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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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The Commons Health Select Committee debated the question as to whether the PIP implants are actually classified as ‘unsafe’ remains unanswered. Two reviews are looking in to scientific evidence of any risk the implants pose, as well as assessing the regulation within the cosmetics industry, and also reviewing the reaction and steps that were taken following the notification that the implants were dangerous back in March 2010.

As many of you are fully aware, we have only really been finding out about all of this n the last few months – two years on from the initial notification!

The conclusions from the reports remain unclear. According to the Committee, there is “no evidence of likely long term negative health effects attributable to PIP implants.” However, the advice goes in to say that “the quality of evidence available does not allow definitive conclusions to be drawn.” Further research is therefore a requirement to confirm whether the use of the silicon in these implants poses any health risk to the victims who have them.
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Yes – the clinic director who said that women were simply being “whipped into a frenzy” and claimed that the PIP Implants were not unsafe is now having her own set removed, according to sources from the Daily Mail. Mrs Beryl Atkins, the director of the Transform clinic, one of the big users of the implants, said there was “no evidence in the UK that PIP implants could rupture or cause cancer.”

In January this year she said “I have had PIP implants for five years and I’ve never had any problems. We’ve used them on a number of women and we haven’t had any complaints. People are being told they rupture and cause cancer but in the UK there’s no evidence for that. As a result there’s a mass panic. We have had no ruptures though.”

She added “it seems wrong that women with PIP implants are being whipped into a frenzy even though there’s no evidence they are dangerous.”
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We are already aware that many clinics have not been too friendly or helpful with the PIP victims to date – our source of information on this is dead on as well; our very own clients. It also seems that the idea of legal waivers is not only a growing concerns amongst victims who want their implants removed as soon as possible, but also an increasing trend amongst the clinics according to our clients.

But what is just as hard to stomach as this whole scandal is the idea of any clinics taking advantage of the worried victims to increase their profit margins. According to British Association for Aesthetic Plastic Surgeons (BAAPS), some clinics are trying to bully the PIP victims in to further unnecessary surgery, sources from the BBC have confirmed.

Clinics are cross-selling other procedures and services to PIP victims using scare tactics to convince them that further treatment could be a necessity.
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Whiplash injuries can cause people much distress, pain and an inconvenience. Here at The Injury Lawyers we know too well about the terrible effect whiplash can have on our clients. The injury does not only affect your health, but it can also affect any aspect of your life which can sometimes cause great difficulties. If you have suffered or are suffering from whiplash I am sure you know exactly what I am talking about.

Most people do not realise that they can claim compensation for a whiplash injury, they just think that the pain will eventually go away and everything will be ok.

However, most of the time whiplash injuries can last up to 6 months and if you have been injured as a result of someone else’s negligent actions you are entitled by law to claim for compensation.
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In April 2010 a new system to deal with road traffic accident claims was introduced and has made claiming quicker and more straightforward.  Before April 2010 the claims process could be a little bit slow – it could take nearly 4 months for the Defendant to admit liability in the most straightforward of cases, and then could take several more months, maybe a year or so, to get settled.  Now you could have your claim settled in just a few short of months!

Under the new system, if you have been involved in a relatively straightforward road traffic accident you will need to submit what is called a Claim Notification Form.  If you have the right injury lawyer on your side they will do this for you.  In any event it is quite straightforward and just outlines what happened in your accident and details those involved.

Once ready, this gets submitted online via the Ministry of Justice Portal to the Defendant’s insurer who has just one business day to acknowledge it.  The Defendant’s insurer then has a further 15 business days to come back with their position on liability – in other words, whether they admit or deny fault for the accident.  Compared to the old system which could take several months, this is a vast improvement.
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I am sure most of us realise that is illegal to drive without insurance – one thing is for certain however, some of us choose to drive without insurance.  In fact, each year, one million people drive on our roads without insurance.

Given that the usual route to getting compensation if you have been injured by a negligent third party in a road traffic accident is by pursuing their insurance company, this begs the question, how do you get compensation from an uninsured driver?

An expert injury lawyer should advise that you can still make a claim for compensation through the Motor Insurers’ Bureau who were set up back in 1946 to help those who suffer at the hands of negligent uninsured drivers.  After all, just imagine a scenario where you were unable to get compensation for you injuries simply because the Defendant committed the offence of driving without insurance, this would not be right.  That is why, each year, when you pay for your insurance premium, about £15 to £30 of this goes to the Motor Insurers’ Bureau compensation fund.  You just never know, one day it may come in handy for you!
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Most people in the United Kingdom drive.  Some are more confident drivers than others, but I think it is fair to say that there is always an aspect of driving that people least prefer.  For some people, the use of roundabouts can be terrifying, or at least, not particularly pleasurable.  Unfortunately accidents on roundabouts occur daily.  But it is not just those people who dislike roundabouts and are nervous when approaching a roundabout that cause the accidents, people who are overconfident often cause accidents too.

There are several types of accidents which happen on roundabouts.  Here are a few examples:

• You are waiting to get onto the roundabout and are queuing in traffic on the approach when a vehicle fails to heed the presence of your vehicle and slow down in time and goes into the rear of your vehicle
• You are proceeding round the roundabout when someone pulls out onto the lane in front of you mistakenly thinking they have enough time to do so and collides with your vehicle
• You are proceeding round the roundabout when someone realises they are in the wrong lane, and without noticing that you are in the lane, they want to be in changes lane and collides into your vehicle

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Whiplash is one of the most common types of injury we come across here at The Injury Lawyers.  This is because the most common type of accident claim is a road traffic accident claim. 

At the end of the day there are millions of cars on our roads, and humans make mistakes – meaning accidents happen.  If you are unfamiliar with whiplash or want a bit more information about whiplash, I have prepared this short guide for you.

What is whiplash?
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One of the most important things in helping to bring a successful claim for compensation if you have had an accident at work is to ensure that you have reported your accident.  If you do this there is a hard record of your accident and there should not be any disputes later on as to whether the accident happened or not.  Reporting your accident really is an excellent staring point.

Naturally, if you require urgent medical attention this you should be the first thing you seek.  At the end of the day, nothing is more important than your being okay.  But, once you have sought medical attention, make sure to get your accident recorded in the accident book at work and to inform your Manager of what has happened.

It is important to know that all employers are required by law to have an accident book and you should be made aware as to where it is kept.  You should also know that all accidents should be reported in the accident book, and near misses should be reported as well. 
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