What is a soft tissue injury?
A soft tissue injury damages muscles, ligaments, or tendons rather than bone. Common examples include whiplash, sprains, strains, and contusions. They often do not show on X-rays, which makes documentation - clinical notes, treatment records, and consistent symptom reporting - critical to the claim's value.
Are soft tissue injuries subject to the minor injury cap?
Often yes. Most provincial minor injury definitions capture sprains, strains, and whiplash-associated disorders without serious lasting impairment. Alberta caps these at about $5,932 (2024), Nova Scotia about $9,331. Injuries that develop into chronic pain or serious impairment can escape the cap.
How much is a soft tissue injury worth in Canada?
Minor soft tissue cases with full recovery commonly resolve for a few thousand dollars in general damages plus treatment costs. Cases with symptoms lasting a year or more, or that become chronic, are worth substantially more and may fall outside the minor injury cap entirely.
How does treatment duration affect value?
Value rises with documented, consistent treatment and longer recovery. Insurers scrutinize gaps in treatment as evidence the injury was minor. A longer course of active rehabilitation supported by clinical notes tends to increase the assessed value of a soft tissue claim.