Watermans Top Tips for Seeking Genuine Legal Advice
Whiplash Solicitors — Lawyers for Whiplash Claims, Scotland
Have you suffered whiplash? Whiplash is a painful injury to your neck caused by a sudden movement of the head that forces your neck forward and then backwards. This can cause lasting discomfort. Watermans specialist whiplash solicitors can help you claim compensation for your injuries.
Speedy Referral
“Car was fixed in a timely manner to a high standard, all without the hassle of dealing with an insurance company. Another plus was the speedy referral to a local private physio for treatment and rehabilitation of whiplash injuries.”
K Whyte, Personal Injury Claim
The Short of It
Whiplash symptoms
can include neck pain and stiffness, headaches, and pain in the shoulders and arms, which may prevent you from turning your head from side to side.
Whiplash is often caused by accidents on the road.
As well as your compensation claim, we can provide you with a replacement vehicle and even arrange for physiotherapy if required.
You could be entitled
to significant compensation.
Everything we do at Watermans
is about getting you the resolution you need and providing straightforward legal advice. It should be that simple.
The Long of It
Whiplash Injuries
Whiplash injury claims
Whiplash injuries are some of the most common road traffic accident injuries. These injuries are often perceived as minor but can have serious and long-lasting effects.
But what is whiplash? Whiplash describes the movement of the neck when a sudden jolt stretches ligaments and muscles far beyond their limits.
Think of your neck as a whip moving quickly forward and then backwards again. This sudden, unexpected movement of the neck is often caused by road traffic accidents, commonly when your vehicle is hit from behind. It’s extremely painful and can cause damage to the neck muscles, discs, nerves, and tendons.
Common symptoms of whiplash can include:
- Neck pain
- Neck stiffness
- Shoulder pain
- Low back pain
- Headaches
- Dizziness
- Pain in your arm or hand
- Numbness in your arm or hand
- Ringing in your ears
- Blurred vision
- Concentration or memory problems
- Irritability
- Sleeplessness
- Tiredness
If you have suffered a whiplash injury due to a road accident, you may have difficulty moving or have had to seek medical treatment or a medical examination. If this is the case, you may be able to make a whiplash claim.
Regardless of how your whiplash injury occurred, if it was caused by someone else and there is medical evidence for it, there is a good chance that you will be legally entitled to personal injury compensation.
Making a Whiplash Compensation Claim
How do I make a whiplash compensation claim?
Whiplash injury claims are misunderstood and carry somewhat of a negative stereotype due to instances of false claims in the past. However, at Watermans, our legal team understands how painful whiplash injuries can be and how the symptoms can interfere with your daily life.
Our whiplash claims process is straightforward.
- Initial contact – Once you have contacted us to make a whiplash claim, our team of experienced solicitors will get in touch to gather some important details from you, like the location and date of the whiplash injury. A whiplash claims solicitor will guide you through the process, ensuring you understand your legal obligation and rights following road accidents.
- Gathering evidence – We will gather the evidence necessary to support your whiplash injury claim. This includes obtaining a medical report detailing your symptoms of whiplash, your medical costs, and any other injuries you may have sustained. Where applicable, we’ll also collect the original road traffic accident report.
- Claim submission – All information will be presented to the at-fault party’s insurance company to support your claim for whiplash, ensuring that you have no hassles while we go through the legal process on your behalf.
- Comprehensive support – At Watermans, we’re not just about securing whiplash injury compensation claims. We’ll obtain the maximum compensation for you and help get you back on your feet and on the road as quickly as possible. We can arrange for you to have physiotherapy or rehabilitation and arrange a replacement vehicle if required.
Since the whiplash claim is against the at-fault party’s insurance company, we will work on your whiplash claim on a no-win, no-fee basis. Get in touch to speak to one of our experts now.
How Much Compensation?
How much compensation can I claim for whiplash injuries?
The amount of compensation you can get for a whiplash claim in Scotland depends very much on:
- How severe the pain and suffering is – Most whiplash claims vary in severity, and our expert personal injury solicitors will assess your case thoroughly. It’s important to seek medical advice promptly to document the extent of your injuries, including any psychological injuries that may have resulted from the accident.
- How long you’ve been suffering the pain – When claiming whiplash compensation in Scotland, longer-lasting pain often leads to higher compensation. A whiplash compensation solicitor will guide you through the process, ensuring all ongoing symptoms are properly documented and considered.
- How your injury has affected your life, such as your ability to work or carry out other tasks – The͏͏ impact͏͏ on͏͏ your͏͏ daily͏͏ life͏͏ is͏͏ a͏͏ key͏͏ factor͏͏ in͏͏ claiming compensation.͏͏ This͏͏ includes͏͏ assessing͏͏ how͏͏ the͏͏ whiplash͏͏ has͏͏ affected͏͏ your͏͏ work,͏͏ hobbies and͏͏ personal͏͏ relationships.͏͏ We’ll͏͏ help͏͏ you͏͏ document͏͏ these͏͏ effects͏͏ to͏͏ strengthen͏͏ your͏͏ case.
- How much it has cost you, such as lost wages and medical expenses – Our solicitors will help you calculate all expenses related to your injury, including lost wages, medical bills and any other costs.
