How Much Is the Average Settlement for a Back Injury?

Back injury lawsuits can arise in a variety of circumstances, including workplace and vehicle accidents.

Jack Bernstein, Injury Attorneys, is a Florida law firm dedicated to helping injury victims pursue maximum compensation. A back injury often requires costly care and can affect your work. A Florida back injury settlement could help you cover these losses.

What Is the Average Settlement for a Back Injury?

A back injury settlement depends on the extent of your injuries. However, you should interpret the numbers quoted here as examples of injury settlement amounts, not guarantees. Your specific settlement will come down to the unique facts of your case.

Average back injury settlements can range from $20,000 to $500,000. Where you fall depends on your injuries. The average settlement amount increases with the severity.

Minor to moderate injuries will result in an average back injury settlement toward the lower end of the range, such as $20,000 to $30,000. Meanwhile, serious injuries with complications, such as a herniated disc settlement without surgery, may range from $40,000 to $50,000.

A severe back injury settlement with surgery will be higher than a back injury settlement without surgery, often falling in the $100,000 to $500,000 range.

Catastrophic injuries can permanently alter your life, and therefore sit at the top of the range at $500,000 or more. For example, $834,686 is the national average car wreck settlement. However, this number covers all injuries, not just the average settlement for car accident back injury issues.

Types and Severity of Back Injuries That Impact Settlements

A back injury can take on several forms and range in severity. Your back injury settlement amount will be based heavily on that severity. Common injuries you might experience after an accident include the following:

Soft Tissue Injuries

Soft tissue injuries affect the skin, tendons, muscles, and ligaments in your back. These injuries can include sprains, strains, and tears when there’s an undue amount of stress on your back’s soft tissue. Soft tissue injuries may produce chronic pain that requires extensive physical therapy.

Herniated Discs

A herniated disc, sometimes called a ruptured disc, occurs when an extreme amount of force is put on the discs in your spine, causing the disc to deform. A herniated disc can destabilize your back, straining other structures.

Moreover, if the disc pushes up against sensitive nerves, you can find yourself in excruciating pain. Herniated disc injuries may produce chronic pain, numbness, and tingling that radiate into your neck or limbs, limiting your strength and mobility.

Fractures

A fractured vertebra is a severe back injury. A bone fragment could compress or sever nerve roots or your spinal cord, causing long-term complications.

Spinal Cord Injuries

Spinal cord injuries occur when an accident damages your spinal cord. Spinal cord injuries are the most severe form of back injury, potentially producing paralysis and loss of sensation below the level of the damage. Since doctors can’t reconnect spinal nerves, these disabilities may be permanent. Connect with a spinal cord injury lawyer to receive fair compensation.

Calculating Damages in a Back Injury Claim

Determining the amount of your back injury settlement largely depends on the harm you suffer. When seeking compensation for personal injury claims, you may be eligible for the following:

Economic Damages

Economic damages refer to tangible financial costs related to your back injury accident. These damages are intended to compensate you for the expenses you’ve incurred and will incur in the future.

Medical expenses are a core component of back injury claims. Your claim may include past, present, and future medical expenses for the following:

• Ambulance rides
• Emergency treatment
• Doctor’s appointments
• Surgery
• Physical therapy
• Medication
• Out-of-pocket insurance copays

You can also include your lost income, including lost wages due to medical restrictions or missed work. Future losses include your reduced earning capacity due to disabilities.

Non-Economic Damages

Non-economic damages are meant to compensate an individual for the intangible human costs of their injuries. Florida formerly capped non-economic damages in medical malpractice cases at $500,000. However, the Florida Supreme Court later struck the cap down.

Examples of non-economic damages can include, but are not limited to, the following: 

• Physical pain and suffering
• Emotional distress, such as anxiety and depression
• Loss of enjoyment of life, such as the impact on hobbies and daily activities

Punitive Damages

Punitive damages are rare. They’re intended to punish the defendant for intentional conduct or gross negligence, and deter others from similar acts.

Common Symptoms of Back Injuries After an Accident

Back injuries can cause a wide range of symptoms, depending on the type and severity of the injury. After a car accident or other traumatic incident, injury victims may experience:

• Chronic pain or persistent soreness
• Stiffness and reduced range of motion
• Sharp or worsening physical pain during movement
• Difficulty bending, lifting, or standing for long periods

More serious back or neck injuries may cause additional symptoms, including:

• Numbness or tingling in the arms, legs, hands, or feet
• Muscle weakness or loss of coordination
• Radiating pain caused by herniated disc injuries
• Balance problems or loss of sensation from spinal cord injuries

Some symptoms worsen over time and require ongoing medical treatment, extensive physical therapy, or long term pain management.

