Neck and back injuries often have a profound impact on daily life. Even if the pain doesn’t seem so bad at first, crash victims often grapple with gradually worsening symptoms and long, difficult recoveries that can involve injections, ongoing physical therapy, or surgery.
When you’re struggling with the uncertainty of crash-related injuries, it may be tempting to take any offer you receive from the insurance company. But when it comes to a neck or back injury settlement, holding out for a fair deal is almost always better than taking the quick cash. Chances are the insurance company’s first offer will be far less than what you truly deserve.
In this article, our car accident lawyers will discuss how car accident settlements for neck and back injuries are calculated, and the most important factors that determine how much injury victims can expect to take home. We’ll also share several examples from our own case files.
A quick look at Crosley Law’s results in back and neck injury cases
Before we begin, it’s important to understand that settlement amounts can vary widely, from a few thousand dollars to millions. It all depends on the circumstances of each case. If you want to get a clearer idea of how much your case specifically is worth, the best way to do that is to call us and schedule a free consultation.
At Crosley Law, our average settlement for car accident injuries is about $250,000. Many of these cases involve serious back and neck injuries as primary components of the claim.
Here are a few examples from the last few years. Some of these cases were “larger” than others in terms of how badly the victim was injured, but all represent excellent outcomes under the circumstances thanks to our hard work:
- $4 million trial verdict: Our client Tim was rear-ended and suffered multiple herniated discs in his neck and back. After conservative treatments failed, he eventually required neck surgery and hip replacement, and was projected to need more neck and back surgeries in the future. The insurer only offered $330K and tried to blame his symptoms on pre-existing injuries. We fought back and won.
- $2.8 million settlement: Our client Elias rolled his semi-truck after he was forced off the road and into a ditch by a tanker truck that made an illegal turn. After multiple conservative interventions failed, doctors determined he needed spinal disc replacement surgery to alleviate his symptoms. Our investigation revealed that the at-fault driver had been texting and driving—a dangerous activity for any driver, but especially for one behind the wheel of a tanker truck carrying hazardous materials.
- $1.95 million trial verdict: Our client Carla was rear-ended and developed severe injuries, including herniated discs in her neck and back. But because the other vehicle hit the trailer hitch of her truck, her vehicle sustained no noticeable damage. The insurance company initially refused to acknowledge the severity of her injuries and denied the reasonableness of her care. We took her case to trial and, after spending a lot of time and effort educating the jury about her injuries, got her a great result.
- $115K trial verdict: Our client Jeff was rear-ended at about 15 miles per hour, which damaged spinal discs and pinched nerves in his back. Although Jeff’s injuries were not as severe as those in the case above, this case was notable because the insurance company never offered more than $844 to settle the claim. They argued that Jeff’s crash wasn’t violent enough to cause his injuries and all his symptoms were just normal “wear and tear.” We took them to court and forced them to pay more than 130 times their previous best offer.
7 Factors that impact injury settlement amounts
1. Your type of injury (and the associated medical costs)
Your back and neck are complex structures made up of bones, nerves, muscles, ligaments, and tissues. Even a little swelling or inflammation can cause severe pain.
During a motor vehicle accident, your body experiences severe forces that can cause tissues to stretch and rip and bones to break. This trauma often causes serious and sometimes permanent damage requiring extensive medical treatment.
Common injuries to the neck and back from car crashes include:
- Spinal cord injuries. The spinal cord is the bundle of nerves that connects your brain to the rest of your body. Spine injuries can disrupt this connection and lead to paralysis. If an accident severed your spinal cord, the damage is permanent.
- Broken vertebrae. Forces from a car accident can lead to broken bones in your spinal column. These bones protect your spinal cord and help you stand upright. Injuries may require bracing, fusion surgeries, and medication.
- Herniated discs. Your discs are shock absorbers that let your back move smoothly and comfortably. When a disc tears or deforms, its jelly-like insides can press on the nerves in your back and neck, causing severe pain. While some herniated discs resolve on their own, many require surgery, injections, physical therapy, and chronic pain management.
- Slipped vertebrae (spondylolisthesis). A collision can push your vertebral bodies, the bones that make up your spinal column, out of place. While you may not even notice a minor slippage, a severely slipped vertebra can press on nerves and tissues, and you may need surgery as a result.
- Sprains and strains. Crashes can cause tiny tears and swelling in the muscles and ligaments in your neck and back. These tears can cause significant pain, but typically resolve with time, rest, and medication. However, doctors sometimes misdiagnose herniated discs and other injuries as sprains and strains.
