If you have a back or neck injury due to a car accident, you have endured more than enough suffering. These injuries can be extremely painful, and dealing with insurance companies and getting appropriate medical treatment make things more difficult. Fortunately, there is help for you. The attorneys at Cullotta Bravo Law Group will help you get a settlement to compensate you for your pain and suffering. While it is challenging to predict an exact settlement number if you have a back or neck injury, here are some tips on what you can expect regarding potential settlement outcomes.
Back and Neck Injuries
Back and neck injuries can be extremely painful; it may feel like no matter what you do or how you move, it always hurts. While the pain feels the same, insurance companies find ways to differentiate between cases and injuries to minimize their exposure. The first way they do that is through diagnosis.
A diagnosis of a broken bone, herniated disc, or torn tendon or ligament means a larger settlement. While you may be in a great deal of pain, if the source of your pain isn’t visible on an X-ray, CT scan, or MRI, it is likely to be labeled a soft tissue injury, which makes it less severe in the eyes of the insurance company.
Medical Expenses
The extent of your medical treatment is important in determining your settlement. Less medical treatment typically means a smaller settlement; in the eyes of the insurance company, if the injury were more serious, you’d get more medical care, so if you aren’t going to the doctor, it must not be that bad. This is not to say that you should seek unnecessary medical care. However, if you are suffering, you should get appropriate medical care.
Imaging tests like CT scans and MRIs can be expensive and drive up your medical expenses. Physical therapy, which typically requires multiple weekly visits for months, can also add up. Your doctor may suggest injections for pain management, or you may need a surgical procedure. All these things rack up significant medical bills, which will directly correlate to the amount of your settlement.
Permanence & Disability
The best-case scenario for a back or neck injury is that it will be temporary, resolve completely, and you can return to your normal life. Unfortunately, that isn’t always the case. Sometimes, these injuries can be chronic and disabling.
If you are permanently disabled due to an accident, or you will require long-term, ongoing medical care, that future care may be factored into your settlement. You will likely receive a higher settlement for that ongoing pain, suffering, and expense.
Location
The location of the accident and your case also affect your settlement amount. In more rural areas where the cost of living is lower, settlements tend to be lower. However, in larger cities, settlements tend to be higher. This is particularly true in cases that go to trial before a jury rather than settling out of court. Big city juries often give much higher awards for car accident injuries than you might see from a small-town jury.
What Makes a Case “Valuable”?
In a nutshell, the main factors that make a case valuable are the severity of the injury, the permanence of the injury, the amount of medical treatment, and the total (and future) costs of medical treatment. A case that involves a herniated disc, requires surgery, and leaves you with permanent pain and an ongoing need for medical care will result in a larger settlement than a case that involves whiplash and resolves on its own with minimal medical intervention.
If you are injured in an auto accident, you are entitled by law to compensation. Cullotta Bravo Law Group has over 30 years of experience negotiating client settlements. You need an attorney to protect your rights. Contact Cullotta Bravo Law Group at 630-898-7800 or online right away.
