What is the Average Settlement for Nerve Damage After a Car Accident?
A common question that is asked of personal injury attorneys is, “What is the average settlement for nerve damage after a car accident?” Nerve damage occurs when the area around the nerve is fractured or crushed, resulting in a pinched or severed nerve. It’s important to note that symptoms of nerve damage may not present themselves until weeks after an accident.
The nerve damage lawyers at Sally Morin can help you get the compensation you deserve if you’ve suffered nerve damage after a car accident.
What Causes Nerve Damage After a Car Accident?
Nerves send electrical signals throughout your body. They are responsible for your bodily movements and sensations such as muscle movement as well as maintaining your heart rate and controlling your digestion. When you suffer physical trauma such as lacerations, whiplash, or blunt force trauma from a car accident, some of your nerves may be damaged or crushed, causing pain, numbness, or a complete loss of feeling and movement. Here are the types of trauma you can suffer after a car accident:
1. Lacerations
A laceration is a deep cut. If you have a laceration, it can injure nerves below the skin, causing numbness and weakness and leaving you unable to perform certain movements. In most cases, bed rest and pain management will take care of your nerve lacerations. Sometimes surgery or physical therapy may be needed.
2. Blunt Force Trauma
Direct and forceful contact with a hard surface or object, such as the steering wheel or door of a car, can cause nerve damage after a car accident. Blunt force trauma can compress or even sever nerves in the head, arms, torso, or legs.
3. Whiplash
Whiplash can occur in rear-end vehicle accidents, even if your head doesn’t hit the headrest. A severe jerk of the head during an accident can injure the nerves of the head and neck, and you will probably feel tingling, weakness, or numbness radiating down your shoulder to your fingertips.
4. Pinched Nerves
A pinched nerve, often caused by the compression or stretching of nerves during a car accident, can result in pain, tingling, or numbness radiating along the nerve’s pathway. Pinched nerves are a common type of nerve injury after a car accident, especially in the neck or lower back. Treatment may involve physical therapy, medication, or in severe cases, surgery. Settlement amounts for pinched nerve cases vary based on the severity of the injury and its impact on your daily life.
Signs of Nerve Damage After a Car Accident
Symptoms of nerve damage can show up immediately or the effects may be delayed and show up days or multiple weeks after the accident. If you’re experiencing any of the following, you may have nerve damage:
- A shooting or radiating pain in or around the spine or other area
- Numbness after impact injury
- Tingling or prickling down your arm or leg
- Muscle weakness or twitching
- Incontinence
- Dizziness and lightheadedness
- A new sensitivity to touch or cold
- Paralysis
It’s important to get treated early for any peripheral nerve injury to help prevent complications and permanent damage. If you’ve been in a car accident, see your doctor as soon as possible to get checked out and diagnosed/treated for any problems. Furthermore, your diagnosis and treatment plan, should you need them, will serve as evidence to argue your case.
What Is The Statute of Limitations for Car Accident Lawsuits?
The statute of limitations to sue for injuries sustained in a car accident is two years in California. Additionally, California is an at-fault auto accident state, so each driver can receive compensation based on the extent to which they were at fault for the accident. The nerve damage lawyers at Sally Morin will help you navigate the legal process to get the compensation you need if your nerve damage was the fault of another party in a car accident.
What Is the Average Settlement for Nerve Damage?
If you’ve suffered nerve damage in a car accident, you may be entitled to compensation for various financial and personal losses. Under California law, these may include:
- Past and future medical costs related to your nerve damage treatment
- Lost wages and reduced earning capacity due to time off work or permanent limitations
- Loss of career or business opportunities, regardless of your profession
- Pain and suffering, including physical pain and emotional trauma
- Loss of enjoyment of life if the injury affects your ability to engage in daily activities or hobbies
- Emotional distress caused by the accident and injury
The settlement you receive will depend on how the injury has impacted your life. On average, settlements for nerve damage range between $15,000 and $100,000, but life-altering injuries have led to settlements in the millions of dollars. Keep in mind that every case is unique, and no two settlement amounts are the same.
Factors that Influence Your Settlement
Several factors play a role in determining the final settlement amount:
- Severity of the injury: The extent and permanence of the nerve damage.
- Impact on daily life: Ability to work, perform daily tasks, and engage in hobbies.
- Medical expenses: Past and future costs of treatment, rehabilitation, and medication.
- Lost wages and earning capacity: Income lost due to the injury and potential future earnings.
- Pain and suffering: Physical and emotional distress caused by the injury.
- Liability: The degree of fault assigned to the at-fault driver.
- Insurance coverage: The insurance limits of the at-fault driver.
Understanding California’s Minimum Insurance Requirements
It’s important to be aware of California’s minimum insurance requirements for drivers. While these minimums used to be lower, they have recently increased to provide better protection in the event of an accident.
As of January 1, 2025, drivers in California must carry at least:
- $30,000 for bodily injury or death per person
- $60,000 for bodily injury or death per accident
- $15,000 for property damage per accident
This increase is due to Senate Bill 1107, also known as the Protect California Drivers Act. The minimums hadn’t changed since 1967, and lawmakers felt it was necessary to update them due to economic inflation.
Contact the Personal Injury Traffic Accident Lawyers at Sally Morin
If you have suffered nerve damage after a car accident, the excellent personal injury lawyers at Sally Morin Personal Injury Lawyers will fight for you to receive the compensation you deserve. Call us at 877-380-8852 or contact us online today for a free case evaluation.
