Whiplash is one of the most common car accident injuries in Texas, but many victims are unsure whether or not it warrants litigation to get the damages they deserve.
If you suffered whiplash injuries and incurred damages because of someone else’s negligence, you can hold them liable in a lawsuit in Texas. To do this successfully, you may have to file your case within two years of an accident, and our attorneys can ensure this happens by investigating and preparing your case immediately. While whiplash injury claims often settle out of court, ensuring that the settlement you agree to is fair is crucial. In order to evaluate settlements, our lawyers must know your claim’s value, so we will consider all medical expenses, lost wages, and intangible damages you’ve incurred.
Call The Queenan Law Firm’s Dallas, TX car accident lawyers for a free and confidential case assessment at (817) 476-1797.
Who Can Sue for Whiplash in Texas?
Whiplash typically occurs during auto accidents, when a victim’s head moves back and forth very quickly, causing soft tissue injuries in the neck. Whiplash can have serious implications for victims, possibly preventing them from working for weeks or months and enabling them to file lawsuits for compensatory damages.
You can sue for any injury caused by negligence, provided you have incurred real damages as a result. Compensable damages for whiplash injuries include emergency room visits, diagnostic testing, pain management medication, and necessary physical therapy sessions. If you miss work and incur lost wages while you recover, you can also sue for those damages.
To sue for whiplash injuries, our lawyers must determine who is liable for the accident. It might be difficult to determine liability for complex collisions involving multiple drivers. Still, our attorneys can enlist crash reconstruction experts, interview eyewitnesses, and review physical evidence from the scene to ascertain the cause.
Highways, particularly, are full of large delivery trucks driven by commercial truckers. Suppose a delivery truck hits you in Texas. In that case, their employer may be liable for your various damages, and our Houston, TX car accident lawyers can include them in your claim to maximize your financial recovery for whiplash and other injuries.
In addition to whiplash, victims might sustain other injuries during accidents, like concussions, facial injuries, and nerve damage, which also require medical attention our lawyers can seek compensation for in lawsuits.
When Can You Sue for Whiplash in Texas?
To sue for whiplash injuries and get compensation, even through a settlement, you must file your claim before the statute of limitations runs out in Texas. If you do not, you lose your chance to make the negligent party cover your damages.
According to Tex. Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code § 16.003, you only have two years after an accident to file a lawsuit for any injury, including whiplash. Sometimes, victims might get tolling for delayed discovery of underlying injuries. Whiplash is not always immediately apparent but might worsen if left untreated. Because of this, you should always get medical attention after a collision, even a fender-bender, as these accidents are a top cause of whiplash.
You can and should file your claim well before the two-year deadline. This shows your commitment to your financial recovery and can ensure that certain evidence, such as eyewitness statements, is not lost or degraded with time.
Unless a tolling exception applies, you cannot sue for whiplash or any other injury once the statute of limitations passes. Judges may dismiss claims that are filed late, leaving victims without compensation for damages stemming from whiplash.
How to Know if a Whiplash Injury Settlement is Good in Texas
Many people assume whiplash injuries are minor and that any settlement is a good settlement. This is not necessarily true, as victims could require costly medical care, deal with lost wages, and experience emotional distress because of negligence, entitling them to better settlements than they might have anticipated.
Know Your Claim’s Value
Whiplash injuries often come with considerable damages, mostly from medical expenses. The cost of prescription medications to help victims manage the pain and discomfort associated with whiplash might add up quickly. Rest is often part of victims’ physical recoveries from whiplash, which might mean they have to take time away from work, resulting in lost wages. These losses are also compensable, and our attorneys will calculate them before filing your case and negotiating a settlement.
Traumatic accidents and whiplash injuries can, and often do, cause victims pain and suffering. While the emotional distress from whiplash might not be as long-lasting as the non-economic damages from a traumatic brain injury, it exists nonetheless. Defendants typically leave non-economic damages out of settlement offers, at least initially. If you do not know the value of your intangible damages or that they are compensable, you might accept an unfair settlement that leaves certain losses uncovered.
Consider Future Damages
When distinguishing good settlements from bad ones, our lawyers will also see if they cover victims’ future damages. Victims who sustain whiplash injuries could develop chronic neck pain as a result, needing long-term pain management medication. Severe whiplash injuries could require many physical therapy sessions to help victims regain mobility and ease pain. If you will need additional treatment in the future after your lawsuit ends, we can ensure a settlement covers those costs as well. This often requires us to involve medical experts, such as the physicians who have treated you. They can offer statements confirming the future treatment you will need and its anticipated cost. Defendants who refuse to compensate whiplash injury victims in good settlements may be held liable for all damages by a jury if a case goes to court.
Call Our Lawyers in Texas About Your Whiplash Injury Claim
Call The Queenan Law Firm at (817) 476-1797 to discuss your case for free with our Arlington, TX car accident lawyers.