“People who play the victim in low velocity impact car accidents are faking it to get a free ride on the back of the insurance company.”
“A car accident that doesn’t cause substantial damage to the vehicles involved cannot possible cause substantial damage to the human bodies involved.”
“When you step out of your vehicle after an accident and see that your vehicle has no damage, you can let out a sigh of relief knowing you also will experience no damage or pain.”
Low Velocity Impact doesn’t Guarantee no Injuries
If you believe any or all of the above statements, you are not alone. All of these statements represent common misconceptions held by people around the world. It just seems like good old fashioned common sense to assume that an accident that doesn’t produce enough force to bend or rip apart the body of a vehicle doesn’t have enough impact to cause physical injury to the human body.
As is true with so many things in life, good old common sense doesn’t mesh with the results of many scientific studies and car accident simulations. It turns out that low velocity impact car accidents can be very damaging to the human body even if they produce little to no harm to the vehicles involved.
Taking it to Court
This widespread misconception that low velocity impact car accidents cannot lead to serious injury when the vehicle involved suffers minimal damage is extremely troublesome when it comes to filing claims with insurance companies or receiving compensation for medical bills or pain and suffering for accident victims.
Just as it might be difficult to convince your next door neighbor or mother that minor accidents can lead to substantial physical injury, it is difficult to convince a jury or a judge of this fact. This is why experts are often called to battle it out in the court system when disagreements arise.
Lawyers have their work cut out for them when they take a case like this to trial. They are standing up for what they know to be true and are trying to do right by their clients who have experienced the pain and discomforts of whiplash as a result of low velocity impact car accidents. They know what the research has found and have hired the right professionals to put that knowledge forward. Yet, in some cases it just isn’t enough to convince those with the power of decision in the case that injuries can be sustained from this type of car accident.
Part of the problem is the belief expressed in the very first statement listed at the very beginning of this page. Many people believe that those who claim they were injured in accidents with minor vehicle damage are lying and taking advantage of the accident.
This is further fueled by the fact that not all injuries sustained in an accident are evident immediately after the accident. It may take a day or two for severe pain and other symptoms to surface, so medical attention isn’t always sought right after the accident. In some cases the victim may go to the hospital and be cleared right after the accident, only to return hours or days later in serious pain. This makes it even more difficult for others to believe that they are experiencing legitimate injuries and are not faking it.
The Fallacy of Logic
There are some cases where common sense and that sense of logic we are all equipped with works against us, and this is definitely one of those cases. Many people believe that you cannot sustain serious injuries through low velocity impact car accidents because it seems rational. The problem is that sense of rationality doesn’t mesh with legitimate science!
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