about 25 decibels, so if a person were to whisper right next to your ear and you could not hear it, you may be considered disabled [5].

Causes of Hearing Loss

There are many accidents or conditions that can affect one’s hearing; some are unavoidable, but some may be eligible for a personal injury. These include:

• Ototoxic Medications – Certain medications, including chemotherapy and antibiotics, can damage the nerves in the ear.
• Head Injuries – You may suffer hearing loss after a car accident or a workplace injury due to head trauma damaging the bones of the ear.
• Excessive Noise Exposure – Injured workers may suffer sudden job-related hearing loss if they are exposed to very loud noises, like jet engines or machinery, without appropriate occupational safety measures.
• Faulty Earplugs – Defective products that fail to block out loud sounds can result in noise-induced hearing loss over time. With extremely loud sounds, hearing loss may result directly after the incident.

When to Seek Legal Help

If you have experienced hearing loss after an accident, you should contact an attorney as soon as you become aware of the issue. We will review your medical records to uncover the cause of the hearing loss and seek compensation for your medical expenses.

In many cases, your lawyers and the insurance company will wait until you reach maximum medical improvement before determining what compensation you will be eligible for. However, getting the process started right away ensures your hearing loss injury lawyers have time to file a lawsuit if we are not able to come to an agreement.

Benefits of Hiring a Hearing Loss Lawyer

Hearing loss lawyers ensure your rights are protected throughout the personal injury claim process. We will perform a methodical investigation of all the evidence and ascertain which kind of claim you are eligible for, whether that is through the workers’ compensation system or through a personal injury claim.

If your hearing loss is due to occupational exposure, we will guide you through the workers’ compensation claim process and assist you as you seek benefits, including appealing if your disability benefits are denied.

A lawyer will ally with your medical professional and other experts to fully assess the cause of the hearing loss and determine who may be liable for your disability. We will represent you in negotiations with the insurance company, who will do everything they can to minimize their liability for your hearing loss claim.

Using the facts of your ear injury, we will prove you have a right to claim compensation. If this process fails, we’ll take it to court and represent your interests in the legal system.

Are Chicago Hearing Loss Lawyers Expensive?

Our Chicago personal injury law firm works on a contingency fee basis, meaning you owe us nothing unless we are able to obtain compensation for you. Everything, from your free consultation to negotiations with insurance, is free at the time of service.

We will instead deduct our legal fees from your settlement, ensuring you never have to worry about bills as you recuperate.

Who Can Be Liable for Hearing Loss Injuries in Chicago?

Several parties may be held liable in hearing loss claims, depending on the type of injury and where it occurred.

Employers

Metropolitan Chicago has approximately 540,000 businesses, all of which owe their workers a safe workplace environment [6]. Should they fail to protect their employees against hearing loss, a Chicago workplace injury lawyer can assist workers in accessing workers’ compensation benefits.

Product Manufacturers

Ototoxic chemicals are hazardous substances that can damage different parts of the ear; these include solvents, pesticides, and metal compounds [7]. Many of these are produced or used at Chicagoland’s dozens of chemical research and manufacturing facilities [8].

Companies who fail to disclose the dangers of their products or who expose individuals to hazardous levels through poor management should be held liable, and our Chicago product liability attorneys can help.

Drug Manufacturers

There are over 200 ototoxic medications used on the market today, including loop diuretics that are used for kidney disorders and even aspirin [9]. While hearing loss may be temporary and subside after the treatment is concluded, medication-related hearing loss can be permanent.

A Chicago dangerous drug attorney will investigate the cause of your hearing loss and ensure that drug manufacturers producing unsafe drugs compensate you for your lost income and pain.

Motor Vehicle Drivers

Hundreds of thousands of vehicles travel through Chicago: just 57th Drive alone sees 53,500 cars drive past in one day [10].

Each of these drivers has the responsibility to drive safely and avoid accidents. Should they cause a serious accident resulting in an ear injury, they must face the financial consequences of their negligence.

If you’ve been injured in any type of motor vehicle accident, including those causing hearing loss, our experienced Chicago car accident lawyer team can help you secure the compensation you deserve.

A hearing loss lawyer from our firm will make sure they compensate you for the suffering their actions have caused.

Medical Professionals

In some instances, individuals suffer hearing loss caused by a surgical error or a failure to diagnose a reversible auditory condition. Our Chicago surgical error lawyers will fight to get justice for medical malpractice, including hearing loss from a botched surgery.

