There is no average whiplash injury compensation because each case is different. The settlement you can recover will depend on your accident-related losses, such as medical bills, lost income, property damage, and more.
Whiplash injury damages are based on each victim’s struggle, which makes it difficult to determine the average a person could receive. Instead of handling your neck injury case alone, you may consider hiring Boca Raton personal injury attorneys to construct your whiplash damages. You deserve fair compensation that takes all your losses into consideration.
What Factors Determine Compensation for Whiplash Injuries?
It can feel overwhelming to see all the variables that go into determining whiplash damages, but those variables are what can ensure you receive an appropriate amount. The following are some common questions to ask yourself about your case to see what factors might affect your settlement or verdict:
What’s Your Medical History?
The Cleveland Clinic reports that women, young people, those with a history of neck pain, and those with jobs that cause tight muscles are all at increased risk of getting whiplash following an accident.
This doesn’t mean that an older man with no history of neck problems can’t get whiplash. What this does mean is that the specifics of who you are can make a difference in if and how you experience whiplash.
Did You Suffer a Severe Whiplash Injury?
Like all injuries, whiplash exists on a spectrum. Some accident victims feel pain but don’t experience a significant loss in range of motion. Others face permanent disability because of their injury.
Notice that we didn’t ask how severe the crash was. While this is a factor, don’t fall into the trap of assuming whiplash can only happen at high speeds. Florida Atlantic University (FAU) found that even low-speed rear-end collisions can cause whiplash.
A whiplash injury’s severity can change based on someone’s health, the crash circumstances, and how quickly you seek medical treatment.
How Long Did Your Whiplash Last?
Most people start to recover within a few weeks of medical treatment, but some whiplash victims have reported a lower quality of life up to five years later according to BMC Public Health.
You can’t wait five years to receive financial compensation. Insurance claims are usually filed immediately, and personal injury lawsuits have statutes of limitations. With that in mind, how do you know how long your whiplash will last and what damages you need?
Our personal injury lawyers can work with your medical care team to determine your prognosis and project your losses for this injury. We also may wait to accept any offers to make sure we fully understand the breadth of your injury before agreeing to an amount.
What Parts of Your Life Were Changed?
Compensation for a whiplash injury goes beyond just compensating the direct costs. Whiplash can also affect your:
- Mobility
- Independence
- Hobbies
- Job
- Mental health
- Quality of life
The changes you personally experience in these areas can dictate what a fair settlement will look like in your case.
Damages You Could Pursue for a Whiplash Injury
Averages are comforting. Without them, you have to figure out the worth of your case and negotiate for it. It’s hard work.
However, a lawyer can do that hard work for you. Armed with answers to the above questions, our motor vehicle accident lawyers can start to pursue matching compensation.
For the direct treatment of whiplash, you could get damages to cover medical costs like:
- Initial care
- Future treatment costs
- Pain management
- Prescriptions
- Physical therapy
- Therapeutic massage
- Alternative treatments
For the other parts of your life that were affected by this injury, you could receive compensation for:
- Lost income
- Reduced ability to earn
- Physical pain and suffering
- Emotional distress
- Reduced enjoyment of life
Though there is no average settlement for your injury, our legal team will assess your case to determine which damages you can recover.
Proving What Whiplash Compensation You Deserve for Your Injury
Knowing the details of your whiplash injury and the compensation you need is just part of the legal process. You also need to prove all the above to the liable parties, and sometimes they need a lot of convincing.
Unfortunately, whiplash often doesn’t appear in traditional diagnostic scans. Pain is also difficult to prove since it’s subjective. These challenges can mean lower offers of compensation. With a personal injury attorney on your side, you can avoid whiplash settlement offers that don’t accurately cover your losses.
How Whiplash Injury Lawyers Build a Case for You to Recover Fair Compensation
Since these cases are sometimes undervalued, the whiplash attorneys at our firm weave together several pieces of evidence to illustrate the scope of your injury:
- Medical records
- Diagnostic tests and notes
- Treatment plans
- Prescriptions for medication and therapy
- Physical therapy assessments
- Chiropractic and massage therapy
- Testimony from whiplash experts
- Employment records
- Testimony from friends, family, and coworkers
- Mental health assessments
- Testimony from you about your experience
These pieces of proof can bolster different areas of your case. For instance, treatment plans and physical therapy assessments can prove how serious your injury was. Mental health assessments and testimony from friends and family can highlight pain and emotional distress. Prescription medication and massage therapy records can show how long you experienced pain.
Other Factors at Play in Whiplash Injury Claims
Even with all the above information compiled and organized into an argument for damages, another variable that we cannot control is how insurers and liable parties will react. Sometimes, insurance companies even act in bad faith by refusing to honor a claim.
This is why having legal representation on your side can prove helpful. With our background in negotiations, we can address issues and adapt to how the other party approaches your claim for compensation.
Insurance Claims Process and Negotiation
If all the parties are amenable, we still need to negotiate the amount of compensation you deserve, which requires a lot of back-and-forth discussion and changes to the settlement terms. Naturally, this can affect your compensation amount.
Personal Injury Lawsuits and Continuing Negotiations
Filing a lawsuit doesn’t mean we stop negotiating. It just means we took the next step to encourage a fair settlement. Your right to have a court decide is protected when you file before the statute of limitations expires.
If we don’t settle your case out of court, then the compensation for your whiplash is up to a jury verdict. They weigh the evidence and decide how much to award you.
Pursuing Multiple Parties
If more than one party was responsible for your injury, or someone shared liability with the person who hurt you, you may need to pursue more than one claim or suit. That can potentially affect the amount of compensation you receive since you can get damages from several fronts.
Discuss Your Compensation Options With a Whiplash Injury Law Firm Today
Call Ged Lawyers today and get a free review of your whiplash case. Nothing about your experience was average to you, so don’t accept a settlement offer that views you that way. Our personal injury attorneys have experience with this injury and can recognize what compensation you may need.
When you reach out to us, we can discuss your options for reaching a personal injury settlement. Don’t wait to get started.
