Car accidents—especially serious car accidents—can lead to a variety of different injuries and damages, including injuries to the neck or back. Even though the neck and back mainly sustain soft tissue injuries, these injuries can still be extremely painful and could require significant amounts of treatment to correct. In some instances, a neck or back injury sustained in a car accident can lead to a lifetime of pain, suffering, and inconvenience.
If you were the driver or passenger in a motor vehicle that was struck by a negligent driver, you may file a claim for financial compensation for the injuries you suffered in the accident. To qualify for this compensation, however, you must satisfy all of the necessary legal elements. You—as the injured party in the accident—have this burden.
A car accident lawyer can assist you with all of the legal aspects of your neck and back injury claim. First, a lawyer can investigate the cause of your accident and determine if you are eligible to file a claim in the first place. If you are, a lawyer can then set about gathering all of your medical records and bills, assembling a demand package to submit to the at-fault driver’s insurance company. A lawyer will then work to try and settle your injury claim. If that is not possible, your case can proceed to trial in the court system.
How Much Is the Average Settlement for a Neck and Back Injury After a Car Accident?
No two injuries are the same. This means that the settlement value for neck and back injuries from a car accident will vary depending on the type and severity of the injuries. The more serious an injury, the more likely it is to receive a higher settlement from the at-fault party. More intense or lengthy medical treatment also may result in a greater compensation amount. For example, temporary lower back pain after a car accident results in a lower settlement amount than a permanent spinal cord injury in most cases.
In an average car accident case with a relatively minor soft tissue neck or back injury, the accident victim may expect to receive a settlement anywhere between $2,500 and $10,000 from the at-fault driver’s insurance company. If the injured accident victim has to seek physical therapy, injections, or other procedures to treat the soft tissue neck or back injury, the accident victim’s settlement compensation may be in the neighborhood of $30,000. Some neck or back injuries suffered in a car accident may involve broken bones or other serious trauma. The settlement value for severe injuries may be greater than $100,000.
Specific damages that you may be compensated for can affect your settlement amount as well, such as the following:
Extent of treatment — The type and length of the treatment your injuries require can make a difference in your settlement amount. Minor treatments may not be as costly as those for severe injuries, which could require expensive diagnostics and surgeries. You may also need medical devices for a permanent disability that need to be covered. If you must continue physical therapy for a long time to recover, this can add up and increase your compensation.
Time off work — The more severe the injuries, the longer the recovery time away from work. This can cause you to lose a significant amount of income. It’s also possible your injuries will no longer allow you to perform the same duties, resulting in a reduced income. When the medical expenses are piling up, this loss can become an issue. Your settlement value will likely be higher if you need to be compensated for those lost wages.
Pain and suffering — Serious injuries can cause intense pain and suffering. The type of accident that would cause severe injuries also suggests there could be emotional trauma. While it’s more difficult to put a value on non-economic losses, these damages can increase your settlement amount. In particular, loss of limbs, disfigurement, and other permanent disabilities can lead to greater financial recovery for any suffering or decreased quality of life.
An experienced car accident lawyer can review your case and discuss how much your settlement could be for a back or neck injury after a Georgia car accident.
Common Signs of Neck and Back Whiplash Injuries Suffered in a Motor Vehicle Collision
Whiplash is a common injury sustained in motor vehicle crashes. A motor vehicle occupant typically suffers a whiplash injury when his or her neck moves forward and then backward in a very rapid motion. Whiplash injuries are especially common in rear-end motor vehicle accidents, due to the suddenness of the impact. Generally speaking, the harder and more forceful the rear-end collision, the more likely it is that the vehicle occupant(s) will suffer a whiplash injury to the neck and back.
Whiplash injuries are known as soft tissue injuries because they affect the muscles in the neck or upper back, as opposed to a bone break or fracture. If you are in a motor vehicle collision, even if you don’t suspect that you have sustained a neck or back whiplash injury, seek medical treatment right away—preferably on the same date as the accident. The symptoms of whiplash injuries do not always manifest immediately, and it is better to be safe than sorry when it comes to your body.
Some of the most common symptoms of neck and back whiplash injuries following a motor vehicle collision include the following:
- Headaches
- Dizziness
- Pain and stiffness in the neck, upper back, and shoulder regions
- Burning pains in the shoulder and/or the neck
- Short-term memory loss
- Fatigue
- Difficulty sleeping
Difficulty sleeping and concentrating—as well as short-term memory loss—are characteristic of more serious whiplash injuries. Regardless of its severity, a whiplash injury will typically lead to some degree of discomfort, pain, or the varying degrees of inability to move the neck. These symptoms, in turn, can have a significant impact on your ability to go through your daily routine, including dressing and performing other daily tasks.
Minor whiplash injuries may heal within several days. The best way to ensure that a minor whiplash injury does not turn into a major whiplash injury is by seeking medical treatment as soon as possible after your accident—either at a local urgent care facility or hospital emergency room. A healthcare provider can then examine your medical condition and provide you with the necessary medical treatment or devices that you might need, such as a cervical collar.
Neck and Back Injury Damages
Just like the total settlement value of a neck or back injury case, the types of monetary damages available vary on a case-by-case basis.
