How To Claim Compensation For A Back Injury After A Car Accident

By Stephen Moreau. Last Updated 9th February 2024. Welcome to our guide on claiming compensation for a back injury after a car accident. If you have been injured because another road user breached their duty of care towards you, resulting in an accident, you could be entitled to claim.

However, you may not be sure who was liable for the accident that caused your injuries. Our article will guide you through determining how someone else’s negligence could have caused your road accident. This will allow you to understand whether you have a valid claim. 

If you feel ready to start your claim after reading our guide, an advisor from our team could connect you with an expert personal injury solicitor from our panel. See below for how you can get in touch with our team to get started.

Alternatively, please continue reading for further details on making a personal injury claim. 

You can speak to our team at any point whilst reading our guide. You can also get in touch if you’ve finished reading but still have more questions that you would like to ask. Why not get in touch on the details below?

• Call us on 020 3870 4868
• Request a call-back by filling out our form
• Speak to an advisor 24/7 via live chat to the bottom right of this screen 

Services And Information

1. Claiming Compensation For A Back Injury After A Car Accident – Who Can Claim?
2. Types Of Back Injuries Caused By Car Accidents
3. How Is Compensation For A Back Injury After A Car Accident Calculated?
4. What Evidence Could Support My Claim?
5. Time Limits To Claim For A Back Injury After A Car Accident
6. Claiming Compensation For A Back Injury After A Car Accident On A No Win No Fee Basis
7. Useful Pages

Claiming Compensation For A Back Injury After A Car Accident – Who Can Claim?

If you have suffered an injury, such as back pain from a car accident, you might be wondering whether you could receive compensation.

All back injury claims must meet the personal injury eligibility criteria, which is:

1. Someone must have owed you a duty of care.
2. They breached this duty.
3. You suffered an injury as a result of this breach.

Road users, including car drivers, owe each other a duty of care to avoid causing harm to one another by using the roads responsibly. They must also adhere to the regulations found within the Road Traffic Act 1988 and the Highway Code as part of their duty of care. If another driver were to breach their duty of care, and this caused you to suffer a back injury in a car accident, you may be able to make a personal injury claim.

For more advice on your eligibility to claim compensation for a back injury, you can contact our advisors for free today. You can also speak to them about other aspects of claiming, such as potential back injury compensation amounts.

Types Of Back Injuries Caused By Car Accidents

According to statistics published by the Department for Transport (DfT), 28,031 road users were seriously injured in 2022 and 105,738 were slightly injured in the same year. Road users who get caught up in a car accident could potentially suffer all sorts of injuries, including different kinds of damage to their back.

Examples of back injuries that may occur due to a car accident include:

• Soft tissue damage, such as damage to the ligaments or tendons.
• Discs in the spine may be fractured or herniated.
• Nerves in the back may be damaged. Symptoms may include pain, increased sensitivity to the area, muscle weakness or numbness.
• A whiplash injury, which is a neck injury caused by a rapid back-and-forth movement of the neck, could damage muscles or parts of the spine which leads to tenderness or pain in the upper back.
• A very severe car crash could potentially cause spinal cord injuries that lead to incomplete or complete paralysis.
• More minor back injuries that a car accident may cause could include strains, sprains and bruises.

If you’ve suffered a back injury after a car accident and another party caused the incident by breaching your duty of care, then you can contact our advisors about potentially claiming compensation. Contact us for free either online or on the phone.

How Is Compensation For A Back Injury After A Car Accident Calculated?

If you successfully claim for an injury such as lower back pain after a car accident, your settlement could include up to two heads. The first head, general damages, is awarded to everyone who successfully claims for back pain from a car accident. This heading covers your physical and psychological injuries and the loss of amenity that these injuries cause.

Solicitors and legal professionals who value this head of claim may refer to the Judicial College Guidelines (JCG). This document provides guideline compensation amounts for different injuries. Below, you can find a table with some of the amounts found in the 16th edition of the JCG. Please only refer to it as a guide. Also note that the first entry in this table is not based on the JCG.

Additionally, the last two entries have been taken from the tariff found within the Whiplash Injury Regulations 2021. These are fixed amounts.

