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What Causes Neck Pain After A Car Accident?

By Lewis Cobain. Last Updated 30th January 2023. You may be wondering what causes neck pain after a car accident, or why you developed back pain? Our guide provides advice and information on what the cause could be and whether or not you could be entitled to seek personal injury compensation.

Neck and lower back pain after a car accident

Neck and lower back pain after a car accident

If you were involved in a road traffic accident, you may have sustained damage to your back and neck. Whether the vehicle you were travelling in hit something, or another vehicle slammed into you, then chances are you were thrown violently forwards, backwards, or sideways in the impact.

Your neck and back are extremely sensitive to any sort of sudden and violent force which as a result means you suffer an injury like whiplash.

What Causes Neck Pain And Lower Back Pain After A Car Accident?

Our guide explains the various health issues you may develop as a consequence of an impact, covering injuries to the neck as well as damage to the spine.

We offer advice on how to go about filing a personal injury claim following a car accident that left you suffering from whiplash or another neck or back injury, and how a No Win No Fee lawyer could act on your behalf to ensure your case is successful.

If you would like to discuss your case with a Legal Expert adviser, please get in contact by calling us on 0800 073 8804.

You can also chat with us now about your claim online or use our live chat service, bottom right. We provide free legal advice so, if you have any questions about whiplash claims or have questions, such as “how much compensation for whiplash?”, we can help at a time that works for you.

To find out more about what’s causing neck and lower back pain after a car accident, please continue reading our guide.

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A Guide To The Causes Of Lower Back & Neck Pain After A Car Accident

Our guide to the causes of neck and lower back pain after a car accident provides essential reading on why and how this could occur. We offer advice on the various injuries you could suffer if you are involved in a road traffic accident and how your overall health and well-being could be negatively impacted as a consequence.

The guide also covers the various treatment options available for neck and back injuries after a car accident. We provide a general idea of the level of compensation you could be awarded in a successful personal injury claim. We explain how compensation awards are calculated and what exactly you could factor into a claim.

Our guide also provides information on how you could make a personal injury claim on a No Win No Fee basis which means you do not have to worry about upfront or ongoing fees to have a solicitor act on your behalf. If you’ve suffered from neck pain after a car accident, any permanent effects or complications to your health can also be covered as you could also receive compensation for financial losses as a result of the injury.

To discuss your case with a Legal Expert adviser, please call today.

What Is Neck & Lower Back Pain After A Car Accident?

You could suffer damage to your neck and lower back when you are involved in a car accident, with some injuries being extremely painful and debilitating. You may sustain damage to the ligaments in your neck if your head is thrown violently backwards and forwards, or sideways on impact whether your vehicle was shunted from behind, the side, or because you ran into something.

You may experience pain immediately, or the symptoms may not present themselves for several hours, or even days later when you sustain a neck injury in a road traffic accident. The accident does not necessarily have to happen at high speed either because even at low speeds, a collision can result in the occupants of a vehicle sustaining damage to their neck and lower back.

However, the damage was caused to your neck and lower back in a car accident, it is crucial to have your injuries correctly diagnosed by a medical professional as soon as you can. This prevents further damage from being done and ensures you receive the necessary treatment.

If you suffered neck and lower back pain after a car accident, and you would like to discuss whether or not you could claim compensation for the injury you suffered, please speak to a Legal Expert adviser today.

How Neck & Lower Back Pain May Be Caused

You can suffer neck and lower back pain if you were involved in any sort of accident that caused your neck to be violently shunted back and forwards, or sideways.

The consequence is the muscles and ligaments found in your neck are stretched beyond their natural reach which in turn causes the damage. Your spine can also be negatively impacted with the result including damage to discs and vertebrae.

You can suffer this type of injury in a road traffic accident, or in any other accident which involves the following:

To find out whether you could make a neck and lower back pain after a car accident claim, please call a Legal Expert adviser today. They can answer any questions you have about whiplash claims.

How Discogenic Pain In The Back May Be Caused By A Car Accident

Discogenic pain involves spinal disc damage. Discs found in your spine act as shock absorbers between each vertebra. They allow free movement and stability in your spine. When damaged in any way, the pain can be debilitating.

You can suffer discogenic pain when discs found in your spine deteriorate gradually as time passes. But you can also develop the pain as a direct result of sudden trauma experienced in a car accident, with most people suffering discogenic pain in the lower spine (lumbar region).

