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How To Claim Lumbar Spine Injury Compensation

By Cat Way. Last Updated 28th April 2023. Welcome to our guide on claiming lumbar spine injury compensation. The lumbar spine is a column of vertebrae that runs along the lower back, between the rib cage and the pelvis. The function of the lumbar spine is to support the upper body and protect the spinal cord. Lumbar spinal injuries can be debilitating and painful. In some instances, the victim may become paralysed or suffer mobility problems for the rest of their life.

There are a number of different kinds of accidents that can result in damage to the lumbar spine. For instance, you may be involved in a slip or trip accident at work or in public. Furthermore, you could sustain this kind of injury in a road traffic accident.

How Do You Claim For Lumbar Spinal Injuries?

Claim compensation for lumbar spine injuries guide

Claim compensation for lumbar spine injuries guide

You might be eligible to claim lumbar spine injury compensation if your injuries were caused by a breach of duty of care. Part of your compensation will cover the harmful effects that your injuries on your quality of life.

You may also receive compensation to pay for any costs associated with your injuries. This includes things like medical treatment or mobility equipment.

To begin your spinal injury compensation claim, contact Legal Expert using the details below. Our skilled legal team can begin work on your claim promptly:

  • Call our claims helpline on 0800 073 8804
  • Use the live chat feature to the bottom-right of this screen
  • Or, claim online via our website

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A Guide On How To Claim Lumbar Spine Injury Compensation

In this guide, we will look at the process of claiming for an injury to the lumbar spine that was caused by someone else’s negligence. To begin with, we will look at what a lumbar spine injury is, the anatomy of this part of the body and the symptoms this kind of injury could lead to.

Next, we will take a look at some of the accident circumstances that could lead to an injury of this nature. We’ll also look at some of the different kinds of injuries that could impact the lower back and spinal cord. Following this, we’ll take a look at how these injuries are diagnosed and treated.

Next, we will have a section that shows you how much your injuries could be worth and how compensation is calculated. You can also use our compensation calculator to value your claim. We’ll also take a look at the different kinds of damages that could be included in a claim for compensation.

If you’ve sustained a lumbar spine injury as the result of someone else breaching their duty of care towards you, get in touch to see if you could be eligible to claim. Our team is happy to offer you free legal advice.

What Is A Lumbar Spine Injury?

A lumbar spine injury is an injury that damages the bottom part of the spine. Any damage to the lumbar spine could, in turn, cause damage to the spinal cord. This could cause a range of different problems, including loss of bladder and bowel control, paraesthesia and, in some cases, paralysis.

Even if an injury to the lumbar spine does not directly damage the spinal cord, it can still cause problems in the injured person. This is because the lumbar spine also helps you move, bend and twist your back. As a result, if this part of your spine is injured, it may affect your mobility.

Claim Time Limits For Lumbar Spine Injuries

Generally, you have three years to start a personal injury claim for lumbar spine injuries. This can run from the date you suffered your injury. This time limit is set out by the Limitation Act 1980.

However, there are certain exceptions to this 3-year time limitation.

For example, the time limit for claimants under the age of eighteen is frozen until their eighteenth birthday. During this time, a court-appointed litigation friend could make a claim for the injured person’s spinal injuries on their behalf. From their 18th birthday, they will have three years to start their claim if one has not already been made.

Similarly, the time limit is suspended for those who lack the mental capacity to claim for themselves. Again, a litigation friend could make a claim on their behalf. If they were to regain this mental capacity, they will have three years from this date to start their claim if one has not already been made.

Contact our team of advisors today to find out if you are within the time limit to start a personal injury claim for injuries such as lumbar spine nerve damage.

What Are The Effects Of Lumbar Spine Injuries?

If you sustain a lumbar spinal cord injury, you may become paralysed or partially paralysed as a result. Consequently, you may lose all or some of the feeling and use of your lower limbs.

People with paraplegia (paralysis from the waist down) can still live full lives. However, becoming paralysed can present many challenges and have a severe impact on your quality of life.

What’s more, there are a number of other effects that an injury to the lumbar spine could cause. For instance, damage to the nerves that send messages from your brain to your body could mean that you aren’t able to control your bladder or bowels.

Not only do these effects impact you physically, but they could have a severely detrimental effect on your mental health. You may feel depressed at the lack of independence you have, or anxious at the thought of leaving your home.

When you make a claim for compensation, it’s not just the physical effects that will be looked at when valuing your claim. The detrimental effect on your mental health will also be considered. Speak to a member of our team for more information about what you could be compensated for.

