Step 1: Letter of Claim

In almost every claim for compensation, except for those where you have been injured in what is considered to be a low value road traffic accident, your lawyers will need to submit a Letter of Claim to the other side.  The Letter of Claim is a straightforward letter which outlines the details of your accident, your injuries, and particularises why we believe the Defendant is at fault and should compensate you for your injuries. 

At The Injury Lawyers, we always prepare a thorough Letter of Claim.  What we mean by this is that we make sure that we have as much detail as is necessary about your accident.  This means that it is less likely for the other side to come back with questions or query your accident so you can be on the way to getting the compensation you deserve at a much faster pace.  Once the Letter of Claim has been prepared, it is sent to the Defendant or their insurer who has a period of 21 days to acknowledge your claim.

Step 2: Acknowledgment

The Defendant should acknowledge your Letter of Claim within 21 days of it being sendt.  This is simply to say that they have received it, note its contents, and to say that they will now begin their investigations for your claim.  It is not uncommon for the Defendant’s insurers to acknowledge your claim either.  In many cases, the Defendant will pass the matter to their insurers for them to investigate your claim.

Step 3: Investigations

Under the Pre-Action Protocol for Personal Injury Claims, which governs your injury claim, the other side have a period of three months to investigate your claim.  What this means is that they can look to see if your accident tally’s with their records and can then decide whether they were at fault for your injuries.  Importantly, just because they have three months to investigate the claim does not mean that their investigations will necessarily take the full three months.  They could well admit liability within a few weeks.

Step 4: Admission of liability and settling your claim

Once the other side have finalised their investigations and formally admitted liability for your accident, your lawyers will set you up with a medical appointment that is convenient for you so that a medico-legal report can be compiled.  This will enable your lawyers to properly value your claim, and from there, your lawyers can go about settling your case on the best possible terms.

All in all, if everything goes according to plan with your injury claim, it can be settled within only a matter of months.  Typically we would suggest that most straightforward cases last between six and nine months.

If you believe you have a claim for compensation then in get in touch with The Injury Lawyers today for a quality and free service.

We like to explain the claiming process fully to our clients, so I have written an in depth blog explaining compensation.

Compensation can also be called ‘damages’ and there are two heads of damages for which you can claim – these being General Damages and Special Damages.

General Damages

General damages is compensation which you can claim for the injuries you sustained as a result of your accident. In essence, you are claiming for:

• Pain and suffering: What is important to look at here is the severity of the injury, and the length of time you have suffered. Psychological suffering is also considered in this category.
• Loss of amenity: Loss of amenity can cover a multitude of issues as it covers the effects your injury has had on many aspects of your life. An example of a loss of amenity would be the following:

‘Joe Bloggs‘, prior to his accident, went running twice per week, and enjoyed going out with friends every Saturday night. After his accident, ‘Joe‘ was unable to do either for 3 months due to his injuries. This is a loss of amenity as his hobby has suffered as well as his social life.

A solicitor would use a medical report to assess both of the above categories in order to value your general damages.

A solicitor may also use the medical report in conjunction with the Judicial Studies Board Guidelines which bands injuries for the purposes of valuation. The JSB Guidelines for neck injuries are as follows:

• Minor Whiplash Injuries – £875 to £5,150
• Moderate Whiplash Injuries – £5,150 to £16,400
• Severe Whiplash Injuries – up to £97,000

Special Damages

Special damages aim to reimburse you for the financial losses suffered as a result of your accident. These losses are quantifiable and are collated in a document known as a Schedule of Loss. I have listed some of the more common types of special damages below:

1. Care and assistance
2. Loss of earnings
3. Treatment costs
4. Other – Travel costs and prescription costs

If you have any further questions regarding your compensation for whiplash feel free to give us a call.

The most common cause of a whiplash injury is a car or a motorcycle accident; this is because when they become involved in a collision there is a sudden stopping force, which is the cause of your head moving violently away from your body. Even collisions that occur at a low speed can cause a whiplash injury.

