What to Know About Whiplash and Car Accidents

No car accident injury receives as much attention and speculation as whiplash, usually because insurance companies dispute whiplash claims more than any other injury. Those who’ve experienced the painful and often long-term effects of whiplash know just how real and its seriousness.

More than two million Americans experience whiplash every year, with car accidents as the most common cause. What is whiplash, and why do insurance companies often dispute and deny whiplash claims?

What Is Whiplash?

Whiplash is a neck injury that occurs when a powerful jarring force snaps the head rapidly back and forth like a whip. The weight of the head, combined with the rapid, powerful back-and-forth motion, causes an overextension of the neck with damage to the internal structures like muscles, joints, and ligaments. Whiplash impacts more than the neck, it can also cause painful symptoms from the base of the skull to the upper portion of the back.

Whiplash can occur after a fall or other trauma, but it most commonly results from car accidents—particularly rear-end collisions. Studies on car accident trauma show that up to 40% of car accident victims experience a degree of pain and/or other symptoms for the rest of their lives. Whiplash is one of the most common contributors to long-term pain and other symptoms, including limited mobility.

Car Accident Crash Force and Whiplash

One of the most common reasons insurance companies dispute many compensation claims for whiplash is because this serious injury sometimes occurs in accidents at low speed—sometimes with very little damage to a vehicle. Often, insurance adjusters wrongfully assert that an accident victim could not suffer serious injury in a crash with little or no damage to the car, but whiplash can occur even in accidents at as little as ten miles per hour.

To understand whiplash in car accidents, it’s necessary to acknowledge the power of crash force. The crash force calculator developed by the Montana Department of Transportation reveals how crash force works in an accident. Crash force is the energy that propels motorists forward in a collision. The body still moves forward at the speed the car was traveling before the collision until the seatbelt snaps it back. According to calculations, a person weighing 150 pounds becomes a 3,000-pound force in an accident at only 20 miles per hour.

Symptoms of Whiplash After a Car Accident

Another reason insurance companies sometimes dispute compensation claims for whiplash from car accident victims is because the symptoms often have delayed onset. Whiplash may show no symptoms until many hours or even days after the accident. When a car accident victim doesn’t have any obvious injuries after the accident, they often forgo a medical examination. Then, during the subsequent hours and days, inflammation from the damaged internal structures in the neck begins causing symptoms that worsen into debilitating whiplash injury. Symptoms commonly include pain in the neck and shoulders, stiffness, loss of range of motion, headaches, blurred vision, and numbness or tingling in the arms. Whiplash may also cause cognitive and emotional symptoms such as loss of focus, memory problems, sleep disturbances, anxiety, and irritability. Because the brain sends signals to the body down the cervical spinal cord, the effects of inflammation in this region have serious impacts.

What Is the Outlook for Those Suffering From Whiplash After a Car Accident?

Fortunately, most car accident victims who experience whiplash begin to feel better in a few weeks or a month with the help of anti-inflammatory medications and physical therapy; however, some injury victims have long-term impacts from complications associated with whiplash. Some experience chronic or recurring neck and shoulder pain, limited range of motion, and problems with mood and personality. One in 50 whiplash victims still report chronic pain with regular doctor visits eight years after the accident. One long-running study showed that nearly 50% of whiplash victims report pain and other symptoms 20 years after the initial injury.

After a car accident, it’s always advisable to have a complete medical evaluation and/or to see a doctor as soon as symptoms develop in the neck, shoulders, and upper back. Not only does this ensure prompt medical treatment for the injury, but also provides documented evidence that the injury occurred in the accident, which greatly benefits a compensation claim.