Minor Fender Bender Cases Still Have Value

Many people believe that if they were involved in a minor fender-bender, where the damage to either vehicle is barely discernible, that they have a lousy case.  Not so! Although you may feel that way, you could have permanent damage to the tendons and ligaments in your neck, or could have permanent damage to your discs.  I have experienced such an accident first hand. I was waiting for the car ahead of me to proceed, and as we both waited for the light to turn green, the driver in the car behind me was on her cell phone and she rammed right into me, going only approximately 5-10 miles per hour.  I got out and could barely see some scratches and the bumper was displaced only by a half an inch to an inch. I told the lady driving the car that ran into me that I didn’t think the damage were that bad and thought we could probably settle outside the insurance company if that would help her.  But all week my neck was in severe pain, and that pain radiated down my right arm and half way down the upper side of the right side of my back. Eventually the pain was too great and I had to get into the hospital to get it checked out. After receiving X-Rays at first, then ultimately an MRI, they discovered that I had three herniated discs in my neck, and that surgery was highly likely, according to the neurosurgeon I saw.  I have been receiving chiropractic and physical therapy for several weeks now, and the pain is not going away. The surgeon and the chiropractors I have consulted with tell me they have seen hundreds of similar cases and oftentimes these injured drivers never reach 100% recovery, so an impairment rating was given, which helped the patient’s attorney negotiate a higher settlement amount. So don’t be discouraged if you didn’t have a significant amount of property damage, and you didn’t have a concussion.  Even “soft tissue” cases, where the ligaments and tendons were overly stretched, but there were no broken bones, the case still has value. Talk to one of the CarCrashGurus to get a better sense of what your case is worth.