Other causes of whiplash

• Being struck on the head by a heavy object
• A sudden blow to the head-for example in sporting accidents
• A slip or fall

There are a number of common symptoms of whiplash; however it may take between 6-12 hours (or even more) for the symptoms to become apparent. Doctors say that pain and stiffness can often worsen in the day after the accident and may continue to do so for several days.

Symptoms of whiplash:

• Headaches
• Neck pain and stiffness
• Neck swelling
• Reduced movement around the neck
• Tenderness along the back of the neck
• Dizziness
• Tiredness
• Blurred vision
• Lower back pain

There are two types of whiplash:

• Acute: this is the kind that requires minimal treatment and will heal itself in time. It is usually short lived, and lasts no longer than six months.
• Chronic: This can cause a wide range of symptoms, some which are severe and may last for a long time. This kind of whiplash injury lasts for six months or more.

If you have suffered a whiplash injury in an accident that wasn’t your fault, you may be able to make an injury compensation claim.

The main causes of whiplash injuries are car accidents; they can also be caused by slips, trips and falls. Whiplash injuries often take a few days or maybe weeks to make themselves known. In most cases it will take a few days before you feel the pain.

Whiplash Symptoms :

• Pain around the neck
• Back pain
• Pain in the arms and shoulders
• Pain in the head
• Tingling in your fingers
• Muscle spasms
• sickness
• headaches
• loss of movement

If you’ve recently been involved in an accident and have experienced any of the above then you may be suffering from a whiplash injury. It is important that you seek medical attention because although most whiplash injuries are minor, some can cause life time implications.

If after seeking medical attention you have a diagnosed injury of whiplash then depending on the type of injury you may be prescribed to see a physiotherapist. They will be able to help you regain movement in areas such as your arms and shoulders. However if you’ve badly injured your neck or its surrounding area then you may be told you need to rest for a few weeks.

Whatever treatment is suggested for your injury it is likely that you’ll be off work sick for a while. This mean may that you suffer from a loss of earnings.

If you have a whiplash injury from an accident that wasn’t your fault then you may be able to make a whiplash claim for injury compensation. The Injury Lawyers will give you free legal advice and tell you everything you need to know about making a whiplash compensation claim.

What insurance companies forget to tell you is that if you do become involved in a car accident and it isn’t your fault then an injury law firm, such as the Injury Lawyers will retrieve you the compensation fees you deserve on a no win, no fee basis.

Some people live by the saying ‘if it sounds too good to be true, then it probably is’. However, that’s not always the case. Here at the Injury Lawyers we will get you the compensation you deserve and every penny of it will go to you. We don’t take cuts from your payment; we simply recover the costs from the other side. 

When LEI companies try to sell you their insurance they appear to disregard companies like ourselves.  For instance, say you’ve chosen to take up an LEI policy and became injured in a car accident that wasn’t your fault. You’ll then inform your insurance company and they’ll follow up your compensation claim.

It’s not as simple as that, you see the one thing that LEI companies forget to tell their clients is that they aren’t actually the ones who deal with your claim. On their database they’ll probably have a list of law firms who are willing to pay to take on peoples claims. They will then inform these law firms of your claim and sell it on to the highest bidder. 

Not only does this mean that they are passing your personal details around a number of law firms, it also means that they are using this LEI policy as a way to make profit from your injuries. There are law firms that are willing to pay up to £800 to take on a claim. This means a huge profit for your insurance company.

Because the law firm handling your claim has already paid out a huge amount to take it on, they are running on strict funding resources. This means that they probably won’t be able to afford to put as much money and effort in, as an independent law firm would. This results in you receiving not only a poor service, but you probably won’t receive as much compensation because they don’t have the resources to fight for you claim.

