How To Claim Whiplash As A Passenger

When asking, ‘how can you claim whiplash as a passenger?’, there are a few things you’ll need to know. In this article, you’ll find out how you could get whiplash compensation following a car accident claim. We’ll also discuss the time limit for a whiplash claim and how you could take advantage of a No Win No Fee agreement.

Whether you are claiming for yourself, a child or someone who lacks the mental capacity to claim, our team is here to help. Our advisors work around the clock offering free legal advice and could connect you to a personal injury lawyer from our panel if they think you would benefit from using our services.

Read on to find out how to claim whiplash as a passenger. Otherwise, get in touch to find out how we could help you. You can do so in the following ways:

Call the phone number at the top of this page
Use our live chat function on your screen
Contact us and we can arrange for an advisor to call you

A guide on how to claim whiplash as a passenger

Choose A Section

Guidance On How To Claim Whiplash As A Passenger
Estimating Compensation For A Whiplash Accident
How To Claim Whiplash As A Passenger Based On The Definition Of Whiplash
What Could Lead To A Whiplash Claim?
Can I Begin A No Win No Fee Agreement?
More Information On How To Claim Whiplash As A Passenger

Guidance On How To Claim Whiplash As A Passenger

A whiplash claim is a type of personal injury claim, therefore the eligibility requirements are similar. As such, it is important that you can establish:

Someone owed you a legal duty of care
The duty of care they owed was breached
You experienced physical or mental harm as a result of this

Road users, including drivers, riders and pedestrians, all owe a duty of care to each other under The Highway Code. Additionally, the Road Traffic Act 1988 further outlines the responsibilities of drivers when navigating the roads. Road users should use the roads with care to avoid accidents and injuries.

Anyone who can demonstrate that negligence has occurred may be eligible to claim a settlement for whiplash. However, if you are under 18 or lack the capacity to claim, you would need a litigation friend to claim on your behalf. A litigation friend is someone whose interests do not clash with your own and someone who can fairly and competently make decisions. For example:

A parent or guardian
A family member or friend
A solicitor
Professional advocates
A Court of Protection deputy
Someone with a lasting or enduring power of attorney

Our advisors offer free consultations with no obligation to make a claim with us afterwards. They can advise on the legitimacy of your claim and can tell you how to claim whiplash as a passenger.

Estimating Compensation For A Whiplash Accident

You might be wondering, ‘how much for a whiplash claim?’ The Whiplash Reform Programme introduced changes to how much you might receive for a whiplash payout. Now drivers and passengers over the age of 18 must claim compensation for whiplash injuries that are valued at £5,000 or less through the government’s online portal.

Therefore, when claiming a whiplash settlement, you must do so through the government’s fixed tariff of compensation for whiplash injuries. The Whiplash Injury Regulations 2021 stipulates the damages that may be awarded for injuries lasting up to 2 years.

Duration of injury	Total amount of damages for one or more whiplash injuries	Total amount of damages for one or more whiplash injuries and one or more minor psychological injuries
Less than 3 months	£240	£260
Between 3 to 6 months	£495	£520
Between 6 to 9 months	£840	£895
Between 9 to 12 months	£1,320	£1,390
Between 12 to 15 months	£2,040	£2,125
Between to 15 to 18 months	£3,005	£3,100
Between 18 to 24 months	£4,215	£4,345

General Damages

If you are under 18, weren’t a driver or passenger of a vehicle or suffer additional injuries that are valued at over £5,000, you don’t need to claim through the government’s online portal. This also applies if your whiplash injury occurred before 31st May 2021.

Legal professionals estimate general damages, which relate to physical or psychological injuries, using the Judicial College Guidelines (JCG). The document features figures based on previous court settlements. We’ve taken compensation ranges from the 16th edition of the JCG, produced in April 2022, to give you an idea of what you could receive for injuries in a car accident claim.

Injury	Compensation Range	Notes
Severe Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder	£59,860 to £100,670	Your quality of living is badly affected and you may be unable to work.
Other Arm Injuries Resulting in Permanent and Substantial Disablement	£39,170 to £59,860	One or both forearms may be seriously fractured causing significant permanent residual disability.
Chest Injuries (c)	£31,310 to £54,830	Ongoing disability could occur due to damage to chest and lung.
Moderate (i) Neck Injuries	£24,990 to £38,490	Fractures or dislocations may cause spinal fusion.
Moderate (ii) Neck Injuries	£13,740 to £24,990	There may be permanent or recurring pain as well as stiffness or discomfort.
Moderate (iii) Neck Injuries	£7,890 to £13,740	There remains an increased vulnerability to further trauma.
Serious Shoulder Injuries	£12,770 to £19,200	Any soft tissue injuries that involve ongoing intrusive symptoms are covered in this bracket.
Moderate Shoulder Injuries	£7,890 to £12,770	Shoulders may be frozen and limited in movement; however, symptoms persist for two years.
Minor (i) Back Injuries	£7,890 to £12,510	A full recovery without surgery will have taken place within two to five years.
Minor (ii) Back Injuries	Up to £7,890	This bracket applies to short-term acceleration and/or exacerbation injuries.

