One of the most common injuries suffered in a Mississippi auto accident is whiplash, which causes serious back and neck pain.  Whiplash often is marginalized by insurance companies as fake or exaggerated injuries.  This inaccurate perception is fueled by comic treatment of whiplash injuries by Hollywood.  The reality is that whiplash injuries are extremely debilitating and can result in severe pain for months.  Many Mississippi whiplash victims suffer permanent pain and disability.

Whiplash injuries typically occur when a vehicle is hit from behind, which causes the head and neck to lurch forward at a fairly high rate of speed before being “whipped” backwards.  The whipping motion results in stretching of the muscles and ligament tissues of the neck.  The speed of the motion may cause the neck to overstretch resulting in microscopic tears to the muscle fibers.

The unfair stereotypes that minimalize whiplash injuries result from a number of factors unique to whiplash injuries.  The first issue is that sometimes the symptoms of whiplash injuries are not immediately apparent.  The most common cause of whiplash injuries is motor vehicle accidents.  Because many car accident victims suffer only minor symptoms immediately following a Mississippi auto accident, they may delay in seeking medical attention for days or even weeks.  This delay may be referenced by the insurance company as evidence that no serious injury was suffered in a collision.

Another issue that contributes to the false impression that whiplash injuries are not serious is the fact that they can be difficult to diagnose.  Even with sophisticated diagnostic tools like x-rays, an MRI or CT scan, it can be difficult to develop clear medical evidence of whiplash.  Whiplash injuries often occur at low rates of speed, which also tends to be used to minimize the significance of whiplash injuries suffered in Mississippi auto accidents.  Insurance adjusters may contact unrepresented collision injury victims and try to extend a low-ball settlement offer based on a lack of significant property damage.  The adjuster may characterize the accident as a “low impact” collision and offer a woefully inadequate settlement.

It is important to understand that there is minimal correlation between the rate of speed during a collision and whiplash injuries to the neck.  When you are in a collision, the vehicle and the head of occupants move at different rates of speed.  In a collision where a vehicle is moving at 5 miles per hour, the head of vehicle occupants will move at 10-12 g of acceleration.  Approximate 1.5 million vehicle occupants involved in low speed rear impact collisions will experience chronic pain.  The experienced Mississippi personal injury attorneys at Barrett Law have been providing effective representation to Mississippi auto accident victims for over 75 years.  We provide diligent legal representation and impassioned advocacy so we invite you to call us today at 662-834-2376 to learn how we can help.