Factors That Can Affect Your Back Injury Settlement

As with any personal injury lawsuit, there are factors that can impact a back injury settlement. After proving negligence, the unique circumstances of an individual’s back injury will be carefully scrutinized to determine how much a settlement should be. 

Having an experienced personal injury lawyer who can argue on your behalf is one of the best ways to secure the settlement you deserve. Typically, the following factors will be considered in your back injury settlement: 

• The extent of your injuries
• The impact the back injury has had on your life 
• Medical bill payments you’ve made for treatment related to your back injury
• The loss in wages or earning capacity because of your injury
• Whether or not an insurance company is involved in the settlement, and how much that insurance company will cover the expenses you incurred

How the Accident Type Affects Your Injury Settlement

How and where your back or neck injury occurs determines who may be liable and the extent of their liability. The following scenarios often result in neck and back injuries:

Car Accidents

A motor vehicle accident can place enormous strain on your back and neck in a phenomenon known as whiplash. As your body is thrown around during a collision, your spine can hyperextend, twist, bend, and compress. These forces can damage soft tissues, fracture vertebrae, and deform discs.

Florida uses a no-fault system that covers minor lower-back-pain car accident settlements. However, you can pursue a back injury car accident claim if you have a significant, permanent back injury.

Workplace Injuries

Most employers are required by law to carry workers’ compensation insurance. Workers’ comp provides the exclusive remedy for injured employees and blocks workers from suing their employer for their conditions.

However, a worker can file a personal injury lawsuit if a third party caused their on-the-job injury. For example, a roofer can’t sue the construction company that employs them, but they can file a third-party injury claim against a manufacturer for a defective safety harness that broke when they fell.

Slip-And-Fall Accidents

Property owners, managers, and tenants are legally required to keep their premises in a reasonably safe condition. If a victim suffers a back injury as a result of slip and fall accident due to a hazard on the property, these parties may be liable for the victim’s losses.

The doctrine of premises liability applies to all property where guests can enter, including private homes, stores, amusement parks, and even parking lots.

How Long Do You Have To File a Neck and Back Injury Claim?

It’s important to understand the statute of limitations as it relates to your circumstances. In the state of Florida, plaintiffs have a two-year window to file a personal injury lawsuit that is found on negligence. 

If you suffered an accident that resulted in a back injury, it’s essential to act quickly so that you can file your claim in a timely manner.

Back Injury Settlements With Surgery vs Without Surgery

Back injury settlements vary significantly depending on whether surgical intervention is required.

Back Injury Settlement Without Surgery

Injury settlements without surgery typically involve conservative medical treatment, such as:

• Physical therapy and rehabilitation
• Medication and pain management
• Activity restrictions and follow up care

Back Injury Settlements With Surgery

Severe back injuries that require surgery often result in higher settlement values due to:

• Extensive medical treatment and hospital stays
• Longer recovery periods
• Increased risk of permanent limitations
• Future medical expenses and follow up procedures

Why You Need an Attorney To Deal With the Insurance Company

Back injury claims typically start with an insurance company, whether the cause is a car crash, a slip and fall, or medical negligence. The insurer has ways to pressure you into accepting an undervalued settlement, from denying your claim to making a lowball offer.

Working with an experienced personal injury attorney can be critical to helping you get fair compensation based on your injury-related expenses and losses.

A personal injury attorney can assist you by performing the following tasks:

• Investigating your accident
• Gathering evidence to prove liability
• Calculating your losses to accurately determine the full value of your case
• Negotiating a fair settlement
• Preparing a back injury lawsuit if negotiations prove fruitless

As a general rule of thumb, you should avoid accepting a settlement offer without having an experienced personal injury lawyer review it. Insurers rarely make fair settlement offers out of the gate. Thus, you risk forfeiting your legal right to sue without receiving the full compensation you may be entitled to under Florida law.

Our attorneys have abundant experience evaluating claims and negotiating settlements. 

Contact us to discuss your injuries and the value of your case.

Get a Free, No-Obligation Consultation for Your Back Injury Case

You may be entitled to significant financial compensation for the losses your back injury has caused. We understand how intimidating the claims process can be for new clients. Our lawyers provide detailed, trustworthy analysis to help them understand the value of their personal injury cases.

Just as importantly, we offer a free consultation so you can gather the information you need to make informed decisions about your back injury case. During this confidential, no-obligation meeting, we’ll take the time to understand your needs so we can provide tailored legal advice.

Jack Bernstein, Injury Attorneys, a trusted Florida personal injury law firm, is committed to the representation you deserve. That’s why we won’t charge a fee unless we win. Our founding attorney has decades of legal experience and a track record of successful settlements and verdicts. Reach out today to receive a free case consultation.

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