Are Back Injuries Caused by Car Accidents Difficult to Prove in a Claim?

by Staff Blogger | January 16th, 2023

If your back was injured in an automobile accident, you may be eligible for compensation for your medical bills, lost wages, and lowered quality of life. However, these injuries can be challenging to prove liability, and insurance companies fight hard to avoid paying you what you are due.

The California auto accident attorneys at Berg Injury Lawyers have years of experience negotiating with insurance companies and getting back injury victims the compensation they deserve.

How Common Are Back Injuries in Car Accidents?

Roughly 4.4 million Americans are injured in car accidents yearly, resulting in $380 million in medical costs. According to the California Statewide Integrated Traffic Records System, there were 15,379 traffic accidents resulting in injuries in the state in 2020.

Back injuries are some of the most common injuries in car crashes because they can happen in any type of crash, even minor fender benders. Nationwide, there are roughly 869,000 cervical spine injuries due to automobile accidents. The lumbosacral spine region was the most commonly injured portion of the back in car accidents, along with other spinal disk and column injuries.

What Makes Back Injuries Difficult to Prove?

Back injuries can result from various activities, including manual labor, existing muscle imbalances, sitting in chairs with improper lumbar support, sleeping on the wrong mattress, and minor slips and falls.

Insurance companies may try to claim that your back pain is due to another, different injury or cause. They may state that your back pain existed before your car accident, that it is a result of an injury after your accident, or that it is due to a different health issue you may have. They may even claim you are overstating the severity of the pain.

Back injuries are complex, and the other driver’s insurance company can claim that the car accident was only one of several causes or that only a minor injury resulting from the accident was then made worse by an unrelated activity or injury later. Back injuries often take years to heal, if they heal at all, so they could also claim that it is an old injury that predates your accident.

The insurance company will try everything possible to avoid paying you what you deserve. With legal representation from Berg Injury Lawyers, your skilled attorney can help you prove your case and get the compensation you deserve. We can gather evidence to support your medical claim and negotiate with the insurance company for a fair settlement on your behalf.

What Steps Can You Take to Strengthen a Claim?

If you have a back injury resulting from an automobile accident, there are steps you can take to strengthen your claim. In any potential legal case, you must prove:

  • Your accident was caused by the negligence of another driver
  • Your back injuries are a direct result of the accident
  • The financial damages you deserve are a result of your back injuries

Successful back injury legal cases require two types of proof, evidence from the accident and medical evidence that backs up your health claims.

Accident evidence should include:

  • Any possible physical evidence from the scene, including any debris on the road
  • Witness testimony
  • Police reports or other investigations of the accident
  • Pictures of the damage, crash scene, skid marks, and road conditions
  • Any possible video footage from CCTV cameras or dashcams

For medical evidence, visit your doctor immediately after an accident and receive a complete exam. Schedule an X-ray, MRI, and CAT scans to show the physical condition of your back, particularly when compared with any scans taken before your injury. Ask your doctor for a report detailing the damage and its effects on your body.

It is also essential to prepare a detailed report of how your injuries affect your life, including:

  • Calculation of any wages lost
  • Detailed tabulation of all associated medical expenses
  • Estimate of future medical bills
  • Pain and suffering losses quantified into a dollar amount
  • An affidavit detailing your pain and how it has impacted your life
  • Personal testimony in journal entries or from friends or family that can attest to the changes in your personality or physical capabilities

This information, along with the assistance of the car accident attorneys at Berg Injury Lawyers, can help you present a case that will be difficult for an insurance company to refute.

Our team will work with you to depose witnesses, take your sworn statements, help confirm your expense calculations, and negotiate with insurance companies to ensure you get the settlement you deserve.

Get Compensation for Your Back Injury with Berg Injury Lawyers

If you suffered a back injury in a California auto accident, you can seek compensation with the help of Berg Injury Lawyers. Our attorneys have worked hard for clients for more than 40 years to get them the compensation they deserve when a negligent driver causes a life-changing injury.

Contact our attorneys today for a free consultation regarding your auto accident case. We can review your medical records and the circumstances of the accident to help ensure you get the maximum compensation so you can rebuild your life.