Skip to content 
You may be wondering if you could be eligible to claim for a back injury from a car accident that wasn’t your fault. A back injury could cause you immense pain, and you may even experience financial losses due to your injury. In this guide, we explain when you could be eligible to claim compensation.
Following this, we also share examples of different back injuries you could claim for, and also the changes in the rules for claiming for whiplash. Furthermore, this guide explains how to claim against an untraceable or uninsured driver.
Additionally, we share the different forms of compensation you could be awarded, the evidence you may need and how long you have to start the claiming process. Finally, we look at how a No Win No Fee solicitor from Advice could help you.
You can also discuss your case with one of our friendly advisors. They can help answer any questions you may have, as well as offer you free advice:
- Call 0161 509 2856
- Contact us online
- Use our live chat
Jump To A Section
- Who Can Make A Claim For A Back Injury After A Car Accident?
- How Long Do I Have To Make A Claim?
- The Most Common Back Injuries After A Road Traffic Accident
- What Are The New Whiplash Regulations?
- How Do I Claim Against A Hit And Run Or An Uninsured Driver?
- What Compensation Could I Get For A Claim For A Back Injury After A Car Accident?
- How Could Back Injury Compensation Help Me?
- Do I Need Evidence To Support My Claim?
- Can I Claim On A No Win No Fee Basis?
- More Information
Who Can Make A Claim For A Back Injury After A Car Accident?
In order to be eligible to make a claim for your back injury, you must satisfy the following criteria:
- You were owed a duty of care
- This duty was breached by another road user
- The breach of duty resulted in your back injury
All road users, including drivers, cyclists, pedestrians and motorcyclists, owe each other a duty of care. They need to use the roads in a manner that prevents causing harm or damage. A failure to do so could lead to a road traffic accident, where you may be able to claim for a back injury after a car accident that wasn’t your fault.
For example, a driver rear-ended you while you were waiting at a red light as they were distracted by their phone and fail;ed to notice you were at a stop.
What If I Was Partially To Blame For The Accident?
If you were partially to blame for the accident, you may still be able to claim compensation. This would be known as a split liability claim.
For example, if you and another driver failed to adhere to the rules of a roundabout and this resulted in a crash, you both could be deemed liable.
In this case, your compensation amount would be reduced in accordance with how liable you are deemed to be. For example, if you are considered to be 50% responsible for the accident, you will receive 50% of the total compensation you would have received had you not been liable at all.
If you’re uncertain about who is to blame for an accident, please feel free to get in touch with one of our advisors to discuss your case.
Can I Claim If I Was A Passenger?
If you were a passenger in a car accident, you are also entitled to make a compensation claim. Who breached their duty of care, is the party you would make your claim against. This could be another road user, or the driver of the vehicle you were in.
To see if you could be eligible to claim for a back injury after a car accident, you can contact one of our advisors to discuss your case today.
How Long Do I Have To Make A Claim?
After a road traffic accident, you will have 3 years to start a claim. The Limitation Act 1980 sets this out.
Exceptions to this time limit apply to the following cases:
- Where the injured party in under the age of 18. One they turn 18, they will have three years to make their own claim.
- Where the injured party lacks the mental capacity to mange their own proceedings. If they regain this capacity, the time limit will run from this recovery date.
Can I Claim On Behalf Of Someone Else?
If an injured party is unable to claim for themselves, you may be able to bring a claim on their behalf as their litigation friend. This applies to cases where:
- The injured party is under the age of 18.
- If an injured party lacks the mental capacity to claim on their own.
To see if you are still within the time limit to claim for a back injury after a car accident that wasn’t your fault, you can contact our advisors.
The Most Common Back Injuries After A Road Traffic Accident
The most common back injuries after a road traffic accident can include the following:
- Whiplash: The sudden movement of the neck and back may pinch the nerves along the back, causing whiplash.
- Lumbar Spine Injuries: This is the strongest of the vertebrae’s muscles, so any damage to it can cause considerable pain, swelling and tenderness.
- Spinal Cord Injuries: Such as fractures. Depending on the severity, this can cause bruising, damage to the spinal cord, paralysis, loss of feeling and disability.
- Herniated Discs: When a disc is displaced, this can cause lower back pain, tenderness, poor mobility and pressure on the spinal cord.
- Sciatica: When the sciatic nerve is damaged, this can cause numbness and pain around the lower back.
- Thoracic Spine Injuries: These are some of the most serious injuries and can be detrimental to someone’s mobility. Thoracic spine injuries can cause intense back pain, chest complications and permanent nerve damage.
- Soft Tissue Injury: This includes a sprain or strain to the ligaments, muscles or tendons in your back, and can cause pain, swelling, mild heat and redness.
To see if you could claim for a back injury after a car accident, you can contact our advisors.
What Are The New Whiplash Regulations?
The Whiplash Reform Programme brought about changes to how claims for whiplash (and other minor injuries) are made in England and Wales. If your case meets the following criteria, your claim will need to be made through a different avenue:
- You are 18 or older
- You were the driver or a passenger of a vehicle
- Your injures are valued at £5,000 or less.
