Uninsured Driver Compensation Claims

At The Injury Lawyers we deal with all sorts of personal injury claims on a daily basis.  In the main they concern the innocent victims of the negligence of third party drivers.  Road traffic accidents are unfortunately a common occurrence – but when it comes to claiming compensation they are relatively straightforward matters and can be dealt with very quickly.  In most cases you will be able to provide the third party’s details and we can get the ball rolling on your claim straightaway.

But what happens if the third party was uninsured, given that it is the third party’s insurer that will normally be providing your compensation?

Naturally you can still make a claim for compensation; it is just that your compensation will be provided by the Motor Insurers’ Bureau (‘MIB’) and not the third party’s insurer as they do not have one.  It would simply be unfair if you were injured like anyone else but could not be compensated because the third party had committed the criminal act of driving with no insurance.  That is why the MIB was set up in 1946 – to provide compensation to victims of uninsured drivers.
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Compensation for your Injuries

Making a claim for compensation for injuries sustained at the hands of a negligent third party is not something many people do.  In the main, this is because they have not been injured.  But for those who have been injured, nowadays they are more aware that they are able to make a claim for compensation.  Yet, in the vast majority of cases, they have never done this before.  It is not uncommon then that such people wonder how to go about making a personal injury claim and what it entails. 

So – Here is a quick guide.

Claiming for compensation is easy and in the most part you will not have to do much; your lawyers will do the hard work for you.  What you will firstly need to do is find a quality injury lawyer that you are more than happy to instruct.  You should seek an injury lawyer who will not charge you a penny for their work, can help you out with some free medical treatment, and who have vast experience in dealing with these types of claims so they know what they are doing and can progress your case in the best way possible. 
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Limitation to Claim

It is important to stress that the below information is only a generally guideline; to ensure you make your claim in time, speak with an expert injury lawyer as soon as you can.
If you have had an accident and have been injured through no fault of your own, the general rule is that you have three years from the date of the accident to make a claim for compensation.

At The Injury Lawyers we believe that the best thing to do is make your claim for compensation as soon as possible after the accident.  This is for the very simple reason that events will be fresher in your mind and we may even be able to provide you with some no cost private medical treatment which would mean that you could recover from your injuries sooner rather than later.
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Referral Fee Bans

On the 9^th September it was confirmed by the government that there would be a ban on referral fees for personal injury claims.  A referral fee is a fee paid by a solicitor or claims management company in return for the details of people who have been involved in an accident, and have got good prospects for a successful personal injury claim. 

This fee is often in the region of £200 to £1,000.  Worst of all, the victims who’s details are getting passed to third parties probably do not want their details being distributed if they knew that they were.  A solicitor will often pay this referral fee because they consider that in the long run they will be able to make money from the claim.  For example, a solicitor may pay £400 for your details – they get you to pursue your claim with them and win it, and they get paid a few thousand pounds by the Defendant’s in respect of their costs.  In other words, they make a tidy profit.

At The Injury Lawyers we have always spoken out about referral fees and have never paid a referral fee to any company.  As such, we welcome this ban on referral fees.  This is because we do not consider that they are a good thing for the client.  For example, if we were to spend £400 on your buying your claim through a referral fee, that is £400 less we now have to spend on progressing your claim as efficiently as possible.
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Make a claim for Hearing Loss

Your employer has a duty to make sure you’re safe from the risk of personal injury whilst at work. This obviously includes making sure that you are not injured whilst going about your everyday job, but it also includes protecting you from risks to your long term health.

One common danger, especially in heavy manufacturing and industrial workplaces, is hearing loss.  Many people don’t realise that they can claim for damage to their hearing – or they simply put it down to getting older. However, damage caused to an employee’s hearing is very much a personal injury just as any other injury caused by an employer’s failure to protect the health and safety of their employees.
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Compensation After Road Traffic Accidents

Claiming compensation for injuries resulting out of a relatively straightforward road traffic accident is simple.  Your claim can be over in a matter of weeks or months, and what’s best, with the right lawyer on hand, you won’t even have to go to that much effort – they will do all the work for you.

Prior to April 2010 claims for compensation from road accidents could take months or sometimes years.  The Defendant had a period of 21 days to acknowledge your claim and then a further 3 months to investigate it; and that was just to provide an admission or denial of liability. 

Things have changed thankfully.  Now, what is required is for you to submit what is known as a Claims Notification Form or ‘CNF’ through an online portal on the Ministry of Justice website.  Once your lawyers have done this on your behalf the Defendant must acknowledge the CNF within one business day and then they have a further 15 business days in which to admit or deny liability.  This is wholly different from before.  Liability could be admitted for your injuries within 16 days; whereas under the old system, investigations into your accident may not have begun at the same point.  It really is a fast and straightforward process nowadays and an injury lawyer will be more than happy to take you through the process and make sure everything is done correctly.
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Faulty and Defective Products

If you are injured or experience ill health because of a faulty or defective product, you may be entitled to claim for compensation.

The Consumer Protection Act 1987 (CPA) provides important safeguards to protect consumers from defective products. It makes it easier for a person to claim compensation if they are injured because of a fault in a product.

Nearly everything we buy could be a product that is covered by the CPA.  The CPA recognises that, if not manufactured or sold properly, any product could potentially be harmful to a person’s health. Product liability covers a wide range of products including everyday items such as food, cosmetics or clothes, through to one off items such as electrical goods and children’s toys.
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Insurance Referral Fees Ban

On the 9^th September the media confirmed that the government had finally announced that it will ban the referral fees that are paid to insurance companies in return for them passing on the details of the victims of accidents.

This move is welcomed by us at The Injury Lawyers. We have always criticised these payments in the past because they are, in our opinion, bad for the client and the personal injury profession.

Referral fees are paid by some firms of solicitors, mainly to claims management companies and insurance firms, but it can be to anyone who passes on details of an injured person, such as a garage or even the police. Many insurance firms, large and small, have passed on the details of their policyholders after they have contacted them to report an accident that was not their fault. In return for these details, many personal injury solicitors pay a referral fee to the insurance company.
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Fast Compensation Claiming

At The Injury Lawyers, we strive to get our clients the maximum compensation they deserve in the shortest time possible.  We are able to do this because we are experts in our field and have the knowledge and professionalism to know how to progress your claim in the best possible way.  That said, our clients can go a long way in helping us get their compensation in the fastest time possible as well.

In most personal injury claims, excluding those which arise from relatively straightforward road accidents, a Letter of Claim will be produced and sent to the opponent.  This is in most cases is the first bit of correspondence between your legal representatives and the Defendant, and outlines the details of your accident, the injuries you suffered as a result of the Defendant’s negligence, and why we consider the Defendant was indeed negligent.  It is therefore key that the Letter of Claim is thorough and that it provides as much detail as it possibly can.  This way the Defendant should be able to get on with their investigations sooner and come back with an admission of liability.

So how can you help make the Letter of Claim as clear as possible?
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How Much Compensation Will I Receive?

One of the most common questions people ask when they make a claim is ‘how much will I receive from my claim?’ If you have been injured as the result of an accident that was not your fault, you are entitled to claim compensation. In the majority of cases, financial compensation is the only remedy available and it is only natural for claimants to want to know how much they will receive.

There are two types of compensation, or ‘damages’ as they are formally called – ‘special damages’ and ‘general damages’.

Special damages are those paid to compensate the claimant for the actual financial losses caused as the result of an accident.  The aim of a personal injury claim is, as far as is reasonably possible, to put the injured person back in the position that they would have been in had the accident not have occurred.
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