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I was thinking the other day about product liability claims in general as we have a lot of claims for personal injury caused by products.

The official definition to say whether you have a claim for product liability is when damage, loss, and/or injuries are suffered as a result of a manufacturing or design fault or failure to inform of a defect in a product. This means that the person responsible for the retail or production of the item in question both have the responsibility of informing the consumer of any instructions on how to use the product safely and avoid danger, any restrictions there may be with regards to age, weight or height etc. to prevent this from happening. And if any defects arise, they must inform all who have purchased the products that could cause fault to try and stop anyone from coming to harm.
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If you’re reading this article I’m guessing you are wondering what on earth the pre-accident protocol stage of my personal injury claim is?

The pre-accident protocol is designed to make straightforward PI claims quicker, easier and more cost efficient to settle, and avoid the necessity of going to court where possible. The protocol helps govern how claims are processed by the solicitor handling the claim until settlement or going to trial.

Once a lawyer is instructed to act on your behalf, and we have informed you that there is a good chance your claim will be successful, a letter of claim is sent to third party who we believe to be responsible for your injuries. This letter contains details of the circumstance of your accident, the allegations of what the party did wrong, the injuries you sustained in the accident, and that we are acting on a No Win, No Fee basis, and finally a list of documents they will need to provide us in the event the claim is disputed.
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If you are ever unfortunate enough to suffer an injury which you believe is a direct result of someone else’s negligence, you have every chance of claiming compensation by making a personal injury claim; and we at The Injury Lawyers can assist you in this to ensure that the process is as hassle free and straightforward as possible, allowing you the time and opportunity to focus your attentions on the most important priority – your recovery.

The protocol surrounding most personal injury claims is as follows –

Upon receiving details of your claim, we will send a letter of claim to the defendants which outlines the details of your accident and injuries, and how we believe them to be liable. From here we give them a period of 21 days to respond to our letter, informing us that they have acknowledged our claim and have forwarded the details over to their representing insurers.
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If you are claiming for compensation and the insurers representing the other side have admitted liability (i.e. agreed to pay out for your claim), it is quite common these days to receive a pre-medical offer – or pre-med as they are commonly referred to.

What is a pre-med offer? 

It is an offer of settlement, without the evidence and sight of a medical report, put forward by the third party insurer to the legal representative of the claimant. In today’s economic climate, for some individuals this may be quite tempting to accept at the early stage of an injury claim.
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If you ever find yourself injured in an accident as a consequence of someone’s negligence, leaving you distressed and at harm either from a physical or psychological injury, it is only justifiable to ensure that you are well compensated as a result of this injury for your pain suffering, and loss of amenity.

With this in mind then, it is important to understand that it is not possible to seek compensation directly from an individual who caused the accident as, from a financial perspective, they would certainly struggle to compensate you properly. Therefore the preferable route would be to seek damages against their employer as chances are they will posses adequate insurance for you to claim from.

Having said this, in order for a case of vicarious liability to be successfully brought a distinction must be made between what qualifies an individual to being under a ‘contract of employment’ and under a ‘contract for services’.
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Personal injury and how to claim may seem like a daunting prospect to grasp at first, particularly when riddled with bewildering legal jargon and terminology.

It will come as no surprise therefore when I tell you that individuals can become quite easily overwhelmed and disheartened with the procedure, and when initially paired with the substantially traumatising experience of the accident itself, made to feel angry, alienated and cheated. But fear not! Help is at hand, in the shape of our genuine No win, No fee, agreement, shouldering the burden and pressures which accompany claiming compensation, giving you the time and priority needed to focus your attentions on more important issues, none so more than your speedy recovery.
 
After information regarding a potential claim has been received, our primary action is the creation of a letter of claim which states the critical information involved in the accident. This is then sent to the third party defendant for analyse.
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Believe it or not the amount of accident which arise on or about stairwells are consistently increasing with each passing year. In light of this it is important to understand then that if you are ever so unfortunate as to suffer an injury on a flight of stairs and you are adamant that the accident occurred as a direct result of another parties negligence, you may have every right to bring a successful claim and as such recover adequate compensation for your injuries.

It is imperative to understand that the nature surrounding potential avenues to claim under defected stairwells are numerous. Let’s take the workplace for a predominant example. Under these circumstances the employer of any business which hires employees are under a direct legal obligation to ensure that any staircases within their establishment are compliant with all the necessary health and safety checks to ensure that they are adequately protected from any potential legal repercussion.

Such health and safety include providing an assurance that all staircases well lighted particularly in areas which are mostly susceptible to visual difficulty in addition to making sure that appropriate handrails are provided for ease of climbing and support. It is also worth mentioning that employers must carry out consistent checks to ensure that the stairwells are always safe for usage, it is not enough to test them once and believe that that is enough.
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When we hear the word whiplash, most of us think of a road accident involving the collision of vehicles.  It is true that whiplash is the most common type of injury caused from a road traffic accidents; however, this is not always the case. This type of injury can also be common in contact sports such as rugby and boxing, or from a slip or trip resulting in a fall.

What is whiplash? 

It is commonly soft tissue damage in the neck, back and shoulder areas; the head may jolt quickly backward and forwards, or sideways.  This sudden jolting motion causes damages to the ligaments and tendons.  We cannot always protect ourselves from incidents such as this, but if they happen, especially when it’s through no fault of our own, it can be very stressful and inconvenient.
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It is no exaggeration when I pronounce that asbestos can quite rightly be defined as a silent killer. Thousands of people in the UK alone suffer from an asbestos related disease of some form or another – and what is most poignant is that, unlike other life threatening diseases which may more often than not be brought about by an hereditary consequence, in most circumstances, diseases which are either directly as a result of asbestos or where asbestos has acted as a catalyst in the diseases growing can be prevented by carrying out relatively simple safety precautions and exercises.

In light of this then, it is not unreasonable to say that, should you be the victim of an asbestos related disease as a result of negligent exposure to it by another party, you are well within your rights to claim compensation to cover any loss or injury.

But when can you claim?
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It is a sad fact that on too many occasions, when an individual has an accident in a building or office which is open to the public, more often than not the natural reaction is one of uncontrollable panic and embarrassment – it is not enough that you have slipped over on the floor, but when it’s in front of everyone as well! It is important to understand however that it is at this point where you are at your most vulnerable; as such it is not uncommon for people to just want to forget about the situation and move on as quickly as possible.

In light of this, I cannot stress enough that this is the wrong decision to take, if you are ever unfortunate enough to suffer an injury either at work or in a public building as a result of slipping on some poorly maintained surface or flooring which is a direct result of the occupier or employers negligence. You may very well be able to claim for personal injury and your losses which, although may never be able to fully make up for the embarrassment a fall brings, will certainly hope to bring a quiet sense of justice and satisfaction for you.

It is important to realise that establishments such as supermarkets and public houses are all under a legal obligation to ensure for their patrons that their time spent in their establishment is not only a pleasant one, but also one that is safe and without negative consequence. Because of this, it is considered a legal requirement that regular inspections regarding the entirety of the establishment are carried out as and when required, providing assurances that any potential defects or hazards are dealt with as swiftly and efficiently as possible to ensure that visitor accidents are always kept to a minimum; therefore protecting the appropriate occupiers from any legal repercussions.
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