Causes Of Lumbar Spinal And Lower Back Injuries

In order to claim lumbar spine injury compensation, you need to show that your case satisfies the following conditions:

  • Another party had a duty of care towards you
  • The other party acted negligently, breaching this duty of care and leading to an accident.
  • You were injured as a direct result of your accident.

Lumbar spine injuries are often caused by trauma. You could experience trauma to your spine in a number of different circumstances. These include:

  • Road traffic accidents. If you’re in a road traffic accident, the force of the collision could be enough to injure your lumbar spine. When you’re on the road, you’re owed a duty of care by all other road users. In turn, you owe them a duty of care, too. This duty of care is outlined in the Highway Code.
  • Accidents at work. Your employer has a duty of care towards you while you’re at work. This means that they need to take all reasonably practicable steps to ensure your safety in the workplace as per the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974. If they fail to do this and you’re injured as a result, you may be able to claim.
  • Accidents in public. The party in control of a public space is referred to as the “occupier”. They have a duty of care towards members of the public who use the space for the purpose intended. This duty of care is set out in the Occupiers’ Liability Act 1957.

If your lumbar spine was injured in an accident caused by third party negligence, then you might be eligible to claim compensation. Get in touch with our team today for free legal advice about pursuing a claim.

Types Of Lumbar Spine Injuries

In the sections below, we will look at some of the different kinds of injuries that can affect the lumbar spine.

Broken Or Fractured Lower Back

The vertebrae are the bones that support the spine and protect the spinal cord. If you fracture or break your L1 or L2 vertebrae, this can damage or sever the spinal cord.

This kind of injury can cause partial or complete paralysis, depending on how severe it is. If you suspect you have a lumbar spine fracture or break, call 999 immediately for an ambulance.

Spinal Cysts

If the spine becomes injured, a cyst can develop inside the spinal column. A cyst is a sac that is filled with fluid.

Consequently, a cyst can put pressure on the nerves in the spine. You might notice pain, numbness or a loss of function as the result of a cyst on the spine.

Soft Tissue Injuries

A blunt force trauma can cause a soft tissue injury affecting the lower back. For example, the injured person may experience a slipped disc. This is where the soft cushion of tissue that sits between the vertebrae pushes out.

These sorts of injuries can be very painful and debilitating if it presses on the nerves. However, not all slipped disc injuries are painful.

Treatment And Diagnosis Of Lower Spinal Injuries

In order to diagnose a spine injury, a doctor will usually speak with you first about the symptoms you are experiencing. They may also carry out diagnostic tests to confirm the injury. The tests can include X-rays, CT scans or MRI scans.

Once the lumbar spine injury has been diagnosed, you’ll be offered treatment that is appropriate for your specific injury. For example, you may receive spinal surgery to remove cysts or relieve pressure on any trapped or compressed nerves. You may also receive anti-inflammatory drugs or steroid injections to reduce painful inflammation around the spinal cord.

If you have a lumbar spine injury, you might also be given physiotherapy. This could enable you to regain function in the parts of your body that have been affected by the damage to the spine.

If you have become paralysed, you may receive occupational therapy. Occupational therapy could help you relearn how to cope with many different aspects of life after becoming paralysed.

Lumbar Spine Injury Compensation Calculator

We are often asked, “What is the average settlement for a spinal injury?“. The amount of compensation you can receive for a spinal injury depends on how severely you were injured, and how badly this injury impacted your quality of life.

Your compensation might be made up of two different heads of claim. These are general and special damages.

General damages will compensate you for the pain and suffering that your injuries have caused. It will be worked out with the help of a medical assessment that you will be invited to as part of your claim.

You can use the table below to estimate how much the general damages head of your claim could be worth in a lumbar spine injury compensation claim. The figures from this table come from guidelines produced by the Judicial College. However, you can also use our compensation calculator to see how much you could be owed.

