Lower Back Injury Car Accident Settlements

Your lower back is hurting and your question is — how big will my settlement check be?  Here's what you’re going to learn here. 

1. Understanding Lower Back Injuries
2. How Lower Back Injuries Occur
3. How Insurance Companies Value Injuries
4. Average Lower Back Injury Settlement  ★★★★★ #2 Most Popular Section
5. Examples Back Injury Settlements  ★★★★★ #1 Most Popular Section
6. Specific Types of Lower Back Injuries

Holding the at-fault person accountable for their actions won’t make your pain go away. The only thing that will make you feel better is money via the civil justice system.

Seattle car accident lawyer Chris Davis of the Davis Law Group, P.S., says lower back injuries are very common among the clients he represents, especially those who have been injured in a crash.

“If you are having low back pain after a motor vehicle collision, you are not alone,” Davis says. “Our office represents hundreds of victims every year who have suffered lower back injuries. They often are unsure where to turn. Helping people secure a fair and reasonable settlement is what we do.”

Let’s get started...

1. Understanding Lower Back Injuries

Lower back pain is common. About 75 percent of people will experience lower back pain at some point in their life. 

Most lower back pain is a result of damage to the soft tissue that supports the lower spine — the lumbar spine. This complex system  includes interconnected bones, muscles, nerves, tendons, and ligaments. 

The low back or lumbar spine is a critical part of the human body. It supports the weight of the upper body, provides mobility for everyday activities and houses the nerves that supply the power for the leg muscles. 

Any disruption to this system can be painful. Most acute lower back pain — pain that usually lasts about 3 to 6 weeks — is caused by an injury to the muscles, ligaments, discs or joints. Inflammation then occurs as a healing response, a process that can cause severe pain.

No two lower back injuries are the exact same. Pain can range from mild/annoying to severe/debilitating. Depending on the cause of the pain, symptoms may include:

• Dull or achy pain (contained to the lower back)
• Stinging or burning pain (may move into the backs of the thighs and down the legs)
• Muscle spasms and tightness (may move into the hips)
• Pain that gets worse with prolonged sitting or standing
• Trouble standing up/sitting down, walking, etc.

2. How do Lower Back Injuries Occur?

An overwhelming amount of lower back pain is someone else’s fault. For that reason, we won’t focus on those causes. At our personal injury law firm, some of our clients suffered lower back injuries in the following ways: 

• Car accidents: The force that goes along with a car accident can be seriously damaging to the neck and back. One of the most common injuries after a wreck — no matter how serious — is to the lower back.
• Workplace accidents: Employees that work a demanding job may suffer lower back injuries.
• Falling injuries: Someone that slips and falls may suffer a lower back injury.
• Lifting injuries: Pulling a muscle in the lower back is a common injury.
• Repetitive motion injuries: Doing something again and again may trigger a lower back injury.

3. How Insurance Companies Value These Claims

There is no “settlement calculator” for lower back injury claims. But there are several criteria that lower back injury cases hinge on:

• Prior injuries to the lower back
• MRI/CT scan results
• The physical symptoms of the lower back injury and how the victim’s life changed because of the injury

Victims that suffer from a “soft tissue” lower back injury can expect to receive less settlement money than victims with serious and life-changing spinal cord injuries. A soft tissue injury occurs when trauma or overuse occurs to muscles, tendons, or ligaments. 

Soft tissue lower back injuries are considered minor, and the value of the case will depend on:

• The credibility of the victim
• Severity of the lower back injury
• Whether there are prior lower back injuries
• How serious the accident was
• The insurance company involved

The insurance company will take all the above factors into account when weighing the case. A pre-existing lower back condition may be discovered and derail the case. The injury may heal faster than expected, reducing the potential settlement. Or the condition may worsen, making a minor accident much more serious.

The ultimate dollar amount on the injury case will include the following damages:

• Past and future medical bills: Depend on the severity of the injury.
• Lost income and wages: Depend on the victim and their earning capacity.
• Pain and suffering/emotional distress: Tough to put a value on, but generally a serious accident carries these types of damages.
• Loss of consortium: When the victim’s loved ones lose a normal loving relationship. Wrongful death cases are the most extreme example.

Victims with severe lower back pain often see the highest settlement figures on average. That’s because their life changes forever. But even lesser herniated disc injury cases — injuries that can be debilitating for years — can settle at very high values.

The factors involved in a lower back injury case are limitless. These settlements can range from tens of thousands to millions of dollars. To learn more about the value of a case and what factors apply, consult with an experienced personal injury attorney.

4. The Average Lower Back Injury Settlement

The average settlement figure for lower back injuries will vary depending upon the type of injury caused. 

Small Settlements: Less severe injuries are more common in car accidents, and carry lower settlement amounts. Large Settlements: But severe spinal cord injuries and various other lower back ailments can produce huge settlements.

According to one study, 16 percent of the verdicts in spinal disc injury lawsuits exceed $1 million, and 7 percent exceed $2.5 million.

5. Example Lower Back Injury Settlements

When legal action is taken against the person or party that caused the lower back injury, a settlement is generally reached between the two sides. In the personal injury field, less than 2 percent of cases go to trial.

The following is a selection of lower back injury settlements recently obtained by Davis Law Group.  We have had much larger settlements and much lower settlements.  The represent the median of the range.

• $600,000 settlement for a passenger than suffered a lower back injury caused by a reckless driver.
• $420,000 settlement in a case of a 7-year-old child that was hit while on a bicycle.
• $400,000 settlement for a man with lower back pain after he was T-boned on Rainier Avenue.
• $166,000 settlement for a man that was hit by a car backup. The man went through many lower back surgeries.
• $155,000 settlement for a victim with spinal pain. The man was hit by a driver that was trying to beat a red light.
• $150,000 settlement for a teenager that was struck as a pedestrian. The teen suffered spinal pain as a result.
• $150,000 settlement for a victim that suffered a spinal injury as a result of a rear end accident on Route 9.

Click here to see and compare dozens of settlements.