Symptoms and Causes of Whiplash
Whiplash is a common injury we see here at The Injury Lawyers – normally resulting from road traffic accidents. They can, however, occur from a whole range of accidents, such as falls from a height, or slips on a wet floor. Basically, anything which can cause a sudden jolt to your head which in turn causes your neck to move beyond its normal range could cause you to have a whiplash injury.
The symptoms of whiplash do not usually become apparent to the sufferer until maybe 6 – 12 hours after the accident – sometimes even longer. The symptoms can then increase in severity for weeks. The symptoms can involve pain, tenderness or stiffness of the neck, swelling of the neck, and recurrent, often severe, headaches. Many of our clients also report the pain radiating to their shoulders or back. Whiplash can be an extremely unpredictable condition – a doctor could say he / she would expect you to recover in 5 months, yet 1 year down the line, you are still experiencing pain. This is the very reason why you should seek the advice of a specialist personal injury lawyer.
Valuation
In order to value your claim, a lawyer may use the Judicial Studies Board (JSB) Guidelines together with any medical evidence obtained on your behalf – the JSB Guidelines aim to set out valuations into specific bands which I have set out below:
Minor whiplash can be worth £1,000 to £5,000
Moderate whiplash can be worth £5,000 to 15,000
Severe whiplash can be worth £15,000 and over.
The average value of a minor whiplash claim is normally around £2,500.
The factors that go into deciding which band your injury falls within may include the severity of your injury, and how it has affected your life. For example – has it meant you could not continue with your hobbies – such as golf, or running? Has it restricted you in your work – meaning you have had to go on lighter duties?
At The Injury Lawyers, we have a vast amount of experience in whiplash claiming – so feel free to give us a call if you have any queries.