Whiplash is the most common injury in car accidents throughout Los Angeles and the San Fernando Valley — and it is also one of the most underestimated. Insurance companies routinely try to minimize whiplash claims, dismissing them as minor or temporary. But whiplash can cause serious, long-lasting damage that affects every aspect of your daily life.
At Girgis Law Firm, APC, attorney Anthony Girgis represents whiplash injury victims throughout Encino, Van Nuys, Sherman Oaks, Northridge, and the greater Los Angeles area. Here is what you need to know about whiplash and your rights under California law.
What Is Whiplash?
Whiplash occurs when the head and neck are suddenly jerked forward and backward in a rapid motion — exactly what happens in a rear-end collision. This sudden movement strains and tears the muscles, tendons, and ligaments in the neck and upper back and can also damage the cervical discs and vertebrae.
Despite what insurance companies would have you believe whiplash is a legitimate medical injury that can require months of treatment and in severe cases may cause permanent damage.
Symptoms of Whiplash
Whiplash symptoms often do not appear immediately after the accident. Many victims feel relatively okay at the scene only to wake up the next morning unable to turn their head. Common symptoms include neck pain and stiffness, headaches originating at the base of the skull, shoulder and upper back pain, dizziness, fatigue, difficulty concentrating, and numbness or tingling in the arms.
In more serious cases whiplash can cause herniated cervical discs that press on spinal nerves causing radiating pain, weakness, and numbness down the arms and hands.
Why Insurance Companies Downplay Whiplash
Because whiplash does not always show up on X-rays insurance adjusters frequently argue that there is no objective evidence of injury and offer minimal settlements. This is one of the most frustrating and damaging tactics used against accident victims in California.
The reality is that whiplash diagnosis relies heavily on clinical examination and patient-reported symptoms — both of which are entirely valid forms of medical evidence. An experienced personal injury attorney knows how to work with medical providers to document whiplash injuries properly and present them compellingly to insurance companies.
Treatment for Whiplash
Whiplash treatment typically includes chiropractic care, physical therapy, massage therapy, pain management, and in severe cases epidural steroid injections or surgery. At Girgis Law Firm, APC, attorney Anthony Girgis works with a network of trusted medical providers throughout the San Fernando Valley who treat whiplash victims on a medical lien basis — meaning you pay nothing out of pocket regardless of whether you have health insurance.
Injured in a car accident in the San Fernando Valley? Contact Girgis Law Firm, APC for a free consultation. Attorney Anthony Girgis represents accident victims throughout Encino, Sherman Oaks, Van Nuys, Northridge, Woodland Hills, and surrounding communities. Call (818) 986-5000 — no fees unless we win.