Edit

Type of back injury	Severity	Further description	Award
Multiple Serious Injuries Plus Special Damages	Serious	If you have suffered multiple serious injuries in a car accident, then you may receive a compensation payout for all of theses plus any special damages such as loss of earnings.	Up to £200,000+
Back	Severe	(i) Injuries such as spinal cord or nerve root damage resulting in unusually serious symptoms such as severe pain and disability.	£91,090 to £160,980
Back	Severe	(ii) Injuries such as damage to the nerve root alongside other symptoms such as sensation loss.	£74,160 to £88,430
Back	Severe	(iii) Fractures, disc lesions or soft tissue injuries that lead to chronic conditions resulting in ongoing pain and other symptoms.	£38,780 to £69,730
Back	Moderate	(i) Injuries might include compression or crush fractures of the lumbar bones that cause ongoing pain and discomfort.	£27,760 to £38,780
Back	Moderate	(ii) Injuries that have made a pre-existing condition worse.	£12,510 to £27,760
Whiplash	With a psychological injury	A whiplash injury paired with a psychological injury lasting more than 18 months but less than 24.	£4,345
Whiplash	Alone	A whiplash injury lasting more than 18 months but less than 24.	£4,215

If you suffered an injury such as lower back pain after a car accident, your compensation could also include special damages. This head of claim covers the financial impacts of your injuries, and could help cover the cost of:

• Prescriptions.
• Over-the-counter medications.
• Lost earnings.
• Childcare.
• Travel.
• Domestic help.

For more information on claiming compensation for a back injury, contact our team of advisors today.

What Evidence Could Support My Claim?

When claiming compensation, you will need evidence to build a strong case. For a road traffic accident, this might include the following to prove the accident was caused by the negligence of another road user:

• Dashcam footage
• Traffic camera footage
• Police reports, depending on the seriousness of the accident
• The details of witnesses who could provide statements down the line. However, you may still be able to claim if there was no witness who saw what happened.
• Insurance company reports. You may still be able to claim if the other driver was uninsured; however, this would need to be done through the Motor Insurers’ Bureau.

Additionally, if you’re claiming special damages, you will need to provide:

• Payslips to prove any loss of earnings, pension or attendance bonus
• Receipts or invoices that could prove money spent on home adjustments, medical treatment, care (such as physical therapy) or travel costs

For more information on the evidence that could be used to support your claim, get in touch with an advisor by calling the number at the top of the page.

Time Limits To Claim For A Back Injury After A Car Accident

The personal injury claims time limit to start a claim for compensation is generally three years. The three years could start from the date of the accident or the date you obtained knowledge that the accident that caused your injuries resulted from negligence. The latter is called the “date of knowledge”. However, there are some exceptions to this time limit.

In the case of under 18-year-olds, the three-year time limit won’t start until the date of their 18th birthday. Before this, however, someone over the age of 18 could sue on their behalf by applying to act as a litigation friend. A litigation friend could also claim in cases where the claimant lacks the mental capacity to represent themselves.

In these cases where a litigation friend can claim on behalf of someone, the three-year time limit is suspended. If someone lacks the mental capacity to claim, the time limit is suspended unless the person regains their mental capacity.

Due to the various exceptions to the time limit, if you have any questions, you can speak to our team on the number above, and they’ll be happy to help.

Claiming Compensation For A Back Injury After A Car Accident On A No Win No Fee Basis

You may want to seek legal representation to help you in your claim, but be worried about the upfront or ongoing legal fees that are often associated with doing so. If so, a Conditional Fee Agreement (CFA) could help.

This is a No Win No Fee contract between you and your solicitor that states what conditions need to be met before your solicitor requests payment. It essentially means you won’t pay solicitor fees provided your solicitor is unsuccessful with your claim.

If they are successful, a small fee will be deducted from your compensation package. However, this will be capped by law, and the value of the success fee will be set out before your claim starts.

If you’re considering this type of agreement, you can speak to one of our advisors for further details. They can assess your claim and, if they feel it has validity, can appoint a road traffic accident solicitor from our panel to represent you on a No Win No Fee basis.

Our advisors are available 24/7, so even if you just have questions you need answering, you can get in touch using the following details:

• Call us on 020 3870 4868
• Request a call-back by filling out our form
• Speak to an advisor 24/7 via live chat below

Useful Pages

• For any medical advice, see the NHS website for guidance on various conditions, including a back injury.
• The Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents has some useful information on road safety.
• Think! provides further guidance to road users on how to stay safe on the roads.
• If you were involved in a motorcycle accident without insurance, see what steps you could take in our guide.
• Are you a pedestrian who was hit by a car? If so, our guide could help.
• Did you suffer whiplash in a road traffic accident? If so, see our guide for further information on the compensation you could claim.

Thank you for taking the time to read our guide about claiming compensation for a back injury after a car accident.