Proving Negligence for Ear Injury Cases

There are four elements necessary to prove negligence in a personal injury claim. These are:

• Duty of Care – The party responsible had an obligation to act with reasonable caution to prevent danger to another person. This could include following standards of care for medical procedures, providing workers with hearing protection or driving the speed limit.
• Breach of Duty – The liable party failed to uphold their duty, whether that was preventing hearing damage to workers or causing a motor vehicle accident.
• Causation – The accident that resulted in hearing loss would not have happened had the individual upheld their duty of care.
• Damages – You suffered damages because of the accident, whether that was hearing loss or property damage.

Comparative Negligence in Chicago, IL

Illinois uses modified comparative negligence in personal injury cases. This means every individual listed in the lawsuit, including the plaintiff, is assigned a percentage of liability for their role in the accident.

If you are less than 50% responsible, then you can file for damages, but your compensation will be reduced by the percentage for which you are found responsible.

For example, if you suffered hearing loss caused by a car accident, and it was found you were going 5 miles above the speed limit, then you may be found 15% liable because it is possible the injuries would not have been as severe if you had followed the traffic laws. You will still be able to recover compensation, but you will get 15% less than if you were not speeding.

Damages Our Chicago Hearing Loss Injury Lawyers Can Help You Recover

Damages in a hearing loss suit are separated into three different categories: economic, non-economic, and punitive damages.

Economic damages are for financial losses you suffered due to the accident. This can include:

• Medical costs
• Lost wages
• Loss of earning potential
• Out-of-pocket expenses
• Property damage

Non-economic damages compensate you for the impact the accident has had on your day-to-day life, such as:

• Pain and suffering
• Disability
• Disfigurement
• Emotional distress
• Loss of enjoyment of life
• Loss of companionship

Punitive damages are awarded by the court system if it is found the defendant acted beyond the thresholds of gross negligence, such as if it was an intentional act of malice. These types of damages are infrequently awarded, but they may be applicable in your case.

Compensation Awarded in Hearing Loss Claims

There is no concrete sum for compensation you may recover for hearing loss, as it depends on a variety of different factors. These include:

• Who is found liable
• The level of hearing loss
• Your medical expenses
• The time you were off work
• The amount of insurance available
• Evidence available to substantiate the claim
• Whether the hearing loss is permanent or temporary

We will always push for the maximum compensation based on the evidence available, ensuring the insurance companies pay for everything you are entitled to.

You Have a Limited Time to File a Hearing Loss Claim in Chicago, IL

The statute of limitations in Illinois for hearing loss claims is 2 years after the accident if this is a personal injury or product liability claim.

However, occupational hearing loss claims through workers’ compensation have a statute of limitations of 3 years after the injury or the date at which the injury was discovered.

Contact an Experienced Hearing Loss Lawyer Today!

Our Chicago hearing loss lawyers will work hard to ensure you receive fair and just compensation for your injuries. Rosenfeld Injury Lawyers work on a contingency fee basis, meaning you owe us nothing unless we win. With our vast experience, we have recovered millions in compensation for our clients, allowing them to recover with all they need to thrive.

Call us at (888) 424-5757 or contact us online to schedule your free consultation with one of our accomplished hearing loss lawyers.

Our downtown office, near the Richard J. Daley Center, Dirkson United States Courthouse, and the Chicago Workers’ Compensation Commission, offers convenient access from Aurora, Joliet, and Waukegan via I-90, I-94, and I-290.

Rosenfeld Injury Lawyers

225 W Wacker Dr #1660
Chicago, IL 60606
Phone: (847) 835-8895
Toll Free: (888) 424-5757

We also serve clients from Chicago, Decatur, Schaumburg, Rockford and throughout Illinois.

References: [1] MDHearing, [2] International Noise Awareness Day, [3] IAC Acoustics, [4] World Health Organization, [5] Yale Environmental Health & Safety, [6] Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning, [7] Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, [8] Chicago American Chemical Society, [9] American Speech-Language-Hearing Association, [10] Chicago Data Portal

All content undergoes thorough legal review by experienced attorneys, including Jonathan Rosenfeld. With 25 years of experience in personal injury law and over 100 years of combined legal expertise within our team, we ensure that every article is legally accurate, compliant, and reflects current legal standards.