Archives

It is an unfortunate fact that victims of motorcycle accidents are often left with serious injuries. This is due to the fact that motorcycles are generally the more vulnerable road user as they do not offer the various defensive features that a car can offer – features such as crumple zones, and airbags. They can also be difficult to see due to their size and speed; hence the need for campaigns such as Think Bike!

As the victims of these accidents can have more serious injuries, this can unfortunately mean that a claim for personal injury can take longer, as well as some of the issues involved being more complex. This is why is it important to get a specialist personal injury lawyer involved as soon as possible.

It is shown statistically that motorcycle users are commonly between the ages of 30 – 39 – this means that having an accident could mean that they are absent from work, and not bringing in any money, or are on a reduced rate of pay. In addition it is this section of the population who are likely to be coming up to the peak of their careers, and may have a young family to support.
Read More

STV has reported that a clubber has received nearly £30,000 in compensation having broken her wrist on a night out back in 2007.  It is stated that Angela Spading fell to the ground at Love2love nightclub in Inverness having been knocked by a fellow clubber and slipping on a floor covered in drinks. 

At first, Ms Spalding had tried to obtain £100,000 compensation having been unable to return to work, suffering anxiety and depression, as well as breaking her wrist; but in the end she received £28,000.  The matter settled out of court despite the Defendant, CFG Leisure, suggesting that Ms Spalding should have taken more reasonable care in looking where to place her feet.  After the settlement was reached, Mr Brash, lawyer for Ms Spalding, commented that in his experience ‘slips on wet floors in nightclubs are a fairly common type of accident, often leading to serious injury with long-lasting consequences…It is easy to criticise people who fall over in nightclubs for having ‘had a few’ but the clubs have a responsibility to their customers…’

At The Injury Lawyers we realise that people like to let their hair down on a weekend and go out for a few drinks down the local, or to a nightclub.  We also note that accidents on nights out do happen, and that in some cases, they could have been avoided.  You may or may not be aware that those who own nightclubs and other establishments owe their customers a duty of care to ensure their health and safety is maintained.  In doing so, they must abide by stringent health and safety regulations, and do as much as they practicably can to ensure that any risks to you are limited.  If you have an accident on a night out in a club that was not your fault, or where you were only partly to blame, it may be the case that you have a potential basis to make a claim for compensation for your injuries and other losses resulting from the accident.  If it can be established that the owner of an establishment has breached their duty of care for you – i.e. the owner was responsible for your injuries – then a claim for compensation can be made.  If you have been injured on a night out, it is a good idea to give an injury lawyer a quick call so that they can advise you on any potential claim you may have.
Read More

The Northern Echo has reported that a motorist is being pursued for £300,000 in compensation by a motorcyclist for an accident occurring back in June 2008.  Robert McPherson of Pudsey, West Yorkshire, has asserted that Michael Kitching of Northallerton pulled out of a junction, knocking him off his motorbike and causing several injuries; notably a fractured hip, arm, shoulder, ribs, an injury to his pelvis, and causing a pulmonary embolism.  At the High Court in Leeds it has been contended that the accident was ‘caused by the negligent driving’ of Mr Kitching.  Indeed, Mr Kitching has admitted liability for the accident.

It is worth noting that it is not purely his injuries that Mr McPherson is trying to claim for – he is also attempting to claim a significant loss of earnings.  As the Northern Echo reports, the court papers note that ‘At the time of the index accident, the claimant was a self-employed electrician fulfilling a handsome role as a director of his own business.  Following the accident, and because of the injuries sustained, the claimant is now less able to complete the duties required within his business and as such is disadvantaged when compared to others undertaking work of a similar nature to the claimant who has not suffered such injury.’  In essence, Mr McPherson will not be able to carry out the job role he did previously because of the injuries sustained in the accident with Mr Kitching – he has therefore suffered a significant loss of earnings.

This accident demonstrates two things.  Firstly, if you have been involved in a road traffic accident that is not your fault and have sustained an injury as a result, it is likely that you will be entitled to compensation.  You should therefore instruct a quality injury lawyer, like those at The Injury Lawyers, to fight tooth and nail for the maximum compensation you deserve.  And secondly, when making a claim for compensation, it is not purely your injuries that you may be entitled to compensation for.  If you have other losses which stem from your accident, a professional injury lawyer can make a claim for those on your behalf.  This is another reason why you should get an experienced injury lawyer like those at The Injury Lawyers on your side.  They know what the heads of losses you can obtain compensation for, and know how to go about doing this the right way.
Read More

At The Injury Lawyers we are often able to give approximate figures for which your claim for whiplash may be centred around; however, valuations for whiplash injuries are dependent on a number of factors which I go on to explain below:

