After an accident, some injuries are apparent immediately, while others take time to manifest. Whiplash symptoms can start with soreness or stiffness that worsens with time. Concussion symptoms include fatigue, dizziness, challenges focusing after the accident, and headaches. You have a right to compensation if your accident is due to another person’s negligence. While every case is unique, understanding the factors that affect your compensation amount can help build a strong case. Seeking experienced legal assistance can help obtain the most favorable case outcome.

Whiplash and Its Symptoms

A whiplash injury happens when the head forcefully goes backward and forward, making the neck extend or compress quickly. It pushes your spinal cord bones, ligaments, and muscles beyond what they can handle. The stronger and sharper the movement, the more significant the force applied to your neck.

Traffic-related crashes, especially rear-end car accidents, are one of the common causes of whiplash injuries.

The injury can either be minor or severe. Most injuries are minor and improve within weeks. At worst, the injury can fracture your vertebrae in the neck and can result in spinal cord damage.

Some of the ways to know you suffer from whiplash are as follows:

  • Tenderness and stiffness near your injury area
  • Neck pain that spreads to your face, shoulder, shoulder blade, and head
  • Swelling around your injury
  • Muscle spasms that make it challenging to move the head
  • Headaches
  • Vision challenges
  • Numbness in the neck
  • Dizziness
  • Tingling or burning feeling in the neck, upper arms, shoulders, or upper shoulders

Some signs might appear immediately, while others take time to emerge.

Concussion Injury and Its Symptoms

A concussion injury is a head injury that occurs when the brain twists or moves in the skull.

The brain tissues are squishy and soft and are surrounded by cerebrospinal fluid that serves as a cushion between the skull and the brain. A concussion stretches and injures blood vessels and nerves in the brain, causing chemical changes that temporarily impair the brain's ability to function as it should. The brain will redirect its recovery following the injury. It sends signals to the body to avoid activities and slow down. That is when concussion symptoms start to manifest.

A concussion can affect your feelings, emotions, sleep, cognitive function, and physical health.

While symptoms may begin immediately, some patients do not experience them for hours or days.

Some of the common symptoms of concussion include the following:

  • Nausea
  • Headaches
  • Neck pain
  • Blurred vision
  • Double vision
  • Balance challenges
  • A lightheaded feeling
  • Sensitivity to light
  • Temporary unconsciousness
  • Fatigue
  • Challenges focusing or concentrating
  • Confusion
  • Amnesia
  • Anxiety
  • Mood swings

Compensatory Damages

Compensatory damages are designed to place you where you would be if the injury had never happened. By placing a dollar value on your injury, the damages seek to restore you emotionally, physically, and financially. These damages can be categorized into economic (damages that compensate you for monetary losses) and non-economic damages (compensating for non-monetary losses). Unlike economic damages, non-economic damages are difficult to calculate.

These damages include the following:

  • Medical bills —The damages include medical bills related to your injury. It is the reimbursement for medical care you have received and the cost of your future medical attention you will require due to your injury.
  • Lost wages—You have a right to receive compensation for the injury's effect on your wages and salary. You are also entitled to the future funds you would have earned were it not for your injury (lost earning capacity).
  • Loss of life enjoyment—When your injury prevents you from participating in everyday pursuits, including recreational activities, exercise, and hobbies, you might receive loss of life enjoyment damages.
  • Pain and suffering— You have a right to receive compensation for the severe discomfort and pain you experienced during your accident and the ongoing pain you can attribute to your accident.
  • Property loss—If the accident caused loss of any property, you are entitled to compensation or repairs at the fair market value of that asset.
  • Emotional distress—The damage compensates you for the emotional and psychological effects of your injury. It can be insomnia, anxiety, or fear.
  • Loss of consortium —These damages are associated with the effect your injury has on your relationship with your spouse. It can be your incapacity to maintain your sexual relationship or loss of companionship.

Calculating Pain and Suffering

Insurance adjusters use the per diem method or a multiplier method to determine the value of your pain and suffering damages.

Per the per diem method, insurance adjusters assign a specific dollar value to every day you have to face the mental and physical effects of your injury. Determining the appropriate daily rate can be challenging, making the method not ideal for valuing pain and suffering associated with permanent or long-term injuries.

The multiplier method involves adding your medical bills resulting from your injuries and multiplying the total by a factor between 1.5 and 5.

When determining the worth of your pain and suffering damages, your insurer will analyze different supporting documents, including the following:

  • Medical records, including imitations of your physical activities, which can affect your quality of life and restrict your capacity to perform tasks as you previously did
  • Medical expenses
  • Bills documenting your medical appointments
  • Prescription records, mainly medications for managing anxiety, depression, or pain
  • Pictures of the whiplash or concussion injuries
  • Documents from your employer about time away from work due to your injury
  • Receipts for your medication

Your Fault Might Affect the Value of the Compensation

Florida follows a modified comparative negligence doctrine. Under modified comparative negligence, a person who sustains injuries due to negligence can only recover damages if they are found to be 50% or less accountable for the injury.

The comparative negligence doctrine also impacts the amount you can receive for your personal injury claim. The compensation award is reduced by the percentage of your liability up to 50 percent.

