People understand that certain car crash injuries tend to be quite expensive. People who lose limbs due to traumatic amputations know they need significant compensation to offset their losses. Brain injuries, spinal cord injuries and other catastrophic injuries frequently carry six-figure medical price tags and trigger a lifetime of reduced earning potential.
Other injuries may not seem as severe by comparison, especially if the injured person is likely to make a full recovery. A broken bone is very likely to respond to medical care, so people tend to assume insurance can easily cover the costs of a fracture.
Whiplash may not seem as serious as a fracture to many people. However, whiplash can cause more financial consequences than people initially expect. Why can whiplash cost more than people may initially anticipate?
Accumulated treatment costs
Not everyone can manage whiplash with rest and over-the-counter medication. Many people require prescription medications to treat their pain or help their muscles relax.
They may also require physical therapy to help them learn modified body mechanics to avoid reinjuring themselves. In some cases, people may require more intensive medical interventions that could cost tens of thousands of dollars before they fully recover from their whiplash.
Lost income
Whiplash can prevent people from performing their jobs. Obviously, blue-collar employees and those in the service sector may not be able to manage job functions while dealing with pain symptoms and functional limitations. In some cases, whiplash pain is so severe that it could affect white-collar professionals and those who do not need to perform physical functions.
The pain from whiplash can affect a person’s rest and their overall mood, making it all but impossible for them to perform their job as normal. In some cases, whiplash symptoms can persist for multiple months, leaving people without income or with significantly reduced household income for that entire time.
The more severe that whiplash symptoms are, and the greater the impact they have on a professional’s employment, the better the chances that an injured person may need help seeking compensation. Quantifying the consequences of whiplash and other car crash injuries can make it easier for people to pursue compensation through an insurance claim or a personal injury lawsuit after a collision.