When Should you Settle a Claim for Whiplash?

Whiplash is a common injury which can be caused by a range of accidents. Whiplash is a condition which can have an extremely debilitating effect on a person; it may not only cause severe pain, but also have a devastating effect on a person’s domestic, professional, and social life.

Should you settle a claim before you have recovered from the condition?

Whiplash can be an extremely unpredictable condition: it is one which medics can struggle to predict as to when a sufferer may make a full recovery. This is why is it advisable to gain the assistance of a specialist personal injury lawyer. A good lawyer would normally advise you not to settle your claim until you have made a full recovery – to illustrate why, I have the following example for you to consider:

You have been in a road traffic accident, and been diagnosed with whiplash as a result. You begin a claim and your lawyer organises a medical report to be completed. The report states you are likely to recover in 6 months time. You decide to settle your claim based on this report. However, 2 years down the line, you are still in pain and have found out you may need further surgery and/or treatment. At this point, your claim may be worth a great deal more than what you settled for, and you can no longer claim money for any private treatment you may need. As you settled your claim on a full and final basis, there is no way to go back to the Defendant’s and claim further compensation.

If you had waited until you recovered, you may have got the further treatment you needed privately the costs of which being paid by the other side. As well as this, you may have received a much larger amount of compensation.

If your medical report states you are likely to have recovered as much as you are ever going to, it is in this circumstance that a lawyer may advise you it is time to try to settle your claim.

Interim Payments

The reason many of our clients express a wish to settle their claim before they have recovered is due to financial hardship – they simply cannot delay receiving their compensation.

It is at this point a specialist personal injury lawyer may advise of interim payments. Interim payments are payments which can be made to a claimant before the conclusion of their claim. These payments may then be deducted from their final settlement figure.

If you need any further information regarding your whiplash claim please feel free to get in touch.