Effect of Statute of Limitations on the Worth of Your Personal Injury Claim

The statute of limitations (SOL) is the time limit (deadline) on your entitlement to file your personal injury case. Florida’s SOL for personal injury claims is two years from the date of the accident. If you file your case after the deadline, the court will dismiss the case unless a legal exception is caused by your SOL to pause (toll).

The SOL does not play a significant role in determining the value of your claim unless the deadline is imminent. In this case, the defendant or their insurer might make you leave or take an offer that is below the worth of your claim.

That means that to obtain a fair outcome in your case, you should file your claim promptly. When you file your claim within the timeframe, the SOL does not affect the valuation of the compensatory damages.

How You Will Receive Payments for Your Damages

Typically, you will receive compensation for your whiplash or concussion damages after settling the case and signing a release. You will receive a check. However, there are things you should understand, including the following:

  • If your case proceeded to trial, the defendant can appeal the case outcome—When you settle the personal injury case, filing an appeal is not an option. When the defendant files an appeal, there is a chance your compensation award might be less than what you would receive in a settlement.
  • If you hired a personal injury attorney, they might be representing you under a contingency fee agreement— Your attorney will be paid for the services out of your compensation award. Typically, the contingency fee is about 33 percent of your total amount.
  • Your health care provider or insurer might have a lien on your compensation award — Everytime you file a personal injury claim, and the medical attention is associated with the claim, odds are your doctor or insurer will be notified of the claim. If you receive a compensation award, your physician or insurer will have a lien (the right to receive payment for any money owed or reimbursement for any money paid).

Different Factors that Affect Your Personal Injury Compensation Award

Numerous factors affect the compensation amount you receive. Understanding these factors can influence the success of your claim. These factors include the following:

  • Severity of your injury
  • Mental and emotional distress
  • Your medical treatment duration and recovery
  • Strength of your evidence
  • Regulation and laws
  • Whether your injury has long-term consequences that require future expenses and losses, like reduced quality of life, ongoing medical attention, and lost future income.

Hiring a Lawyer can Aid You in Increasing Your Compensation Value

Hiring a lawyer can make the situation easier; when the attorney focuses on your claim, you can focus on your recovery.

Some benefits of hiring a lawyer are as follows:

  • Offering proper legal guidance
  • Provide you with an objective assessment of your case — As the victim, you can take your concussion or whiplash injuries personally and let emotions impact how you make your decisions. Irrational conduct can result in adverse consequences for your claim. Your lawyer can guide and advise on the best conduct and responses that will be beneficial in the long run.
  • Adds credibility to your personal injury case — Over the years, your seasoned attorney has created a network of professionals in different fields. Expert witness testimony can lend your claim legitimacy and help build it.
  • Your attorney will work to win — Most lawyers work on a contingency basis. If you fail to win the personal injury case, you do not pay them. It motivates you to build the strongest case possible and guides you throughout the process.

Dealing With the Insurance Adjuster Wisely

Once you file your personal injury claim, your insurer will assign an adjuster to the case. The insurance adjuster will ask you to provide basic information and documents related to the accident and your whiplash or concussion injury to determine whether you qualify for compensation.

While the adjuster might seem like they want to assist you in obtaining your compensation, the job description includes protecting the insurer's profit and will work hard to reduce the insurance company's financial liability. For instance, the adjuster can use your words to reduce your compensation award.

Here are some of the things you should avoid saying to the adjuster:

  • I’m doing well—While this response might seem courteous or harmless, the adjuster might undermine the personal injury case that you have suffered, debilitating or severe injuries.
  • Admitting responsibility for your accident
  • Discussing your previous degenerative health conditions or injuries
  • Making speculations or assumptions to fill the blanks in the recollection
  • Providing recorded statements
  • Providing unnecessary personal details

Avoid signing documents that the insurance adjuster gives you until your lawyer reviews them. Signing the paperwork without understanding the content might result in you waiving your critical benefits and rights.

When filing your claim, the adjuster might inquire about your concussion or whiplash injuries or accident. You should politely refuse to discuss information.

Evidence to Increase Your Case Worth

Some of the pieces of evidence you can use include the following:

  • A fact witness statement (a fact witness is a person who knows about what caused your injuries, when and where you were injured, your recovery, the effect of the injury on your life, your limitations, and the medical treatment and care you have received).
  • Videos and photos
  • Your medical bills and records
  • A journal or diary with details about your accident and recovery, including the physical injuries you sustained, the treatment you have received, psychological symptoms you experience, your conversations with medical practitioners, prognosis, and the emotional anguish and pain you experience
  • Your employment records, if you have missed work due to the injury

A photo is worth a thousand words. It can better explain to judges, jurors, and insurance providers what happened. Depending on the facts of your case, you can take photos of the accident scene, vehicles, any damaged property, and your injuries.

Find a Seasoned Personal Injury Attorney Near Me

Your whiplash and concussion injury can quickly become severe and require immediate medical care. If somebody else's negligence caused it, you have a right to compensation. Your settlement value can vary depending on the seriousness of the injury, lost income, pain and suffering, medical expenses, insurance policy limits, the strength of evidence, and your degree of liability.

Filing a personal injury claim can be overwhelming, but retaining the Jacksonville Personal Injury Attorney can ensure you receive a satisfactory compensation award. We can treat your case with the care you deserve and fight for your rights. That way, you can focus on your recovery. Please contact us at 904-800-7557 to book your free consultation and learn how we can assist you.