If you have been in a car accident and intend on suing the person responsible for the incident, then you should contact a personal injury lawyer who knows about the laws in your state.  The lawyer can tell you how much money you can sue for and he or she can explain what emotional pain and suffering is.  A good lawyer can retain a settlement on your behalf, but you will need to help the legal professional during the process.  This is necessary so the evidence is clear.  Whiplash injuries are common with car accidents, so keep reading to find out how to provide evidence of this injury to your lawyer if you need to.

Take Pictures

Document the Accident Scene

Pictures are often vital when it comes to explaining the severity and type of injury that occurs after an accident.  Although this is true, whiplash occurs within the neck and it cannot be seen by examining the outside of the body.  You can properly document your car though, to show exactly how the accident happened and how it caused your neck to violently extend forward or side to side.  Photographs of your own car and the other driver's car are best, so take photographs directly after the accident if you can.

If you do not have a camera available to you, then consider using the one on your cell phone.  Time stamps on your photographs are helpful when they accompany your pictures to establish a timeline of events.  Cell phones rarely have time stamp photograph options, but you can purchase an application that will add the date and time if you think of this ahead of time.

Injury Photographs

Whiplash injuries cannot be seen, but often times there are other types of marks and contusions that indicate that a whiplash did occur.  Head injuries like concussions sometimes accompany whiplash injuries.  This happens when your head hits the steering wheel, head rest, or the front dash.  If your head hits a portion of your car hard enough, then a bruise or cut is likely to appear.  

Take a picture of the injury to show that your head hit hard enough to cause stress to the neck.  Bruises usually show up as red at first and turn blue or purple within two days.  Make sure to document the bruise as it turns dark, because a photograph may not show a red bruise, especially if your complexion is dark.

You also can photograph the limited range of motion of your neck, your neck brace, and any evidence of hard, knotted, or strained muscles across your neck.

Gather Medical Records

Medical records are almost always needed when you document a personal injury.  If you have whiplash, then you will need records that pertain to this injury as well as ones that were used to locate other types of bodily damage.  Generally, whiplash is not diagnosed immediately.  It is a common diagnosis once your doctor rules out neck breaks, muscle tears, and tendon injuries.  This means that you should supply your lawyer with x-ray and CT scan images that were used as diagnostic tools.  Also, documents that conclude that your injury was whiplash should be included.

Pain Details

Along with medical records, make sure to document both pain and soreness in a diary.  Start the diary immediately after your injury and use a scale from one to ten to determine pain levels.  Consider using a scale that is commonly utilized by medical professionals.  Also, use words like aching, cramping, burning, pricking, spasming, throbbing, and stinging to describe your discomfort.  The duration of the pain as well as the activities that cause discomfort should be noted as well.  Detailed records can provide an accurate picture of your injury and how it has affected you.

If you have been injured in a car accident, then you may need to deal with a whiplash injury.  If you want to work with a lawyer at a site like http://asmlegal.net/ to sue for the injury, then follow the documentation tips above.