LEI is an all for profit scam thought up by insurance companies to make money. As an independent law firm the Injury Lawyers believe that everyone should receive the compensation they deserve, and not simply be passed along a chain on lawyers to see who bids the highest for their claim.

If you have been offered LEI by your insurance company our only advice would be to turn it down. We’re in the middle of a recession so why pay out more money than need be, and what for, a poorer service.

Independent law firms like the Injury Lawyers will take on your injury compensation claim on a no win, no fee basis. Not only that but we’ll do everything possible to make sure you get the compensation we think you deserve. We’ll update you every 14 days to let you know what stage your claim is at, and assign you your own personal lawyer who will handle your case.

Is this the best way?

Although Third Party Capture may seem like the fastest way to sort out your compensation claim, it’s also the most unreliable. Because you’re leaving it to the other party’s insurer to sort out your compensation claim, there is no one fighting in your corner to ensure you get the amount you deserve. If you’re not familiar with the area of injury law then you won’t have any idea to whether the amount you’re being offered is too little.

From our experience at the Injury Lawyers, third party capture claims are normally settled at £1000, and in some cases they will offer to pay any loss of earnings you have suffered. However, if you were to go against the idea of third party capture and choose an independent law firm such as The Injury Lawyers then the standard injury claim is worth around £2500.

Why choose us?

If you do choose an independent lawyer you will probably receive more compensation than you would by going with third party capture. The Injury lawyers will fight on your behalf to ensure you get the compensation you deserve.

We know that an injury claim can’t just be assessed overnight, especially a whiplash injury claim. To ensure you get the best of the best we will spend time looking over medical reports to show how severely the injury has affected yours and your family’s life.

Instead of going with the flow and letting the opposing party tell you how much they think your claim is worth, take charge and choose an independent lawyer to handle it for you. Think of it this way, the other party are going to try and settle with the smallest amount possible. It is important you have someone fighting your corner to make sure you aren’t simply been paid off.

If you would like to speak to one of our fully trained lawyers about a possible claim or if you would like more information on third party capture then the Injury Lawyers are here to help.

Dealing with the Third Party Directly

This should be avoided! The third party is the person, company, or representative of the person/company responsible for the accident. It’s advisable to get independent representation – you can never be sure that the third party has your best interests at heart. With independent representation, you know you have an expert on your side; dedicating themselves to you and your claim!

So what you need is an independent expert lawyer representing you for the case, which brings nicely to my next point:

Choose Your Lawyer Carefully!

Firstly, make sure you choose who is representing you. It’s often the case in road traffic accidents that your insurers refer your claim on to a third party solicitor. More often than not, the third party solicitor they refer the case to is the highest bidding one (I.e. the firm that pays the most to your insurers for your claim!). The issue is that if they have already paid a vast sum of money for your claim, they have fewer resources to spend on you and the claim itself! This often leaves them giving you a poorer service, and even less compensation, as they haven’t got the resources to fight the case harder!

So, it’s advisable to get an independent law firm on your side – one who isn’t in any way attached to other insurance companies or claims companies. That way you know they will do their best by you! It’s essential that you choose the lawyer you want to represent you. Being allocated a lawyer is not always a good thing – how do you know they will be the best for you? Look around and see who offers you the best advice, and who you feel comfortable and confident in instructing. The choice is yours, and no one should ever take that away from you!

So now you know to get an independent lawyer on your side, make sure they represent you on a genuine no win no fee! Only a genuine no win no fee guarantees no charges for an unsuccessful or successful claim. We experts only take on claims if we are confident the case will win – therefore we don’t expect to lose – which is how we can offer the genuine no win no fee! And for a successful claim, we charge the other side, and never make any deductions or charges for you claim – never! Not a penny!

In fact, we at The Injury Lawyers do things a little different. We actually restrict our legal fees to whatever we can recover. So, for a successful claim we cannot charge you! It’s not possible! And that’s what we like for a claim for compensation; for the victim to get 100% of the money they deserve.

