Here at The Injury Lawyers we deal with whiplash injuries on a daily basis. In fact, we would describe ourselves as whiplash injury experts because we have dealt with hundreds of claims for compensation for whiplash injuries. We are therefore well aware that, although many people do encounter whiplash symptoms, the suffering that follows differs from person to person.
No one whiplash injury is the same as the next; although it may be very similar. These whiplash injuries generally tend to arise from road traffic accidents, but could equally occur from playing sport; for example rugby.
One of the main questions that gets asked of us is how much your whiplash injury is worth?
At The Injury Lawyers, we always tell our clients that it’s difficult to put a precise figure on it – especially if you have only just sustained your whiplash injury, because we do not know how long you will continue to suffer for.
Whilst one person’s whiplash injury may last a few weeks, another person’s whiplash injury may last a few months.
As such the person whose whiplash injury lasted longer is likely to receive the greater compensation award because they have suffered longer. But even then, if you take other losses into account, which I will go through shortly, a person whose whiplash injury lasted for the shorter period than the next person’s may actually receive more compensation because they have a greater loss of earnings, for instance.
In short, the value of your claim wholly depends on your circumstances and the amount of pain and suffering you have experienced. That said, we can give you a rough idea of the potential value of your claim using the Judicial Studies Board (JSB) guidelines. These suggest that a minor whiplash claim will be worth around £2,500 for example.
Loss of earnings
Our experience tells us that people who suffer a whiplash injury are likely to take time off work. The greater the amount of time you have off work and the greater amount of money you earn will be reflected in the amount of compensation you receive where a claim for loss of earnings can be made.
Pain and suffering
It makes sense that a person whose whiplash injury is more severe and more prolonged will receive a greater compensatory award in comparison to someone whose whiplash injury is not as bad.
Care and assistance
If you have received care and assistance from a relative, friend, or another helpful person, then your lawyers could potentially try and recover any expense you have incurred as a result. If it is decided that your care and assistance was necessary, a claim for this expense can be made and this will affect the value of your claim. The more care and assistance you have received, the more your claim will be worth. Importantly, this is only to put you back in the position you would have been had the accident not occurred.
The three factors I have mentioned above are just a few considerations that go into valuing your claim. It really is difficult from the offset to properly value your claim without knowing how long your whiplash injury will persist and how else it has affected you.
Give us a call on 0800 634 7575 today if you need some further advice on making a whiplash claim.
