Back injuries are the most common workplace injuries in Maryland, according to the Comp Pinkbook, a statistical analysis of a year and a half worth of PPD stipulations and final settlement awards.
Of the nearly 25,000 specific awards during that period, just back awards accounted for fully 3,358. This equaled over $75,000,000 paid out to workers with back injuries. For permanent partial disability cases, the average percent disablement was 12.56%.
The average permanent partial disability stipulation was $17,467. The average final settlement was $33,748. The difference, as this website discusses, is PPD cases can be reopened, whereas final settlements cannot.
The largest individual back injury PPD awards were $351,708, $266,800, and $263,855. The cases were against Calvert Co Commissioners, Roofing Unlimited, and Two Farms, Inc., respectively. IWIF (Chesapeake Employers Insurance) insured two of the cases.
The three largest final settlements were $450,000, $447,000, and $425,000. The first two were subsequent injury fund cases.
Often, back injuries are in conjunction with injuries to another body part. The most common include back injuries combined with neck injuries (718 awards), combination with neck and shoulder (278 awards), combination with knee injury cases (247 awards), shoulder combinations (238 awards), and leg combinations (220 awards). The back is, of course, the major part of the body used in manual labor and workers’ compensation back injuries are common.
The following table shows back combination injury average settlements:
Combination with Back PPD Final Settlement
None; back only $17,467 $33,748
Neck $14,735 $26,868
Neck and Shoulder $25,883 $20,711
Knees $18,689 $18,792
Shoulder $20,530 $36,040
Legs $27,486 $34,278
Head and Neck $14,735 $21,092
Hip $11,745 $34,731
It’s interesting that comp cases with back plus other are often not valued as highly as the back as a standalone injury.
The Comp Pinkbook also lists Spinal Cord injuries as distinct from back injuries. Although there were only 22 total final settlements for the spinal cord, the average client settlement was very large (for Maryland workers’ compensation) at $51,649.
Numerous factor go into determining settlement value of a back injury case. No two workers’ comp cases are the same, just as no two back injuries are the same. Cases vary widely, and the quality of Maryland workers’ compensation lawyers for back injuries vary widely.
If you are seeking a workers’ compensation lawyer to help you obtain the highest recovery for your comp back injury, look no further than Warnken, LLC. We handle workers’ compensation for the State Police, other law enforcement, and all kinds of industries, from heavy equipment to construction. Please contact us now to assess your case.