One of the most common injuries suffered in a motor vehicle accident is a whiplash ‘type’ injury. A ‘whiplash’ is what occurs to the head, neck and back when someone’s head is moved forwards and backwards extremely quickly.
The major cause of a whiplash ‘type’ injury is the rear-end collision. In fact a large number of people involved in such accidents initially only feel slight bit of stiffness and numbness in the neck, arms or back and think they will quickly recover – take care this is not always the case!
In such circumstances the accident should be reported to the police and an incident report lodged with the relevant CTP (Green Slip) insurance company. Please note time limits apply to reporting to both the police and the insurance company so immediate advice should be sought from a specialist personal injury lawyer by contacting compensationinjury today.
The laws in all the States and Territories in relation to compensation for injuries suffered in a motor vehicle accident vary vastly and it is therefore important to obtain advice from a specialist personal injury solicitor ASAP.
What To Do If You Suffer a Whiplash Injury
If after a motor vehicle accident you start experiencing the symptoms associated with whiplash — i.e. stiffness in the neck and back, shoulder pain, numbness, etc you should immediately consult your doctor. When seeing the doctor you should ensure that they clearly note the reason why the injury is being suffered in their medical notes.
Your doctor may recommend a course of physiotherapy, massage, hydrotherapy, etc and if recommended then it should be undertaken. If you were not wholly to blame for the motor accident and even in some States and Territories this does not matter, you could well be entitled to claim the cost of any treatment from the relevant CTP Insurance Company.
Also in certain States if you are travelling to or from work or indeed in connection with your job there could well be cover under an employer’s Workers Compensation insurance, irrespective of fault or responsibility. This is another reason why information and advice should be sought lawyer by contacting compensationinjury today.
Get a Copy of the Accident Report
After you’ve notified police that you have been involved in an accident you should remain on the scene until they arrive, at which time they will begin their investigation. The best way to identify the cause of an accident and to prove your right to injury compensation for your car accident injuries is to get an official accident report from the police. Police investigators are trained in properly analysing an accident and reporting what occurred and why.
Notify Your Insurance Company
Inform your insurance company that you’ve been involved in an accident. In cases of car accident injury it’s vital that you inform your insurance agency expeditiously and according to your insurance policy in order to receive the full cover you are entitled to.
Also you should immediately notify the relevant CTP (Green Slip) Insurance Company the vehicle responsible and complete the necessary paperwork. Please note that there are strict time limits in place to lodging such a claim, which vary for State to State.
Seek Legal Advice
Dealing with insurance companies and individuals when seeking compensation for your car accident injury can be difficult and slow-going at times. Insurance companies will often drag their feet and offer to pay only the smallest amounts of compensation for your injuries if you don’t have legal representation to help you.
Insurance companies have lawyers on their side and so should you, if you’ve been in a car accident and suffered injuries then hiring a car accident injury lawyer may be the best way for you to get the car accident compensation that you deserve. An experienced lawyer will be able to review your case, calculate what your total compensation should average out to be, and represent you both in and out of court.
Get legal advice and representation at compensationinjury.com.au today!.