So for some further advice, don’t hesitate to give us a call (it’s FREE on 0800 634 75 75) – and receive a no obligation chat on claiming. We’re happy to be of assistance!

The case of Jonathan Harvey v Plymouth City Council (2009) concerned the Claimant (Harvey) whom sustained serious injuries after falling on the Defendant’s property and falling some 5 1/2 metres. The Claimant had been out drinking with his friends when they ran on to the Defendant’s land. The Claimant fell over some broken fencing causing him to fall down in to the car park of a Tesco’s supermarket. The Claimant was left with serious brain injuries.

The local authority argued that they did not know that the property was owned by them at the time of the accident and therefore could not have taken reasonable steps to ensure that the land was reasonably safe. It is understood that some 8 years before Mr Harveys accident the Tesco’s supermarket had licensed the land from the local authority for a period of 2 years. After the expiry of this 2 years period the local authority (the Defendant’s to this claim) did not take any steps to inspect or maintain the land (although they did mow the nearby grass verge).

The Claimant’s representatives made extensive enquiries into the land and the use of it and revealed that the land had evidence of gathering of large groups of youths whereby smoking and drinking were all evidenced in the area. The Claimant’s representatives therefore argued that it was reasonably foreseeable that youths congregate around the area and more importantly, they might be ‘fooling around’. They concluded that the Claimant was a visitor to the property and was owed a duty of care by the local authority under the Occupiers Liability Act 1957 – the local authority had breached this duty.

The local authority maintained that they could not owe any duty of care as they were not aware they owned or occupied the land in question.

However, the local authority did admit that they owned the land.

It was held that the local authority knew they owned the land before Tesco’s development; they therefore would have known that Tesco only licensed the land for a period of 2 years – ultimately they should have therefore taken steps to consider what needed to be done with the land to ensure it was safe for use by the public after this 2 year period had expired.

It was further held that it did not need to be proved that the local authority had ‘actual knowledge’ of how the land was being used before individuals using the land became visitors under the Occupiers Liability Act  and thus owed a duty of care. The fact that the local authority accepted that it owned the land meant that they should have considered/known how the land might have been reasonably used.

Unfortunately, Mr Harveys damages were reduced by some 75% due to the fact that he had been drinking and his judgment was therefore impaired. It was deemed that had he been sober he would have been much more aware of his surroundings and it is highly likely he would not have run on to the land as he had.

This is an important case for slip and trip claims against local authorities as it will make it more difficult for authorities to remove themselves from their liabilities. If they accept that they own the land (regardless of whether or not they claim to ‘know’ they own the land) whereby you sustained an injury due to a defect, then they owe you a duty of care under the Occupiers Liability Act 1957 (this will not be so straight forward if you are found to be trespassing on property). If the local authority can then not provide evidence to show that they have a reasonable system of inspection and maintenance in place, then it is much more likely that you will succeed in a claim against them.

So How’s it Work?

Well what us specialist personal injury lawyers always make sure to do is get you seen by an independent medical expert. A consultant specialising in medico-legal reporting is qualified to assess the full extent of your injuries. They will produce an expert report that will give us all the information we need to value the claim. We then use a combination of our extensive experience combined with some quality case law (cases with similar injuries and similar accident circumstances), and the JSB (Judicial Studies Board) guidelines in order to put some pounds on your injuries.

So What’s Next?

Once we have fully assessed the medical evidence we will disclose the evidence we have to the other side (defendants insurers, solicitors, or claims representatives’) and invite them to make an offer for settlement. They usually come in with a low offer – so we use our experience and knowledge to fight them for the maximum you are entitled to recover under the law. We won’t just let them get away with under settling claims; we will fight them for every penny your claim should be worth. And we will make sure we get it! It’s a bit of a bargaining process to be honest.

What Else do we do?