The more common injuries that you could sustain in a road traffic accident that negatively impacts your lumbar region are:

  • Lumbar sprains
  • Spinal stenosis
  • Disc herniation
  • Degenerative spinal disorder

If you would like to find out whether you have a valid claim for neck and lower back pain after a car accident, please call a Legal Expert adviser today.

How A Facet Joint Spinal Injury May Be Caused By A Car Accident

A facet joint is found in between each of your vertebrae and there are two located between each pair of vertebrae. Their function is to control the rotational forces and anterior displacement that take place in your spinal cord.

Facet joints play an important role in absorbing energy in your spine and support around 20% of the total load.

What Are Facet Joint Spinal Injuries?

Although damage to facet joints are often the reason that you could suffer chronic lower back pain, the injury can be missed for the following reasons:

  • It can be challenging to identify the damage which occurred to facet joints
  • It is not possible to diagnose facet syndrome using conventional clinical methods and x-rays are often inconclusive
  • Carrying out a routine functional examination can prove challenging when diagnosing facet joint disfunction

Because facet joint pain is often confused with other types of back issues which includes gradual wear and tear, as well as more serious conditions like:

How Are Facet Joint Injuries Diagnosed And Treated?

Unfortunately, the condition is often misdiagnosed which as a consequence sees the issue getting worse as time passes. In order to get the right diagnosis, a specialist would need to carry out the following tests if facet joint damage is suspected:

  • A complete assessment carried out by a specialist in pain relief
  • A detailed medical assessment that focuses on the pain you are experiencing
  • A complete and thorough neurological and spinal examination
  • MRI scans together with x-rays

When it comes to treating facet joint pain, this must be carried out by an experienced medical professional once a diagnosis has been achieved. A complete treatment plan would then be tailored to suit your specific needs.

The sort of treatment you could receive may include the following:

  • Anti-inflammatory/analgesic medication
  • Multimodal analgesia which involves pain management that combines several groups of pain relief medication with the most common being opioids, NSAIDS, alpha-2 agonists and acetaminophen
  • Facet joint blocks
  • RF treatment – facet joint radiofrequency denervation treatment
  • RF treatment – Medial branch radiofrequency denervation treatment
  • Botulinum Toxin A treatment (Botox)
  • Specialist physiotherapy
  • Home exercise plan

To talk to a Legal Expert adviser about a claim for neck and lower back pain after a car accident, please call today. We can help you with any queries you have about whiplash claims and can provide you with a compensation estimate if you’ve suffered neck pain after a car accident.

How A Lumbar Spinal Sprain Injury May Be Caused By A Car Accident

You may suffer a lumbar spinal sprain injury in a car accident due to excessive force being applied to your back. The trauma causes ligaments, tendons, and muscles found in your back to stretch beyond their natural reach.

This type of injury is hard to diagnose in an x-ray. As such, it would be up to a doctor’s knowledge of their patient to correctly determine a diagnosis involving a lumbar spinal sprain.

If you would like to discuss your case with a Legal Expert adviser to find out whether you have a valid personal injury claim, please speak to a member of our team today.

How A Spinal Stenosis Injury May Be Caused By Car A Accident

The medical definition of ‘stenosis’ is an abnormal narrowing of a channel found in the human body. As such, spinal stenosis describes the narrowing of the bone channel where spinal nerves and the spinal cord are found.

Commonly, this issue occurs through natural ageing but it can be the result of some form of trauma too which includes being involved in a car accident. The pain is caused by a ruptured disc or a bone fragment invading the spinal canal which as a consequence applies pressure to nerves or the spinal cord.

If you would like to talk to us to find out whether you have a valid claim for such an injury, please contact us today.

How Herniated Discs May Be Caused By Car Accidents

Disc herniation is a common injury that occurs when damage to the absorber-like discs found between each of your vertebrae occurs. The damage happens when the soft filling found within a disc bulges through the outer layer.

The rupture itself is not necessarily painful, but the material that bulges out from the disc typically touches surrounding nerves and as a result, this causes tremendous pain. The condition is known by several names which include slipped discs and ruptured discs.

If you’ve suffered such an injury you may be entitled to compensation. Why not get in touch with us today to find out more?

How A Car Accident Could Cause A Degenerative Spinal Disorder

When it comes to degenerative discs disorders, there are many and various injuries together with symptoms related to your spine or parts of the spine which occur with ageing. This can cause any of the following conditions:

Trauma to the spine can occur when you are involved in a car accident which can result in spinal stenosis, herniated discs and the other spinal injuries detailed above.