Some of the most common types of damages that are available to car accident victims who suffer neck and back injuries include the following:
- Payment of all related medical bills and out-of-pocket expenses caused by the injuries
- Payment of lost income from having to seek medical treatment for the injuries and missed work time
- Compensation for all of the suffering, pain, and inconvenience which the accident victim has to endure because of the injuries he or she sustained in the accident
- Compensation for a permanent neck/back injury or disability that resulted from the car accident
- Compensation for temporary or permanent loss of earning capacity or inability to work because of the neck/back injury
- Compensation for loss of spousal companionship or support that is related to the neck/back injury
An experienced car accident lawyer can advocate for your interests, and work to maximize the types and amounts of damages to which you are entitled to for your neck or back injury. If the at-fault person’s insurance company refuses to offer you fair compensation for your injuries, a lawyer can litigate your case and, if necessary, take it to a jury trial.
How to Prove Your Neck and Back Injury Damages
In some instances, it can be difficult to prove that a car accident victim is suffering from a neck or back injury—especially a whiplash-type injury. One reason why these injuries are so difficult to prove is that they are not always observable on imaging studies and diagnostic tests, such as MRIs and X-rays.
Consequently, insurance companies often tend to argue one or more of the following:
- The accident victim is suffering from degenerative changes to the neck and back due to age, and the majority of the pain and symptoms are preexisting
- The accident victim is exaggerating the seriousness of the symptoms and is not in as much pain as the victim claims
When it comes to proving your eligibility for damages in a neck or back injury case that involves a car accident, you must show that it is more likely than not that:
- The at-fault driver violated their duty of care, such as by violating a traffic law or operating their vehicle while intoxicated, causing the motor vehicle accident.
- The at-fault driver’s negligence was the proximate cause of your accident.
- You suffered physical injuries, including neck and back injuries, and the motor vehicle accident was a cause of these injuries.
You should keep in mind that the accident does not need to be the only cause of your neck or back injury to prove a causal connection. The accident only needs to be one of the potential causes of your injury.
Establishing the Severity of Your Neck and Back Injury
An experienced car accident lawyer can assist you with proving the severity of a neck or back injury you suffered in the collision. A lawyer does this by obtaining and submitting evidence. The more evidence you have to prove your damages, the greater your chances are of increasing the settlement value of your car accident case.
Some of the most important types of evidence in neck/back injury cases include the following:
Testimony of a medical expert — When it comes to proving that you are entitled to damages for a neck or back injury, having a knowledgeable medical expert on your side is a must. To recover damages, you must demonstrate that your injuries are causally related to the motor vehicle accident. An expert can testify before trial—or as an expert witness at the actual trial—and make this causal connection. Medical experts can be doctors or other healthcare professionals who examined you following your accident. When you have a qualified medical expert on board in your case, you can significantly increase your chances of obtaining a settlement offer for the injuries that you sustained in your accident.
Medical documentation — After you have finished treating your neck and back injuries, your lawyer can obtain copies of all of your medical records and bills from the healthcare professionals providing the treatment. In addition to helping you prove the financial costs associated with your medical treatment, these records and bills can also be used to confirm an exact diagnosis, show that you were consistently treated for your injuries following your accident, and determine what, if any, possible future treatment may be necessary—and the anticipated cost of that future treatment. You should keep copies of your medical records, physical therapy records, and bills.
Journal of your medical treatment and injuries — It is also a good idea to keep a journal of all of your medical treatment following a car accident. In the journal, you should write down your pain levels and symptoms and note how the treatment made you feel. A medical treatment journal may become important when it comes time to prove the severity, extent, and validity of your neck and back injuries—especially if you are claiming pain and suffering damages.
If you have suffered neck or back injuries in a car accident, you should contact an experienced legal counsel right away. A lawyer will determine if you have a valid claim and can approximate the potential settlement value of your car accident case.
How Can a Car Accident Lawyer Maximize My Settlement for a Neck and Back Injury?
Keep in mind that the settlement value you have in mind for your car accident case is probably a different amount than the settlement value the insurance company has in mind. You’re most interested in ensuring that you are fully and fairly compensated for the neck and back injuries that you suffered in your car accident.
On the other hand, the at-fault driver’s insurance company is interested in limiting any settlement payout as much as possible. Insurance companies—which are multi-billion-dollar businesses—do not make money by paying out car accident claims. Instead, they make their money by collecting premiums from their customers and keeping as much of their money as possible in-house. The insurance company will do everything it can to poke holes in your case, point out any preexisting medical conditions you may have, and limit the settlement value of your case as much as possible.
For questions about how much your settlement for neck and back pain after a car accident could be, contact Brauns Law Accident Injury Lawyers, PC today. Our founding partner, Attorney David Brauns began his legal career as an insurance defense attorney, where he learned how insurance companies think and evaluate claims. This allows us to fight back against the insurance companies and maximize your settlement for your neck and back injury in Georgia. Call or contact us online today for a free consultation.
Note that this article was originally published in May 2020, but updated in April 2022 for accuracy and comprehensiveness.
