Canton Whiplash Injury Lawyer
Whiplash is one of the most common types of car accident injuries. While some cases of whiplash heal within a matter of weeks, individuals who suffer severe whiplash may live with chronic pain and long-term loss of range of motion in the neck and upper body. If you have suffered a disabling whiplash injury in a collision caused by someone else, Georgia law says you may be able to seek financial compensation for your losses.
People with whiplash tend to be under-compensated by insurance companies, who view the condition as mild and argue that victims exaggerate their injuries. Don’t let your case be undervalued. Instead, turn to Geiger Legal Group, LLC for help.
Our family-run law firm is staffed by car accident lawyers with decades of legal experience fighting for the rights of injured people in Canton and throughout North Georgia.
Unlike other law firms that try to take on as many cases as possible, we focus on keeping our caseload smaller so we can commit the right time and resources to cases like yours. Our dedication to our clients and track record of success is reflected in the five-star rating we’ve received on Google and our “Distinguished” rating by the peer rating service Martindale-Hubbell.
When you choose Geiger Legal Group, LLC, you’ll get a compassionate Canton whiplash attorney who listens to your story, understands your needs and goals, and will answer your questions without making you feel rushed or intimidated. Call or contact us today for a free consultation.
What Is Whiplash?
Whiplash, sometimes called a neck strain or neck sprain, refers to an injury to the soft tissues of the neck, upper back, and shoulders.
A whiplash injury happens when a person’s head and neck snap back and forth due to a sudden force inflicted upon the body. This motion can strain and stretch tissues and nerves, causing widespread damage throughout the head, neck, and upper body. Whiplash injuries frequently result from car accidents, especially rear-end crashes, head-on collisions, and side-impact or T-bone accidents.
In many cases, physical damage to the tissues and structures of the head and neck cannot be seen on X-rays or MRIs, leading some people to dismiss whiplash as a phantom injury. However, many people with whiplash after a collision end up suffering from chronic, debilitating pain.
Common Causes of Whiplash Injuries
While whiplash is most commonly associated with car accidents, it can result from any incident that causes the neck to snap back and forth in rapid succession. Aside from crashes, other causes of whiplash include:
- Falls
- Sports injuries
- Violence, including shaken baby syndrome
- Riding a roller coaster
A whiplash lawyer can help you pursue maximum compensation against the responsible party if their recklessness (also known as negligence) contributed to your neck injury.
Signs and Symptoms of Whiplash
Signs of whiplash may not be apparent immediately after a car crash. Watch out for these symptoms of whiplash in the days and weeks following the accident:
- Head and neck stiffness
- Dizziness
- Nausea and vomiting
- Shoulder pain
- Fatigue
- Headache
- Jaw pain
- Back pain
- Ringing in the ears (tinnitus)
- Arm pain
- Blurred or otherwise impaired vision
- Difficulty concentrating
- Numbness or tingling in the arms
According to the Mayo Clinic, it’s not easy to predict whether a person with whiplash will make a full recovery. Some people suffer complications that last for years. As a general guide, people who have intense symptoms right after the crash are more likely to have a long-term injury.
Do I Need an Attorney to Get Compensation for a Whiplash Injury?
If you suffer from chronic effects stemming from a whiplash injury, you will likely need the assistance of a car accident attorney to recover full and fair compensation.
Insurance companies and defense lawyers often do not take whiplash injury claims seriously, especially when X-rays, MRIs, or CT scans show no evidence of physical damage to tissues or other structures in the head, neck, and shoulders. Insurance adjusters may argue that whiplash only constitutes a minor injury or accuse a car accident victim of inflating the severity of their injury in an attempt to recover more compensation than they deserve.
The reality is that severe whiplash can leave crash victims living with disabling symptoms that render them unable to work or perform basic household and personal care tasks. In addition, ongoing pain and disability can also result in car accident victims suffering from anxiety and depression.
You can improve your chances of recovering compensation with the help of an experienced whiplash lawyer. Your attorney can collect your medical records and testimony from your doctor to describe how the injury limits your ability to live life to the fullest.
Usually, a whiplash injury is part of a larger car accident claim involving greater damages and other injuries. In these cases, you could stand to recover a significant sum of money for your losses. A lawyer can provide a general estimate of what your case is worth. But in any personal injury case, there are no guarantees. You can count on Geiger Legal Group, LLC to give you an honest assessment about your whiplash claim.
Potential compensation for a whiplash claim in Georgia could include money for:
- Medical bills and treatment costs
- Lost wages
- Lost future earning capacity
- Pain and suffering
- Lost quality of life
Let our whiplash attorneys can get to work before the insurance company minimizes or outright denies your claim for compensation.
How Long Do the Symptoms of Whiplash Last?
Fortunately, most people with whiplash make a full recovery with minimal medical intervention. For that reason, claims involving only whiplash injuries do not settle for giant sums of money. But if you’re living with the complications of whiplash or suffered multiple injuries in a wreck, your claim gains value.
Car accident victims have a greater chance of complications if they experienced significant or extreme symptoms that appeared right after an accident. Chronic pain from whiplash injuries also more commonly occurs to individuals who have previously suffered a whiplash injury, have existing neck or back pain, or are older.
Initial treatment of whiplash symptoms typically involves taking pain relievers and non-steroidal anti-inflammatory medication. Depending on the severity of symptoms, you might also be prescribed muscle relaxants and asked to use a neck brace to help give the damaged tissues a chance to heal.
If whiplash symptoms extend beyond a few weeks, car accident victims may continue to use pain relief medication to help with pain and migraines, or they may seek pain-relieving injections. Whiplash victims may also undergo physical therapy to help rebuild strength and range of motion in the head, neck, and shoulders.
Unfortunately, unless a whiplash injury is accompanied by some other serious injury, such as torn ligaments or tendons or a ruptured spinal disc, surgery typically will not relieve the long-term symptoms of a whiplash injury.
How Much Time Do You Have to File a Lawsuit for Whiplash?
If you suffer a whiplash injury in a car accident in Georgia, you must file a claim against the at-fault party within two years of the date of the accident.
If you file suit after the statute of limitations expires on your claim, the at-fault party or parties can file a motion in court to permanently dismiss your case. But, unfortunately, that means you lose your right to seek financial compensation for your whiplash injury.
Contact Our Canton Whiplash Lawyers
Though insurers underestimate the value of a whiplash claim, the attorneys at Geiger Legal Group, LLC do not. We understand that maximum compensation can make a difference if you’re struggling to afford ongoing medical care and keep working while suffering from whiplash symptoms. You can rely on our Canton whiplash lawyers to push for the money you deserve to move forward after a car accident.
From the moment you walk through our door, you will be given the one-on-one, personalized attention you and your case deserve. We believe that developing a personal relationship with our clients is integral to achieving the best possible results for their losses.
Call or contact us today for a free consultation with a proven whiplash injury attorney. There’s no obligation and no fee unless we win.