Neck Pain After A Car Accident - What to Know & Do

Painful neck injuries often occur as a result of car accidents. Such injuries can cover a wide range, including:

• Whiplash – Very common type of neck injury often caused by rear-end accidents.
• Neck strain or sprain – Painful injury due to the neck muscles, tendons or soft tissues (fibers connecting the neck bones to the neck muscles) being strained or sprained.
• Facet joint injury – Painful injury caused by damage to the cartilage in the facet joint, the location where two bones meet in the spinal column. The facet joint allows a person to move their neck and back forward and backward. When a facet joint is damaged, the injured person often has trouble moving their neck or back and often experiences severe neck pain.
• Neck fracture – Medical term for a broken neck bone.
• Pinched nerve – If the nerves in the neck or spine are pinched between two bones or another part of the body due to a car accident, pain often occurs at the location of the pinched nerve.
• Cervical Spondylolisthesis – Medical term for a neck injury in which one of the spinal bones (vertebrae) slides forward over a bone in the cervical spine, often resulting in severe pain.

Such neck injuries are especially common in rear-end collisions. Whatever type of neck injury or neck pain you are feeling, make sure you take your symptoms seriously right from the start. Make sure you see a doctor right away after your car accident.

Return To Top

Is my neck pain whiplash?

Yes, your neck pain could be caused by whiplash, one of the most common and most misunderstood neck injuries. Like other neck injuries, the best way to know for sure is to have a doctor examine you and run the necessary medical tests to diagnose what’s wrong.

What’s frustrating about whiplash is if that’s the cause of your neck pain, don’t be surprised if you have a hard time getting the financial support you need and deserve for your whiplash injury. This is because insurance companies – especially the at-fault driver’s insurance company – often deny whiplash injury claims. You can learn more about this on our whiplash injury page on this website.

Return To Top

Symptoms of neck injuries from a car accident can cover a wide range. See a doctor as soon as possible if you experience any of the following types of neck pain after a crash:

• Shooting neck pain
• Dull neck pain
• Tingling sensation in neck
• Pain that occurs when you lift your head or twist your neck
• Delayed neck pain that occurs hours or days after your car accident
• Loss of mobility or limited range of motion in the neck

Neck pain is serious; take your symptoms seriously. You could have a significant injury that requires medical care, including surgery in certain circumstances.

Return To Top

How do I know if my neck injury is serious?

The best way to know if you have a serious neck injury – and what type you have – is to have a doctor examine you and diagnose what’s wrong. Experienced doctors and surgeons know how to diagnose neck injuries using advanced medical tests. Such tests often include:

• X-Rays, which can identify fractures and bone injuries (such as bone spurs pinching the spinal cord or nerves in the neck) that could be causing the neck pain.
• Computed tomography (CT) scan, which are similar to X-Rays but which take multiple images from multiple angles to better identify neck injuries.
• Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), which uses computer-generated radio waves and magnetic fields to create an image, which can be especially helpful in identifying soft tissue injuries and nerve damage in the neck
• Electromyography (EMG) tests, which involves inserting a needle into the neck muscles to measure whether the nerves are working properly.
• Blood tests, which can identify if infections or inflammation in the neck could be causing or contributing to a car accident injury victim’s neck pain.

Other medical tests may be used to identify the cause of neck pain and the severity of the injury. In addition, experienced doctors know how to feel for such injuries and know what to look for. Doctors might watch how someone responds to the neck being moved or rotated in a certain way or direction. Loss of mobility and reduced range of motion are other tell-tale signs of a serious neck injury.

Return To Top

How long does neck pain last after a car accident?

As explained above, sometimes chronic neck pain can last a lifetime. But ideally, your pain will hopefully only last a few days or weeks. There’s no set timeline when it comes to how long pain lasts after an accident. Every injury is different.

In addition, don’t be surprised if you experience delayed neck pain, which is a type that occurs a few hours or days after your collision. This is a common phenomenon and one that should be taken very seriously.

However long your pain lasts, make sure you get the medical care and support you need to give yourself the best opportunity to fully recover. See a doctor as soon as possible and tell them exactly what’s wrong and where your neck hurts. Your health should be your first priority.

Return To Top

Can a car accident cause permanent neck pain?