- Whiplash. A type of sprain or strain, whiplash occurs when your neck jerks back and forth during an auto accident. A whiplash injury will usually mean damaged tissue.
- Pinched nerves. Herniated discs, swelling, slipped vertebrae, and other injuries can pinch the nerves that branch off your spinal cord. A pinched nerve can cause numbness, shooting pain, and weakness. Pinched nerves may require injection therapy, nerve blocks, or surgery.
- Degenerative changes. Arthritis can develop in your spine over time because of wear and tear, but a major trauma could speed up the process. Pain and limited movement might get a lot worse because of the impact.
Each victim’s injuries and recovery processes are different, even if their diagnoses are the same. You can’t simply say that a spinal cord injury or a soft tissue injury is worth a guaranteed amount of money. However, people with more severe injuries will generally receive higher settlements than those with less severe ones. When our injury lawyers calculate settlement values, we consider the severity of your injuries and your likelihood of recovery.
RELATED: Can a “Minor” San Antonio Car Accident Cause Serious Injuries?
2. Your Need for Ongoing Medical Care
After a car crash, you may need to see specialists, surgeons, and physical therapists. You might even need help with basic needs like using the bathroom and getting dressed. Your medical expenses could include:
- Diagnostic studies like MRIs, CT scans, and EMGs
- Surgeries such as fusions, discectomies, and laminectomies
- Physical therapy
- Injections to reduce swelling and pain
- Back and neck braces
- Medication and pain management services
- Wheelchairs, walkers, and other mobility devices
All your medical care, including future treatment, should be included in your personal injury claim.
Accident victims with serious injuries sometimes need multiple surgeries, and complications can occur. Your lawyer should take all these factors into account and consult with your doctors before they start settlement negotiations.
3. Whether you can return to work
For most people, a job is an important part of their identity and daily routine. Lost wages (and future wage-earning capacity) are also an essential part of your injury claim. If you can quickly return to work, your case might be worth less than someone who has a permanent disability.
However, many people with neck and back injuries struggle on the job. For example, a herniated disc in your lower back may make standing or sitting for long periods impossible. You may also find it hard to lift, reach, bend, or twist. Sometimes, your medications will create significant side effects like fatigue or lightheadedness.
Your lawyer will have to determine how your neck and back injuries will affect your income over your lifetime. They may even consult with vocational specialists and other experts to figure out the long-term consequences of your injuries.
4. The amount of insurance coverage
After a car crash in Texas, you’ll generally need to file a claim with the at-fault driver’s insurance company. (If the driver was working at the time of the collision, your claim might be against their employer rather than their personal insurance policy.)
The problem is that a huge percentage of Texas drivers are not adequately insured. You can legally own and operate a motor vehicle with only $30,000 per person and $60,000 total per accident (regardless of how many people get hurt) in liability coverage. If you’ve suffered a serious back or neck injury, this might not even cover your medical bills alone—before even considering your lost wages or pain and suffering.
The best way to protect yourself from this scenario is to purchase a significant amount of uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage (UM/UIM) from your own auto insurance provider. UM/UIM coverage steps in to provide extra compensation once the at-fault driver’s policy runs out of coverage. This turned out to be a lifesaver for our client Carla, who wouldn’t have received anywhere close to the $1.95 million we won for her at trial without her UM/UIM policy.
Put it this way: if you ever get severely injured in a wreck, would you rather just hope the person who hit you bought enough coverage? Or would you rather guarantee it yourself?
5. How clearly you can prove the other driver (or other responsible parties) were at fault
Not every injury claim is clear-cut. In fact, most cases have “gray areas” or “bad facts” that can complicate a victim’s recovery.
At-fault drivers often try to blame victims for crashes. A good example: our client Michael was injured when a semi-truck driver changed lanes directly in front of him. The truck driver, however, lied and said he had slammed on his brakes after being cut off. He argued that Michael was at fault for following too closely.
Proving clear liability is critical to your car accident settlement for at least three important reasons:
- Insurance coverage. Multiple parties can be at fault in a crash—for example, a trucking company that employed a reckless driver, as well as a loading company that improperly loaded the trailer. When multiple parties clearly share liability in Texas, you can collect from all of them. This increases the total available insurance pool.
- Comparative negligence. In Texas, if you are 51% or more at fault in a car accident, you cannot recover any compensation. If you are 50% or less at fault, your recovery is reduced by your share of the fault. (For example, if you had $100,000 in damages and a jury found you 40% responsible, you’d only be entitled to $60,000). If the at-fault driver can unfairly pin even some of the blame on you, you’ll get less.