Well you’re not just entitled to claim for your injuries – we will recover any losses you have incurred that are a direct result of your injuries! The biggest example here is loss of earnings; if you’re off work for a week and you’re not paid for it, we will claim it back for you! If you pay for any medication, we will claim it back for you! Just make sure to keep receipts for the things you’ve paid out for, and we will aim to claim it back for you!

Another big one here that people often miss off is care and assistance – you can claim back a figure for the hours another person has put in in helping you whilst you’re injured. Even if it’s a family member and you haven’t paid them, you are still entitled to claim back a sum for the work they have put in helping you out! So make sure you don’t miss out on this as it can potentially make up a large proportion of your overall claim! Us specialist injury lawyers never miss anything out – you will get the maximum you are entitled to recover!

What Should You Not Do?

Never accept any offers from the third party directly! A big example here we refer to as “Third Party Capture”. This is when the third party (usually insurers in a road traffic accident) contact the victim and offers them a quick cash lump sum settlement for their injuries. But without medical evidence there is no way they can assess your injuries – so the figure they’re giving you is completely fabricated!

Only with a specialist personal injury lawyer representing you can you make the best of your claim! So choose your solicitor well! See who offers you the best advice!

What it Means

By definition, this is when the defendant (the person or company responsible for the accident) accepts that they are responsible for an accident, but alleges that the claimant (the person injured – the people we fight for!) was partly to blame for the accident or for their injuries. Usually it is made through their insurers or solicitors.

A primary example is perhaps an accident at work. Let’s say Joe Bloggs has an accident at work. A cranes arm was defective and a piece of equipment fell and hit Mr Bloggs on the head – luckily the object didn’t weight too much so he wasn’t too seriously injured! But at the time he was not wearing his protective helmet, which is a requirement with the company when on the building site he works on. So his injuries were worse because of it. Well, the company is still at fault due to their crane being defective – let’s say it wasn’t maintained properly enough – but Joe suffered worse injuries because he wasn’t wearing his helmet. The company accept liability, but due to Joe not wearing a helmet he was found to have contributed to his injuries as they were worse. Contributory negligence can be found here.

What happens is that he is still paid out in compensation, but a % (let’s say 20% here) is reduced from his compensation because he wasn’t wearing a helmet; a requirement with his company. So, if his overall reward for compensation is set at £5000, he will receive £4000 – £1000 less due to the 20% reduction for his contributory negligence.

In this quick example, it can be said that it is the case that it is fair. But as mentioned above, insurers do on occasions allege it to try and save themselves some money! We as specialist personal injury lawyers fight hard to try and make sure the claimant gets 100% of the compensation they deserve! So in cases where we believe the contributory negligence is not warranted, or the amount is set to high (which is often the case!), we extensively research past case law and use our wealth of experience and knowledge to fight hard to get the claimant as much as we can!

A big example is of a recent case of Stanton v Collinson [2010]. The Court of Appeal recently upheld a Judge’s decision to not find a teenage car accident victim contributory negligent in failing to wear a seatbelt (http://www.bailii.org/cases)

Mr William Stanton suffered serious brain damage following a car accident in which he was a passenger, when the driver Matthew Collinson hit an oncoming vehicle whilst doing more than double the 30mph speed limit, and had been drinking (although was found just within the legal limit). Matthew Collinson was also not wearing a seatbelt and was killed instantly. It was also heard that another passenger at the time was sitting on Mr Stanton’s knee when the accident occurred.

According to the source, The Judge first considered the case of Froom v Butcher which concluded no reduction should apply. The reasoning came from the fact that wearing a seatbelt would have been unlikely to have sufficiently reduced the extent of the brain damage sustained. The Judge commented that “in the absence of something exceptional, there should be no reduction in damages in cases where the injury would not have been reduced ‘to a considerable extent’ by the seat belt”

Of course it is always best to have the expert personal injury lawyers representing you for your case! Make sure that you get a specialist, independent lawyer who can maximise the potential in your claim; and fight your corner when it comes to contributory negligence or any other disputes!