The compensation amounts can range from a very minor whiplash injury claim at £850 to claims for very severe whiplash injuries at £7,500.
Why Watermans?
Why should I choose Watermans to pursue my claim for whiplash?
Watermans is your modern personal injury law firm in Scotland. Our expert team is committed to doing everything to make the claims process straightforward for our clients following an accident.
At Watermans, we aim to make legal services look and feel easy so people can move forward in life. Our expertise in national accident law means we are in the best position to handle your whiplash claim.
We take the hassle from you and fight each case to secure the maximum level of financial compensation.
We also provide access to a range of additional services, such as physiotherapy and psychological treatment to ensure you recover from your injuries as soon as possible and get your life back on track.
Trusted Personal Injury Lawyers in Scotland
Our expertise covers a wide range of areas, including:
- Accidents at work
- Public liability claims
- Road traffic accidents
- Fatal and serious injury claims
- Cases relating to abuse
We represent thousands of clients throughout Scotland each year, securing millions of pounds in compensation for our clients. Our whiplash claim solicitors work on a no-win, no-fee basis, which means that if your claim is unsuccessful, you won’t end up with out-of-pocket expenses.
Whiplash Compensation Claims - FAQs
It’s commonly known that there’s a three-year time limit to make a claim for compensation after a road accident resulting in whiplash or any other personal injury. However, this doesn’t necessarily mean you have three years from the date of your accident to start the whiplash claim process.
In fact, you are required to have either raised a court action or settled your whiplash compensation claim within this three-year timeframe. There are some exceptions to this rule, so we advise speaking to a whiplash injury solicitor at Watermans as soon as possible after your accident. Our solicitors specialise in handling whiplash claims and will be able to give you straightforward advice on the best way forward.
To prove a whiplash injury and support your claim, your whiplash solicitor will help you gather various forms of evidence, including:
- Medical records – The most crucial evidence is medical documentation. That’s why it’s essential to seek medical assistance immediately after the accident. As the injured person, you may also need to undergo a medical assessment by an independent expert to provide further medical evidence of your whiplash.
- Accident report – If the accident happened on the road, obtain a copy of the police report if one was filed.
- Photographs – If possible, take photos of the accident scene, vehicle damage and visible injuries.
- Witness Statements – Collect contact information from any witnesses who saw the accident happen.
After claiming for whiplash, your whiplash injury compensation payout will depend on the at-fault party’s insurance. We will keep you updated every step of the way. We do everything in our power to ensure that your whiplash accident claim is processed and aided efficiently.
When͏͏ it͏͏ comes͏͏ to͏͏ personal injury claims,͏͏ including͏͏ those͏͏ for͏͏ whiplash,͏͏ age͏͏ can͏͏ be͏͏ a͏͏ factor͏͏ in͏͏ how͏͏ the͏͏ claim͏͏ is͏͏ handled.͏͏ If͏͏ you͏͏ are͏͏ over͏͏ 16͏͏ years͏͏ old͏͏ in͏͏ Scotland,͏͏ you͏͏ have͏͏ the͏͏ legal͏͏ capacity͏͏ to͏͏ make͏͏ a͏͏ personal injury claim directly.͏͏ This͏͏ means͏͏ you͏͏ can͏͏ approach͏͏ us͏͏ as͏͏ your͏͏ whiplash injury claim solicitors without͏͏ needing͏͏ additional͏͏ representation.͏͏
However,͏͏ if͏͏ you͏͏ are͏͏ under͏͏ 16͏͏ years͏͏ old,͏͏ the͏͏ process͏͏ is͏͏ slightly͏͏ different.͏͏ In͏͏ this͏͏ case,͏͏ you͏͏ would͏͏ need͏͏ to͏͏ be͏͏ accompanied͏͏ by͏͏ a͏͏ parent͏͏ or͏͏ legal͏͏ guardian͏͏ who͏͏ would͏͏ act͏͏ on͏͏ your͏͏ behalf.͏͏ This͏͏ adult͏͏ would͏͏ be͏͏ known͏͏ as͏͏ your͏͏ ‘litigation͏͏ friend’͏͏ and͏͏ would͏͏ make͏͏ decisions͏͏ about͏͏ the͏͏ claim͏͏ in͏͏ your͏͏ best͏͏ interests.
At Watermans, we understand that financial concerns shouldn’t prevent you from seeking justice after a whiplash injury. That’s why we offer a no-win, no-fee whiplash claim service.
This means we bear the financial risk of pursuing your claim, allowing you to focus on your recovery without worrying about legal costs. Our fees are only payable if compensation is awarded for your injury. There are also no hidden or upfront costs for you when you choose our whiplash lawyers to represent your case.
Trust Watermans expert whiplash solicitors to help you secure maximum compensation.
Fill out our enquiry form today, and we’ll get in touch with straightforward legal advice.
Get in touch with us
Everything we do at Watermans is about getting you the resolution you need and making that process straightforward. Start the process by sending us your details below or calling us on 0131 555 7055
Our personal injury claims expert
“Making a claim for compensation can be such a daunting process for people, so I try to make it as straightforward and easy to understand as I can for them.”
Susanne McGraw, Head of Personal Injury