Medical Report

Once liability has been admitted on your case, a medical examination will be arranged for you at a time and place convenient for you.  The purpose of this examination is to produce a medical report which assesses your injuries, as well as detailing the effects the condition has had on various aspects of your life – this can include your domestic, social, and professional life. At The Injury Lawyers we advise our clients to ensure they inform their medical professional as fully and as accurately as possible on all these various effects, as the medical report forms a foundation for the valuation of your claim.
Read More

Manholes and utility covers litter our pavements – so walking over them is often unavoidable. Many people tend to avoid walking over them for reasons of superstition, however I tend to avoid walking over them after hearing of the various personal injury claims that come into our office here at The Injury Lawyers.

In order to have a successful claim for personal injury, there are two main factors which need to proven – one is a breach of duty, the other is causation.

Breach of Duty
Read More

If you have been involved in an accident which is not your fault, and have sustained an injury as a result, it is highly likely that you may be entitled to compensation.  In order to ensure you get the maximum compensation you deserve, it is essential that you get the help of a professional, quality, and experienced injury lawyer on your side.  At the end of the day, they will have substantial experience in this area of law and will know best about how to progress your claim in the best possible way.  So – how do you choose which injury lawyer to act on your behalf?

In my opinion, the first thing you should do is ensure that your injury lawyer has that substantial experience in dealing with personal injury claims.  Once you have done this, you should then make sure that this injury lawyer will work on a genuine no win, no fee basis.  What I mean by this is that your lawyer will not charge you a penny for their work – meaning that you will get to keep 100% of the compensation that is owed to you.  After all, if your injury lawyer was to take even a penny away from you, that would leave you undercompensated.  At The Injury Lawyers, we are proud to say that we never charge our clients a penny for our work.  In our agreement with you, we specifically guarantee that we cannot pursue you for our costs in any event – win or lose.  This means that you always get the whole of your compensatory award – exactly how it should be.

One of the main reasons we can do this is because we only take your claim on if we genuinely believe it will be successful. What this means is that once your case is won we can recover our costs from the other side.  Further, in the unlikely event that your case is unsuccessful, we are covered by an insurance policy which means that we never seek to recover our costs from you.  Another reason we do not charge our clients is because we never pay a referral fee for your claim.  It may surprise you to find out that several ‘injury lawyers’ actually turn out to be claims referral companies who get you on board and then sell your claim, for anything up to around £800 to a solicitor who will then deal with your case.  What this means is that solicitor will then always be trying to recoup their costs.  This could mean by charging you, or lessening their service levels to save costs.  At The Injury Lawyers, we never pay a referral fee for your claim!
Read More

Whiplash is a common injury suffered following any sort of road accident – as a car driver, a passenger on a bus, or a motorcyclist / cyclist. It’s caused by the ligaments and tendons in your neck and back being stretched beyond their normal range of movement because of the impact of the collision.

As Whiplash Claims Experts, we get a lot of calls from people looking for whiplash compensation advice, and we are always able to help them out and successfully secure their compensation as quickly as possible.

The common questions we are asked:
Read More

It was reported on BBC News that a custody officer, who whilst at work, suffered a bite injury from a HIV positive asylum seeker, has been awarded £100,000 in compensation.

The custody officer, who is also a war veteran, suffered the attack whilst at work in Gatwick Airport.  As a result of the attack the officer needed 3 operations to repair the wound, and also had to wait 6 months to discover whether she was clear for HIV.

It later emerged that the detainee had bitten another officer only days earlier, and an error meant that other officers dealing with her were not informed, and precautionary measures were not put in place.
Read More

Not a day goes by where I don’t hear about a road traffic accident occurring. With driving 70 miles a day to get to and from work, I often either see an accident, or hear about one on the traffic news updates on the radio. I should imagine that this increase in accidents is due to the increased amount of traffic on the roads with people rushing to get to their destinations.

If you have been involved in a road traffic accident that was not your fault, you may have a claim for personal injury. Even if the negligent driver fled the scene without leaving his details, or was uninsured, you can still claim; but the system is different to what I am going to describe below.

How does making a claim work?
Read More

So – what is a claim for compensation? Do you have a claim? How do you make one? Are there any costs involved? Let me fill you in:

What is a Claim for Compensation?

A claim for compensation is the idea of compensating you for any suffering and loss caused after an accident that was through no fault of your own. Whether you’ve been hit by another negligent driver whilst out on the road, had an accident at work, slipped on a wet floor, or tripped over a hazardous defect / obstacle whilst out and about, if it wasn’t your fault, you may have a claim.
Read More