- Jury psychology. We’ll get into this in the next point. But generally speaking, juries are more sympathetic (and award more damages) in cases where one side was clearly in the wrong and the other side clearly did everything right.
6. Aggravating factors
In theory, it shouldn’t matter whether the defendant is likable or unlikable. Nor should it matter whether your injury was caused by a driver with a clean record or a driver with a pattern of unsafe behavior. Either way, the injuries are the same.
In the real world, though, juries are made up of humans. If your case goes to trial, they are the ones who decide how much money you deserve. And in our experience, juries tend to award more compensation in cases where the defendant did something (or several things) that really ticked them off.
7. Texas’ Statute of Limitations
You typically only have two years to file a personal injury lawsuit in Texas. If you wait more than two years from the date of your crash to file a complaint against the at-fault driver or the insurance company, you may lose out on your right to compensation.
Even if two years sounds like a long time, you should never wait to get in touch with a lawyer. It takes time to fully investigate a car crash, negotiate a settlement, and prepare a case for trial. The longer you wait, the more difficult this process will become.
RELATED: Should I Settle My Spinal Cord Injury Claim?
Do I really need a personal injury lawyer after a neck or back injury?
Sometimes, the insurance company will quickly offer you a settlement after a car wreck. The adjuster may even discourage you from contacting a lawyer, saying it’s not worth the time and money. However, lawyers play an essential role in car accident claims and lawsuits. Here are three reasons why:
1. Back and neck claims are complex
Most crash victims don’t have the experience and knowledge needed to navigate their claims. When you review your medical records, you’ll find terminology and abbreviations that are hard to understand. Even if the insurance company fully admits that their client was at fault, your doctors and the insurance company’s experts may still disagree about your need for more medical care and whether the crash caused your injuries. And it’s easy to miss deadlines and legal procedures when you’re trying to heal and manage a never-ending parade of doctors’ appointments.
When you work with an injury lawyer, you don’t have to worry about medical terminology, expert witnesses, or legal technicalities. Instead, your team will manage all these issues, giving you time and space to focus on your physical and mental health.
2. Your attorney will look out for your best interests
Insurance companies are for-profit businesses, and they want to settle your claim for as little as possible. Meanwhile, an attorney’s job is to represent your interests and get you the best outcome they possibly can. An experienced personal injury lawyer can help you calculate the real value of your claim and negotiate a fair settlement.
For example, our team worked with a brother and sister who were hit by a drunk driver. In addition to other injuries, both victims also experienced significant neck and back pain. Before trial, the insurance company offered them a total of $25,000. Based on our investigation, we knew this offer was absurd and wouldn’t come close to covering the true costs of the injuries. We also knew that a jury would have no sympathy whatsoever for a drunk driver who had tried to lie about what really happened.
We prepared the case for trial and selected a jury. After the opening days, the insurance company had a change of heart and agreed to pay the full policy limits. The final settlement amount was more than five times the insurance company’s initial offer.
While every case is different, it’s always worthwhile to get a personalized case evaluation from an attorney before finalizing your claim. Once you settle, you can’t go back and demand additional compensation, even if your condition worsens or you need another surgery.
RELATED: Crosley Law Settles Six-Figure Claim After Drunk Driving Crash
3. Your attorney only gets paid if you do
You don’t need money in the bank to hire an experienced personal injury lawyer. At Crosley Law, we have a no-fee policy and initial consultations are always free. If you decide to work with our law firm and we recover a settlement or jury award for you, we’ll charge you a percentage of your compensation. Otherwise, you won’t have to pay anything.
We also advance our clients’ case costs and fees. This means we won’t charge you for the cost of collecting your evidence (like medical records) or filing fees unless we win your case in court or reach a settlement.
There’s no risk or commitment involved when you contact our office and get advice about your personal injury case. Any fees you eventually pay will come out of the results we get. The insurance company’s argument that you can’t afford a car accident lawyer doesn’t hold up.
Car Crash? Call Crosley
At Crosley Law, our team works with crash victims across Texas, helping them understand their legal options and the true value of their claims. We take an aggressive approach toward settlement negotiations and aren’t afraid to take cases to trial when the insurance company refuses to make a fair offer.
To schedule your free consultation with a personal injury attorney at Crosley Law, contact our office today. You can call Crosley Law at (210) 529-3000 or fill out our quick online contact form.
The content provided here is for informational purposes only and should not be construed as legal advice on any subject.