To discuss a personal injury claim with a Legal Expert adviser and to find out how best to proceed, please contact a member of our team today.

Neck & Lower Back Pain Injury Claims Calculator

You may be wondering, “how much compensation for whiplash?” In May 2021, changes were introduced to the personal injury claims process which means that any road traffic accident claim worth £5,000 or less will not attract costs for solicitors. In other words, solicitors don’t get paid for representing you in claims falling below this amount.

As a result, you may need to represent yourself by submitting your claim through an online portal.

Compensation awards for whiplash have now been significantly reduced too, as you can see in the table below. These figures are found in The Whiplash Injury Regulations 2021

Edit
Duration of injury Amount for a physical injury Amount for a physical injury with a minor psychological injury too
Not more than 3 months £240 £260
More than 3 months, but not more than 6 months £495 £520
More than 6 months, but not more than 9 months £840 £895
More than 9 months, but not more than 12 months £1,320 £1,390
More than 12 months, but not more than 15 months £2,040 £2,125
More than 15 months, but not more than 18 months £3,005 £3,100
More than 18 months, but not more than 24 months £4,215 £4,345

However, your claim may be worth more than £5,000 so we recommend getting in touch with us to discuss it further before taking any steps. It’s very difficult to answer questions such as “how much compensation for whiplash?” until you get in touch with us. The compensation you could receive from a claim can be based on many different factors, including the severity of the injury and to what degree it has negatively impacted your life.

For a more accurate idea of how much you may receive in personal injury compensation for neck and back pain after a car accident, please get in touch today.

Special Damages For Car Accident Victims

It’s also possible to claim back financial losses associated with the car accident and injuries suffered. The sort of expenses and losses you could claim are as follows:

  • Care costs should you need assistance with daily chores around the home during your recovery
  • Medical expenses which could include the cost of prescriptions, treatments, physio and rehab not covered by the NHS and provided in the private medical sector
  • Travel expenses which may cover the cost of getting to the place where you are treated and back home again. You can claim these expenses if you go by train, bus, car, or taxi
  • Loss of earnings you incurred during the time you were off work recovering
  • Loss of future earnings if you are unable to return to work due to the injuries you sustained
  • Vehicle repair costs if you needed mechanic work carried out

If you have sufficient proof of the financial losses, claiming for special damages can greatly increase the amount of compensation you receive from neck pain after a car accident. Sufficient proof includes evidence, such as receipts, invoices and bank statements.

To learn more about what you can include in a claim, please get in touch.

Claiming For Neck And Back Pain After A Car Accident With A No Win No Fee Solicitor

When you suffer back and neck pain after a car accident, you might be interested in working with a solicitor to assist with gathering evidence for your claim. However, you may be concerned about having to pay an upfront fee without the guarantee you’ll actually receive any compensation.

However, a No Win No Fee solicitor typically won’t ask for an upfront fee from you. If your claim is unsuccessful, you aren’t responsible for paying your solicitor for their work. A success fee is deducted from your compensation if your claim is successful. Injury solicitors won’t overcharge you for the success fee as it is legally capped.

Whatever pain after a car accident you have experienced, whether it is in your neck or back, our solicitors could help you on a No Win No Fee basis. Continue reading to find out how you can get in touch for a free consultation on claiming for injuries after a car accident, such as back pain.

Talk To Our Car Accident Claims Team

Thanks for reading our guide on what causes neck pain after a car accident. To talk to a member of the Legal Expert team, you can do so in the following ways:

Essential References

For more information on what causes neck pain after a car accident, please see the following guides:

For more information on neck injuries that involve whiplash, please follow the link below:

NHS neck injury diagnosis and treatment

If you suffer lower back pain following a car accident and would like more information on this type of injury, please click on the link below:

Lower back pain

To find out more on how No Win No Fee claims work, please read our guide by clicking on the provided link:

No Win No Fee agreements guide

For more information on personal injury time limits, please read our guide by clicking on the link provided:

Personal Injury Time Limits

We also have some other guides on car accident claims that you may find useful:

If you would like to know more about making whiplash claims, please contact us for free legal advice at a time that suits you using the above details. We can help answer questions such as “how much compensation for whiplash?” by providing you with a compensation estimate that is specific to your injury.

Guide by Wood

Edited by Billing