If you hit a deer on US-60 near the Wendell H. Ford Expressway in Owensboro and the insurer suddenly wants years of MRIs, therapy notes, and back records, the angle is usually simple: they are trying to label your pain as old instead of made worse by this crash.

The outcome usually turns on three factors:

1. What your medical records say changed after the crash Kentucky law does not let an insurer escape payment just because you had a bad back, old neck pain, or a prior MRI. If the wreck aggravated a pre-existing condition, that aggravation can still be compensable. A clean timeline matters. Records showing new symptoms, stronger pain, new limits, new medication, missed work, or a doctor noting the collision made things worse are often more important than the old MRI itself.

2. How much of your history they can reasonably connect to this injury Adjusters often ask for "every record" because broad authorizations let them go fishing. That is how they weaponize an old MRI from years ago. The real question is whether the prior condition involves the same body part, similar symptoms, and a meaningful pre-crash baseline. A ten-year-old lumbar scan does not automatically explain fresh shoulder numbness after a fall-season deer collision. Kentucky follows the eggshell plaintiff principle in practice: you take the injured person as you find them.

3. Whether deadlines and paperwork are being used to pressure you Kentucky has a very short 1-year deadline for most personal injury claims, measured under the state's motor vehicle injury rules. While the adjuster keeps asking for more records, the clock keeps running. If forms are in English and you do not fully understand them, do not guess. A signed medical release can open records far beyond what is needed, and that can shape the claim before the evidence is sorted.

If police responded, keep the collision report, your treatment dates, and any notes from Owensboro Health or follow-up providers that describe what changed after the crash.