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There’s a general rule when it comes to making claims for compensation – if you were a passenger in an accident, you pretty much have a dead cert definite winner of a claim for compensation if you have ended up injured. So, is this the case for bus passengers too?

Unfortunately not – bus claims can actually be very difficult to win; dependant on the circumstances.

Collisions
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Claiming for injuries arising out of road traffic accidents is often straightforward.  This is because in most accidents it is quite clear who at fault.  It follows that if you were not at fault for the accident then you can be compensated for any injuries you may have suffered.

Here is an example: You are driving along and you are approaching a roundabout, you slow down to a halt as there are already cars on the roundabout, when unfortunately a third party driver negligently collides with the rear of your vehicle and you sustain whiplash.  You are not at fault for this accident and have been injured at the hands of another person, and you can therefore make a claim for compensation.  The Defendant’s insurer knows this and this is what you have to look out for.

If you have been in such an accident it may be that the other side’s insurer gets in touch with you, knowing full well that you have a very successful claim for compensation, and try and settle your compensation claim directly with you.  This is by no means illegal but it is important to note that if you agree any compensation with the Defendant’s insurers, in most cases, this will be in full and final settlement of your claim.  So if later you realise you are still injured and feel that you should receive more compensation – tough! Your claim has settled and no more compensation can be obtained.  Likewise, if you accept £400 compensation but are later advised that your claim was actually worth £2,000 you cannot go back and say you under-settled my claim, give me the difference.  The process in which your claim is settled directly with the Defendant’s insurer is known as ‘third party capture’.
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Burns can not only be extremely painful and uncomfortable, but they can be highly annoying because it can be difficult to alleviate the pain and discomfort. As well as being in discomfort for who knows how long, dependant on the severity of the burn, you could end up with some form of scarring.

So it comes as no surprise when our expert team of advisors get calls from victims of burn injuries all the time wanting to know whether they have a good claim for compensation or not. Given the potential serious nature of burn injuries, you need advice from an expert firm of personal injury specialist; so feel free to give us a call.

Whether you have been burned by a flame, scolded by hot water, burned by high temperature steam, or ended up in contact with a harmful chemical substance, once you have received your medical attention as quickly as possible, we will see if we can help you out. For now, here is a quick guide to give you a little bit of an insight in to claiming for burn injuries:
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Road traffic accidents, or RTAs, cover various different types of accidents that involve vehicles on the public highways.

Collisions between cars will usually be dealt with by the drivers’ insurance companies if the crash only caused damage to property. If the accident was more serious and resulted in one or more of the people involved being injured, it will usually be necessary for a personal injury lawyer to get involved.

The most common RTA’s involve collisions between car drivers on the roads. If there are passengers in the car, van, bus or coach who also suffer injuries in a crash, they can claim compensation from the company that insured the vehicle or vehicles that caused the crash as well.  This is even if they are travelling in the car of the driver who was at fault and they are closely related to the driver. This it to make sure that anyone injured in a road accident that was not their fault is fully compensated for their injuries.
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The majority of people out there will make their claim for compensation as a form of financial recompense for having to suffer through long periods of pain and injury. It’s only fair; it’s not nice being injured, and it has an impact on your everyday life both at work and at home. You will also be able to claim back any reasonable losses, such as lost earnings, treatment fees, and travel costs.

So it comes as no surprise that the question on many of our clients’ lips is “when will I get my payout?”

The thing is, the wheels of litigation can often turn quite slowly. Investigations need to be made, evidence needs to be obtained and compiled, and negotiations must take place. Whilst the system we have in England is pretty good for making sure claims are concluded quickly, lots of things need to be done.
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Type ‘lawyers’ into Google and you get about 266,000,000 hits.  Wow!  Type ‘injury lawyers’ into Google and you still come back with over 6 million hits.  Although there are not 6 million law firms in the United Kingdom, there are an awful lot of injury law firms out there ready to assist with your potential claim. 

In many ways this is great because it shows that you do have a good choice of lawyers as it is up to you to decide who you want to instruct to deal with your claim.  However, you must be careful, not all ‘lawyers’ are actually lawyers; more often than not you will come across what are known as Claims Management Companies who will refer your claim to other solicitors. 

At The Injury Lawyers we firmly believe that you should only go through real solicitors who can actually deal with your claim themselves, rather than some random company who will happily pass your details around.  Here is what to look out for:
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The phrase ‘slips and trips’ is often used to describe one of the most common types of personal injury claims.  These accidents can happen at work – for example, if an obstruction has been left in a corridor, liquid has been spilled on the floor, or the surface of the floor is in poor condition. Alternatively, they can also happen in public places such as in the street because of a pothole or uneven paving slab or on private premises where the public have access such as a cinema or supermarket.  

It is also possible to make a claim if you have a slip or trip on private land that is not open to the general public. However, for this type of claim, you must generally have been invited as a visitor onto the land or otherwise have a good reason for being there. An easy example – as a customer in a supermarket.

In both cases, the person or organisation responsible for the land or building has a legal duty to make sure that the area is reasonably safe. Whether the owner has failed to keep the area safe will depend on the circumstances, such as the type of land or building. For example, local authorities have a duty to maintain their pavements to keep them in good condition.
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You may have probably stumbled upon this article because you simply want to know how much your claim could be worth.  You may just be curious as you have now instructed your lawyers to deal with your claim, and you are pondering what your payout could be.

Or – you could be trying to gauge how much the insures of the driver at fault in the accident you were in is going to pay you directly.

Well, if you are dealing with the insurers directly – I have some VERY grave news for you.
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At The Injury Lawyers we are frequently asked about how the compensation claiming process works.  In most parts the claims process is actually quite straightforward; what is better is that with the right lawyer your side they will do all the work for you.  Here is a quick guide to how you accident claim works.

The first thing that is required is to produce a Letter of Claim.  This outlines your accident and why we consider that the Defendant is legally responsible for your injuries and should therefore provide you with compensation.  At The Injury Lawyers we try and get this off to the Defendant as soon as possible to make sure that there are no delays in getting your compensation.  It is therefore extremely helpful if you have all your details along with the accident circumstances, in as much detail as possible, so that your Letter of Claim is thorough and can be sent straightaway. 

The more detail your lawyers have the faster your claim can be settled because the Defendant will be able to investigate your claim without having to seek further information.  When your Letter of Claim is sent the Defendant has a period of 21 days to acknowledge receipt, and then upon this, a further 3 months to investigate your claim.  This is not to say that the Defendant will need these 3 months to investigate, but they are allowed this period of time.  Naturally, the more detailed the Letter of Claim, the faster your claim can be investigated.
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At The Injury Lawyers we welcome the recent announcement that referral fees have been banned.  We believe that this will provide greater transparency within the legal and insurance world and will ensure that the Claimant gets the best possible service.

A referral fee is a fee paid by a solicitor or claims management company to an insurer for the details of those who have been unfortunate enough to have been involved in an accident and sustained injuries as a result.  For example, you have been involved in a road traffic accident and suffered a broken arm through no fault of your own. 

Insurers know you have a claim for compensation and will provide your details to a solicitor or claims management company who is willing to pay between £200 and £1,000 on average for those details.  The reason they will pay such a hefty fee is because they know your claim for compensation has excellent prospects of success and that they can get this referral fee back and more in legal costs when they win your case.  All they have to do is get in touch with you, get you on board, and then win your claim – which is actually quite straightforward.
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