What Type of Injuries Are Most Common During a Car Accident?

Posted on: 20 August 2018

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Some people say that if you drive an average number of kilometres per year, then you will almost inevitably become involved in an accident at some stage in your driving career. While a modern-day automobile is built to withstand impacts to a large extent, there is only so much that engineers can do, and the occupants could well be injured in the event of a high-speed collision. If you're worried that you may be overdue for your accident based on the law of averages, what type of injuries should you be worried about?

Chest Trauma

Many car accidents happen as a result of a head-on collision when one car strays into the other lane and impacts an oncoming vehicle. This can often result in chest injuries due to rapid deceleration, impact with an airbag or damage caused by a seatbelt. In the worst-case, this can cause damage to the ribs and can impact the lungs beneath, which might make it difficult for the injured person to breathe correctly. Make sure that you always have your seatbelt on but tensioned correctly and that your airbags are properly configured.

Whiplash Symptoms

Sometimes, a driver will lose attention and will run into the back of your car when you are stopped at a traffic light. When this happens, your head will move backwards and then forward very quickly, causing whiplash injuries. Essentially, the ligaments and muscles in the neck suffer significant strain as they stretch beyond their standard range of movement.

You may not notice anything at the time but may certainly feel the effects in the days and weeks to follow. Make sure that your seats are fitted with head restraints that extend higher than the top of your head and if not, think about changing the seats just to be safe. This can often help to alleviate any whiplash symptoms during a rear end collision.

Head Injuries

In a particularly violent impact, it's not unusual for the occupant to sustain head injuries even though their head may not actually hit anything. The brain can move by itself during a deceleration accident like this and can hit the inside of your skull, causing a wide range of symptoms. While you may suffer a loss of consciousness at the time, you may be plagued by memory problems or long-term cognitive impairment in the worst-case and this type of injury can take a long time to unfold. There's little you can do to prepare yourself for this type of incident, but thankfully they are relatively rare.

Standing Your Ground

If you've been unfortunate enough to have been in an accident and sustained an injury, then you need to stand up for yourself and seek the proper compensation. Get in touch with a motor vehicle accident lawyer to help you.