Yes. In certain cases, some injuries can result in permanent neck pain, which is often referred to as chronic neck pain. Living with chronic neck pain due to a car accident is a very serious matter. That’s why it’s important for injury victims to get the medical care they need and to have their neck injury properly diagnosed in a timely manner.

Ideally, doctors can identify the source of your neck pain and provide medical care that alleviates or reduces such pain. If not, physical therapy and other long-term medical treatments may be necessary depending on the severity of the pain. The bottom line is you should receive the necessary support (medically and financially) for your neck pain, especially if your injury occurred due to a rear-end collision caused by another driver.

Return To Top

Yes, see a doctor. Don’t wait for your neck pain to get worse. Have a medical professional examine you, evaluate you, run the necessary medical tests (including X-Rays and MRIs) and diagnose exactly what’s wrong. Otherwise, your neck pain and other neck problems could get worse and not heal properly. The longer you wait to see a doctor, the more you could put your health at risk.

Return To Top

Common car accident neck pain treatments

Medical care to treat neck pain and injuries caused by car crashes can cover a wide range. Such medical procedures may include:

• Emergency surgery, especially in cases involving spinal cord damage to the neck or upper back.
• Massage therapy.
• Physical therapy, especially in cases involving chronic, long-term pain.
• Prescription medications designed to treat severe or chronic pain.

Many other types of medical treatment exist to treat severe neck injuries and relieve serious neck pain. You don’t have to suffer in silence. Doctors can diagnose what’s wrong and provide you with the medical care and support you need to alleviate your neck pain and help you on the road to recovery.

Another reason why it’s important to see a doctor if you have neck pain is your doctor’s visit will create a medical record documenting your injury. Without proof of your neck injury, the insurance responsible for compensating you (often the at-fault driver’s insurance company) might deny your injury claim since you didn’t seek medical treatment soon after your accident.

Return To Top

What helps with neck pain from a car accident?

Along with medical care and prescription drugs designed to treat neck pain, there are many other ways to help alleviate pain due to a car accident, such as:

• Wearing a neck brace (sometimes called a soft neck collar) to help restrict movement and prevent additional injuries from occurring.
• Anti-inflammatory medications and other pain medications designed to alleviate pain.
• Ergonomic chairs, pillows and other equipment designed to prevent or reduce neck pain.
• Physical therapy exercises focused on strengthening neck muscles and reducing pain.
• Time off from work to rest and recover, especially if you have a serious neck injury that makes it too painful to work.

Return To Top

The bottom line is you should be financially compensated for all your expenses due to your painful neck injury caused by a car accident. But there can often be a lot of debate about which expenses should be covered by your settlement offer. Settlements can average anywhere from $3,000 to $25,000. However, payouts can be more or less based on several factors, including injury severity and recovery time. 

Insurance companies – especially the at-fault driver’s insurance company – will often insist that your settlement offer should only include short-term expenses immediately after your crash. Such expenses might include emergency medical care and vehicle repairs.

But your settlement offer should include the total financial impact of your neck injury. This means if you need physical therapy or follow-up surgical procedures, such expenses should be included in your neck injury settlement. As a result, your injury claim could be worth a lot more money than your initial settlement offer.

Return To Top

The process often starts with filing an injury claim with your own insurance company. Depending on what type of car insurance system exists in your state (some states have no-fault insurance versus at-fault insurance in other states) you may then need to deal with the other driver’s insurance company. This is especially true in at-fault states.

While this process might seem straightforward, dealing with insurance companies can be very challenging in many cases. That’s because insurance companies often raise doubts about injuries sustained in car accidents, especially neck injuries.

You know you’re in pain and your neck hurts. This is why it’s important that you have a lawyer on your side who knows how to deal with insurance companies. That way, you can make sure that your neck injury claim gets the attention it rightfully deserves after your accident.

Return To Top

Should I file a neck injury lawsuit?

Sometimes, the best way to get the money you deserve for a painful neck injury caused by a car crash is to file a lawsuit. However, taking legal action can be very complicated process. And if you make a mistake at any point – whether it’s filing a lawsuit or filling out the necessary paperwork – your lawsuit might have a hard time succeeding or could be dismissed altogether.

To give your neck injury lawsuit the best opportunity for success, talk to a Law.com Premier Attorney listed on this website. They can explain to how the legal process works and whether filing a lawsuit seeking damages (legal term for financial compensation) is the best way to get the money you deserve for neck pain.

Return To Top