Special Damages

You might also be thinking, “can I claim compensation for whiplash injuries that caused financial harm?” The answer is yes, if you have a successful claim. We refer to financial harm or loss as associated with injuries as special damages. For example, your injury may cause you to take time off work, resulting in a loss of earnings. Furthermore, your injuries may require a prescription.

Subsequently, we would recommend that you keep hold of anything that could prove any losses and expenses inflicted by your whiplash injury, such as receipts, wage slips and bank statements.

Our panel of personal injury solicitors could give you a more accurate value of your claim, but you must speak to an advisor first. An advisor can also determine how to claim whiplash as a passenger. For an instant response, use our live chat feature.

How To Claim Whiplash As A Passenger Based On The Definition Of Whiplash

The NHS defines whiplash as a neck injury caused by a sudden head movement. Symptoms may be mild to severe: you could suffer significant pain or disability.

If you can prove that a whiplash injury occurred due to the negligence of another road user, you might be eligible to claim. Here are different scenarios that could lead to making a claim for whiplash.

Car accident: If a driver fails to indicate when changing lanes, they may crash into another car. The impact could lead to you sustaining a neck injury.
Bus accident: If a bus driver is over the speed limit and nearly hits an oncoming car, the driver may slam on to avoid a collision, causing you whiplash.
Cycling accident: If you are cycling and a driver fails to check their mirrors when overtaking on a narrow road, they could hit you and cause you to fall off your bike.

Under the Limitation Act 1980, the time limit for a car accident claim is usually three years from the date the accident occurred, or three years from the date you became aware of someone else’s negligence causing you harm.

If you have a valid claim, our advisors could connect you with our panel of solicitors. Once you are verified to be able to work with a solicitor from our panel, they could help you get the maximum compensation for a road traffic accident.

What Could Lead To A Whiplash Claim?

The basis of any successful whiplash claim is evidence. Upon sustaining your injury, you should seek medical attention. Hospital records can provide crucial evidence of your accident and injuries. Other evidence you could gather, if possible, include:

A police report of the incident
Contact details of the driver and their insurance information
Any information on the vehicles involved, including registration plates
CCTV footage or dash cam footage
Photographs of the accident scene

Given the amount of evidence you should collect, we would recommend seeking legal advice. A solicitor from our panel could help you gather any evidence and may also arrange a private medical assessment for you, which would help to prove the extent of your injuries.

Speak to an advisor to find out if our panel of solicitors could help you. Additionally, they could answer any questions on how to claim whiplash as a passenger.

Can I Begin A No Win No Fee Agreement?

If you want to work with a solicitor that requires no upfront solicitor fee and no ongoing solicitor’s fee, a No Win No Fee agreement could benefit you. Our panel of solicitors offer their services on a No Win No Fee basis so that funding legal representation is accessible for everyone, no matter what their financial circumstances may be.

What’s great about a No Win No Fee solicitor is that they’ll only work with you if they think you have a good chance of winning compensation. That’s because, if your claim is unsuccessful, your solicitor is not paid for their services.

However, if your claim succeeds, you’ll pay your solicitor a legally capped percentage deducted from your whiplash compensation.

Get Advice On How To Claim Whiplash As A Passenger

To find out if you are eligible to work with a No Win No Fee solicitor from our panel, or if you have any other queries on how to claim whiplash as a passenger, speak to our team today. Our advisors work around the clock to answer your question. To get in touch, you can:

Give us a call on the phone number at the top of this page
Connect instantly via our live chat function on the right-hand side of your screen
Contact us and we can arrange for a free telephone consultation

More Information On How To Claim Whiplash As A Passenger

Now that you know more about how to claim whiplash as a passenger, you might want to claim online. However, before you do, here are some additional resources you might find useful.

Neck pain – A common symptom of whiplash is neck pain. The NHS offers advice on how to ease neck pain.

Report a crime or antisocial behaviour – How to report a crime if your whiplash injury was caused by antisocial behaviour.

Statistics – The latest road traffic accident statistics from the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents.

You are also welcome to read some more of our guides that you may find helpful.

That concludes our guide on how to claim whiplash as a passenger. We hope you feel confident enough to take action and get the car accident settlement you could be owed.

Writer Lewis Jackson

Publisher Ruth Vaughn

Claiming For Whiplash As A Passenger In A Car Accident