Pain and Suffering for Soft Tissue Injury?

by Anonymous

I was making a left turn at a green arrow, & the oncoming driver ran a red light, I hit my breaks to avoid colliding with them and the person behind me ran into me. That person who rear-ended me has accepted liability.

I went to the ER a couple of hours after the accident due to neck pain and a bad headache. I saw a chiropractor for 10 visits over 1 1/2 months. Damage to my bumper was only $800.00 because I was in a truck and the person at fault was in a car.

I had a soft tissue injury from being rear-ended. My bills only come to about $2700. Am I entitled to pain & suffering? If so, how much is reasonable?

NOTICE: Any answer given here is NOT formal legal advice, it is general information about personal injury law. Charles does not represent you. If you submit a question, you agree not to rely on the information given without first consulting an attorney licensed in your state.

Answer:

Of course you are entitled to reimbursement of all your expenses (assuming they have accepted 100% liability). As to your pain and suffering, each jurisdiction handles this a little differently.

In New York we have a serious injury threshold and if your injuries do not qualify as a "serious injury", you will not be entitled to compensation. In other jurisdictions that do not have this threshold, you should be able to recover something.

However, as you have classified your injury as "soft tissue" and only treated 10 times over 1 1/2 months, I would not expect a lot. Again, the amount would depend on which jurisdiction you are in.

Good luck,

Charles
New York Accident Attorney

P.S. It's always best to get a free case review from a local injury attorney. Laws change from state to state. Only an attorney licensed in your state can give accurate answers to specific questions regarding your case.