The whiplash injuries will be valued in line with the tariff found in the Whiplash Injury Regulations 2021. Additional injuries suffered that are not covered by this tariff will be valued traditionally.
Furthermore, your claim will need to be made through the traditional route is these additional injuries bring the overall value of your claim over £5,000 (but the whiplash tariff will still apply).
Contact our advisors to learn more.
How Do I Claim Against A Hit And Run Or An Uninsured Driver?
If you were hit by an uninsured driver or were involved in a hit-and-run accident, you may still be able to claim compensation through the Motor Insurers’ Bureau (MIB).
If the accident was a hit and run, you must inform the Police and notify them of any essential details such as the vehicle registration, description, and the direction of travel.
Whether the driver was uninsured or untraceable, your claim can be submitted through the MIB. They were created to compensate those who have been affected by accidents caused by uninsured or untraceable drivers.
Please contact our advisors today to learn more about making a claim for a back injury after a car accident through the MIB.
What Compensation Could I Get For A Claim For A Back Injury After A Car Accident?
The compensation you could claim for a back injury after a car accident is general damages and special damages.
General damages compensate you for the injury you have suffered. Those calculating your general damages could make reference to the Judicial College Guidelines (JCG), as they list compensation guidelines for various injuries, including different severities of back injuries.
We have listed some of the JCG’s entries below, aside from the first one.
- Multiple severe injuries with financial losses – such as lost earnings, care costs, and medical expenses – up to £1,000,000
- Severe back injuries (i) – such as spinal cord and nerve damage with incomplete paralysis – £111,150 – £196,450
- Severe back injuries (ii) – injuries causing loss of sensation, impaired mobility, bladder and bowel function – £90,510 – £107,910
- Severe back injuries (iii) – such as disc lesions, fractures to vertebral bodies, or soft tissue injuries leading to chronic conditions such as pain and discomfort, impaired agility, depression, etc – £47,320 – £85,100
- Moderate back injuries (i) – such as a compression fracture of the lumbar vertebrae with a risk of osteoarthritis – £33,880 – £47,320
- Moderate back injuries (ii) – such as ligament and muscle disturbance or soft tissue injuries resulting in prolonged acceleration or exacerbation of a pre-existing back injury – £15,260 – £33,880
- Minor back injuries (i) – where recovery occurs or is expected to take place within 2-5 years without surgery – £9,630 – £15,260
- Minor back injuries (ii) – where full recovery takes place within 1-2 years without surgery – £5,310 – £9,630
- Whiplash injuries with psychological injuries – lasting more than 28 months but less than 2 years – £4,345
- Whiplash injuries – lasting more than 28 months but less than 2 years – £4,215
Contact our advisors today to learn more about how compensation is calculated.
How Could Back Injury Compensation Help Me?
Compensation could help you feel a sense of justice after suffering a back injury in a car accident that wasn’t your fault.
Additionally, it could help you with the financial losses you have suffered due to your injury. These would be compensated under special damages and could be for:
- A loss of earnings.
- Physiotherapy costs.
- Counselling costs
- Child care costs.
- Medical expenses.
- Travel expenses.
- Care costs.
You will be required to provide physical proof, such as receipts and invoices, to evidence your losses.
If you have suffered any financial loss as a result of your accident, please feel free to get in touch with a member of our team, and we will assist you.
Do I Need Evidence To Support My Claim?
It is essential for the success of your claim that you gather as much evidence as you can to support your case. Examples of evidence you could gather include:
- Dashcam and CCTV footage of the accident.
- Medical records about your injuries.
- The contact information of the eyewitnesses.
- Police reports (if they were called to the scene of the accident).
- Photos of the accident site and your injuries.
One of our solicitors could help you with gathering evidence to support your claim for a back injury after a car accident. Contact our advisors to learn more.
Can I Claim On A No Win No Fee Basis?
Yes, you can claim on a No Win No Fee basis with one of our solicitors, provided you have a valid case. They specifically work under the terms of a Conditional Fee Agreement, which comes with the following benefits:
- No service fees to pay upfront.
- Nothing to pay for their work as the claim progresses.
- No services fees to pay if the claim fails.
Should your claim succeed, a success fee will be taken by your solicitor. This is a legally capped percentage of your compensation.
How Advice Can Help You
Our advisors can help assess the eligibility of your case, answer your questions, and offer you free advice. To see if you could claim for a back injury after a car accident with the support of one of our No Win No Fee solicitors, contact us today:
- Call 0161 509 2856
- Contact us online
- Use our live chat
More Information
To learn more about making a personal injury claim as a result of an accident, you can check out our other guides:
- Please see the following advice about claiming for a back injury at work
- Learn about how to claim compensation for a broken back
- Get help with claiming for a slipped disc injury
Additional external resources:
- Information on how to treat back pain from the NHS
- Advice from the AA about what to do if you’ve been involved in an accident
- Information about Spinal Cord Injuries from the charity Back Up Trust
Thank you for reading our guide on how to claim for a back injury after a car accident.