Edit
Category Of Back Injury Payout Estimate Notes
Severe (i) £91,090 to £160,980 These are the most severe back injuries where there is damage to the spinal cord and to the nerve roots. The person could suffer pain and disabilities. There could be partial / incomplete paralysis as well as other functions being impaired.
Severe (ii) £74,160 to £88,430 Whilst less serious than the above category, the claimants could suffer damage to the nerve roots, reduced mobility, loss of sensation and impairment of bowel and bladder function.
Severe (iii) £38,780 to £69,730 The claimant could have suffered a disc fracture or lesions. They could have also suffered injuries to the soft tissues and may be left with a chronic condition.
Moderate (i) £27,760 to £38,780 This bracket includes a wide variety of different back injuries. Such cases could include fractures of the lumbar vertebrae. The person could be left with a significant future risk of osteoarthritis as well as discomfort and pain.
Moderate (ii) £12,510 to £27,760 Claimants could have suffered damage to the muscles or the ligaments. Existing injuries may be made worse or exacerbated.
Minor (i) £7,890 to £12,510 The claimant will have made a full recovery to where the injury is considered a nuisance. This is without the requirement for surgery. The minor (i) bracket could also be applied to shorter term exacerbation of existing injuries.
Minor (ii) £4,350 to £7,890 The claimant will make a ful recovery in a period of between 3 months and 2 years. This is without the need for surgery.
Minor (iii) Up to £2,450 The person will make a full recovery within a 3 month period.

Our team will be happy to discuss how much compensation your lumbar spinal injuries are worth. Call our helpline to speak to an advisor today.

Further Types Of Damages Which Are Claimable

The second potential head of claim for compensation is special damages. This is the part of your compensation that covers you for the financial impact that your injuries have had on you.

You can claim special damages to cover the following:

  • Medical expenses, including the cost of operations, medication, physiotherapy and rehabilitation.
  • Mobility equipment expenses, for example, the cost of paying for a wheelchair or crutches so you can live more independently.
  • The cost of adapting your home or car.
  • Travel expenses, for example, the cost of taking taxis to hospital appointments.
  • Any loss of earnings because your injuries stop you from working

It’s really important that you provide evidence of the special damages you would like to claim. For example, you could use bills or invoices to show how much you have paid for care costs. Without evidence, it’s unlikely that you will receive the full value of the special damages that you’re entitled to.

No Win No Fee Lumbar Spine Injury Compensation Claims

At Legal Expert, we can offer you the option to make a claim with a No Win No Fee agreement. With a traditional personal injury claim, you will usually be asked to pay an upfront fee to your solicitor.

With a No Win No Fee claim, however, you will not have to pay an upfront fee, making appointing legal representation to work on your claim more affordable. You also won’t be asked

Instead, your solicitor will deduct a success fee from your compensation if you win your claim. The success fee is deducted from your compensation and is legally capped. This means the majority of your compensation always goes to you.

For more information on No Win No Fee agreements, or to get started on your claim today, get in touch with our team. If you have a strong claim, someone from our team could connect you with a No Win No Fee solicitor to take on your case.

Start Your Claim

To begin your claim for lumbar spine injuries, please get in touch with Legal Expert today. Our team are available 24/7 to offer you free legal advice.

You can:

  • Call 0800 073 8804 to speak to a claims advisor
  • Fill out our online form
  • Use our chat widget to ask a question right now.

Learn More

We hope this guide to claiming lumbar spine injury compensation has been helpful. To learn more about claiming compensation for a personal injury, you may wish to read these online guides.

How Much Compensation Can I Claim For A Back Injury?

Claiming Compensation for a Fractured Spine

How Much Compensation For Lower Back Injuries?

Spinal Injuries Association – support for people with spinal injuries, from the Spinal Injury Association

How do I know if I’ve broken a bone?  – an NHS guide

Statutory Sick Pay (SSP)- a government guide looking at how much SSP you could be entitled to.

How Prevalent Is Lower Back Pain In The UK?

According to the NHS, lower back pain is the number one cause of disability in the UK. Lower back pain accounts for 11% of disability within the population of the UK. Unfortunately, a growing number of NHS patients wait more than 18 weeks to receive treatment for lower back pain each year.

FAQs

Now we will answer some common questions about lumbar spine injury claims.

What is the minimum compensation for lumbar spine injury?

There is no minimum or maximum compensation award for a lumbar spine injury. The amount of compensation you are awarded will be dependant on the severity of your injuries and how you have been affected.

Can spinal nerve damage be repaired?

Because the brain and the spinal cord are so complex, there is little likelihood of the spinal cord repairing itself. However, things like physiotherapy might help you regain some of the motion that you had before being injured.

Further Helpful Guides

Thank you for reading our guide on claiming lumbar spine injury compensation.

Written by Chelache

Edited by Stocks

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    • Patrick Mallon legal expert author

      Patrick is a Grade A solicitor having qualified in 2005. He's an an expert in accident at work and public liability claims and is currently our head of the EL/PL department. Get in touch today for free to see how we can help you.

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