Claims for whiplash

Whiplash – Causes and Symptoms

Whiplash refers to the neck injury. This type of injury is provoked by certain impact which then caused the movement (jolting) of the head and neck forwards and backwards, and in some cases even sideways. Because the trauma is sudden and unforeseen, ligaments and tendons of the neck usually get damaged by it. The most common of such problems is “neck sprain”, caused by overstretching of the ligaments in the neck.

Car accidents are very commonly seen as causes of whiplash injuries. When two cars collide, people driving inside will probably jolt in their seats. Since the rest of your body is secured (or at least it should be) by the belt, the only remaining part of the body left to move is the neck. There are also possibilities to suffer from whiplash injury if involved in road traffic accident, falls, and various blows to the head or while playing some contact sports. Everyone who played rugby knows how often someone seems to suffer from neck injuries. To prevent neck injuries, always adjust headrests to your neck while driving. This simple procedure will protect the neck from potential harm to certain extent, if you happen to have some car accident. Whiplash is an injury which might cause headaches, stiffness, pain, loss of movement or even muscle spasms. More serious injuries to the neck and head are also known to provoke pain in the shoulders, back and the arms, headaches associated with sickness and paresthesias (tingling in the fingers).

Make the Whiplash Claim

Before making any claims, you need to make the link between the accident, injury you have suffered from and the losses you have. Medical reports obtained by medical consultants are the thing you need. This person will be able to give both diagnosis and prognosis of your medical condition, and also gave his or her professional opinion about the link between the injury and the accident you had. Prognosis is opinion of this medical expert on how much time you will need to completely recover after this injury. He/she can estimate the time needed for recovery based upon his/hers previous experience, you condition before the accident and your recovery to the moment of assessment.

If the accident caused the injury or has made your medical condition worse, you have a case and can ask for compensation of financial and other losses you have suffered from because of the injury. Insurance companies of the person who caused the accident may call you right after the injury and offer certain compensation for your losses. Avoid these deals, because these are usually lowest offers and at that time you still won’t know your medical bills and other costs you will have to pay.