Spinal injuries are among the most debilitating injuries one can sustain in the course of an accident. The spinal cord is a major bundle of nerves which extends from the base of the brain to about 18 inches down the back. It carries nerve impulses between the brain and rest of the body. If it is damaged the upper motor neurons (the nerves which control actions such as muscle movement), could fail to work resulting in loss of function and partial or total paralysis.
The spinal cord is divided into four nerve groups – each with their own responsibilities. It does not take a great amount of impact to any of these areas to reduce their function or cause disability.
- The region of the spinal cord closest to the brain contains the cervical nerves. These control the head and neck functions and movement of the arms and hands.
- Moving down the spinal cord, the thoracic nerves control the chest and abdomen muscles.
- Next the lumbar nerves which control the movement of the legs.
- The tail of the spinal cord contains the sacral nerves which control bowel, bladder and all sexual functions.
The area of the spinal cord which is affected and the amount of damage that is done to it will influence the level of malfunction or disability suffered – and the level awarded in spinal injury claims for compensation, when the damage has been caused in an accident which was not your fault. With only a small injury needed to have serious consequences, spinal injury claims for compensation are exceptionally serious matters, and should only be undertaken with the assistance of a specialised personal injury claims solicitor who has experience in this field.
How Do Spinal Injuries Occur?
Spinal injury claims for compensation can be generated by a number of different types of accident. At work, you could stumble and fall awkwardly due to an uneven floor surface, or be working at height without proper safety measures in place for your protection. Spinal injury claims can also result from serious road traffic accidents or when you have been knocked from your bicycle or motorbike by a driver who was not paying attention to other road users. You may even suffer a spinal injury when participating in sport, and where the injury has been caused by the reckless action of another, you are entitled to make a spinal injury claim for compensation.
Spinal injuries can also happen at the hands of medical practitioners. Most commonly, these would be at the hands of a chiropractor, who did not pay due care and attention when manipulating your spine in the course of his treatment. However, spinal injury claims for compensation have also been made against surgeons unaware that their patient suffered from osteoporosis (weakened spine) and who have initiated a spinal cord injury while performing surgery on another area of the back. Irrespective of how your spinal injury has occurred, when it has been caused by the negligence or lack of care of another, you should speak with a specialised personal injury claims solicitor in respect of a spinal injury claim for compensation.
Making Spinal Injury Claims for Compensation
Depending on how your injury was sustained, spinal injury claims for compensation are either dealt with by the Injuries Board Ireland or, in claims of medical negligence, by the courts system. The procedure for making spinal injury claims to the Injuries Board Ireland is the same as any other personal injury claim for compensation. However, as the injury or loss of function you have sustained may be a permanent situation, the consequences to your quality of life will be immense, and only an extremely comprehensive application to the Injuries Board Ireland will suffice in order to receive a fair and adequate assessment of your injuries. At a time when you may still be in pain and shock from the severity of your accident, the completion and submission of the Injuries Board Ireland application is best handled by somebody with experience of dealing with the process. Similarly, if pursuing litigation through the courts, a specialised personal injury claims solicitor will be able to acquire the services of the most relevant medical expert to support his legal arguments, and your spinal injury claim for compensation, in court.
You may also find, whilst making spinal injury claims for compensation, that you are approached by an insurance company representing the negligent party with an offer of settlement. The promise of an immediate payment for accepting an amount of compensation (beneath what you may expect to receive for your spinal injury claim) may be appealing when worried about your financial prospects, but it may leave you undercompensated in the future. A specialised personal injury claims solicitor will be able to advise you whether the amount being offered is fitting or not for your injuries, and, if not, negotiate on your behalf to ensure that a more appropriate offer is received.
Finding Out More about Spinal Injury Claims
If you or a loved one have sustained a spinal injury through an accident for which you were not entirely to blame, and would like to know more about how using the services of a specialised personal injury claims solicitor can be of benefit to you, call our free advice telephone service on 1-800 989 999. This service puts you in direct touch so you can speak to an experienced personal injury claims solicitor. You can discuss the circumstances surrounding your spinal injury and receive valuable and practical information about making spinal injury claims for compensation.
Our helpline is open 24 hours per day, 7 days per week, and all calls to our free advice telephone service are completely confidential. We also operate a call-back service if it is an inconvenient time to call us right now. If you would care to leave your contact details in the form at the bottom of the page, one of our team will be back in touch when it is more suitable for you to speak with us.
Using our free advice service does not place you under any obligation to proceed with a spinal injury claim for compensation. However, we would request that if you have already engaged a solicitor, you refrain from using this service as it is unethical for us to provide second opinions. Thank you.
