Published in Truckstop News January 2012.

This month Steven Hinchliffe of the specialist Personal Injury Compensation firm Hinchliffes Solicitors considers TRAILER ACCIDENT COMPENSATION CLAIMS.

Continuing his review of successfully completed accident claims, Steven Hinchliffe looks at more situations experienced by readers of Truckstop News that ultimately lead to awards of personal injury compensation.  On this occasion the common feature is that both accidents happened while working on trailers.

All of the accident victims mentioned in these articles are clients of my firm, Hinchliffes Solicitors.  They have kindly given their permission for the disclosure of their details, and in particular of their real life experiences of incidents resulting in personal injury claims, and the steps taken to make a successful accident compensation claim.  All of these clients contacted my firm after seeing our details in Truckstop News.

In this article I highlight common place situations to which many professional drivers are exposed every day when carrying out their normal duties.  When working with trailers dangerous situations often arise, many of which are reasonably foreseeable by employers, yet inadequate steps are taken to try and prevent injury to their workers.  As with the previous articles in this series, the common trend remains the significant effect on each person’s life and here both of my clients suffered painful injuries that required medical attention.

Although using the established legal processes for making personal injury claims as a means of redress cannot truly compensate for the trauma and inconvenience suffered, in appropriate cases it can assist in requiring the guilty party to provide medical treatment and rehabilitation, in addition to financial relief by way of awards of compensation.  As previously stressed, the fundamental aim of all accident claims is to try and return the injured person to the position that he or she would otherwise have been in had the accident not happened.

Published in Truckstop News December 2011.

This month Steven Hinchliffe of the specialist Personal Injury Compensation firm Hinchliffes Solicitors considers HOW TO KEEP TRUCK DRIVERS SAFE ON THE ROADS.

Highways Agency statistics indicate that HGVs are involved in about a quarter of all road accidents, even though when looking at the overall makeup of the traffic on the UK’s roads, this vehicle type equates to a much lower proportion than 25%.

Employers have a duty towards their drivers to ensure, as far as reasonably practical, the health and safety of the employee and also that neither they nor anyone else affected by their presence on the road will come to harm.

To assist with this, employers must have in place a health and safety policy that can be accessed by their drivers.  Indeed the drivers should be consulted when the policy is formulated, and once in place they should be provided with appropriate training so that the risk of an accident occurring is minimised.  This is in addition to the usual steps that should be taken to ensure vehicles are roadworthy.

Published in CV Driver November 2011.

This month we chat to CV Driver Magazine regular contributor Steven Hinchliffe of personal injury specialists Hinchliffes Solicitors.  So, over tea and toast we talk about the personal injury claims business and how important it is to seek proper and sound advice – and the process of actually making a claim.

Steven qualified as a solicitor in 1978 and formed Hinchliffes Solicitors as a specialist claimant personal injury firm in 1999 in Malvern, Worcestershire.

As Steven explains, the firm has an extremely good reputation in this specialist field, with a large proportion of the claims coming as referrals from other satisfied clients.

In relation to road transport, as a legal practice they fully understand how the industry operates and in particular how the wide variety of equipment works and how people can get injured in the work place – for example, a poorly loaded forklift truck causing injury or a depot littered with debris causing a trip when pulling a loaded pallet truck.

Published in Truckstop News November 2011.

In this issue Steven Hinchliffe of the specialist Personal Injury Compensation firm Hinchliffes Solicitors considers THE CAUSES OF ACCIDENTS INVOLVING CURTAIN SIDED TRAILERS.

In this article, Steven Hinchliffe considers the accidents suffered by drivers and others who work with curtain sided trailers, and the factors that contribute to their injuries.  This is a popular type of trailer offering transport companies great opportunities for flexibility in the carriage of goods, but there is a downside to their use as it provides a relatively flimsy structure compared to a standard, rear loading trailer constructed of hard panels.

However, if a few standard safety issues are considered by all those involved, the chances of an accident occurring could be greatly reduced.

Published in CV Driver October 2011.

In this series of articles written by solicitor Steven Hinchliffe (owner of the specialist Personal Injury firm HINCHLIFFES SOLICITORS) he highlights the types of accidents suffered by professional drivers, where his firm has been successful in securing compensation for the injured victim.

His firm has many years of experience in handling accident claims, particularly following accidents at work and while on the road – and has recovered millions of pounds in compensation. 

CASE HISTORY

How the Accident Happened

In February 1999, while driving a concrete mixer up a steep hill for a contractor, it was necessary for the driver to select a lower gear.  In this particular vehicle the control levers operating the mixer drum were positioned at the back of the cab, directly behind the gear lever.  As the driver changed down, his elbow swung back and hit the solid metal control levers causing significant injury. 

Published in CV Driver September 2011.

In this series of articles written by solicitor Steven Hinchliffe (owner of the specialist Personal Injury firm HINCHLIFFES SOLICITORS) he highlights the types of accidents suffered by professional drivers, where his firm has been successful in securing compensation for the injured victim.

His firm has many years of experience in handling accident claims, particularly following accidents at work and while on the road – and has recovered millions of pounds in compensation. 

Published in Truckstop News September 2011.

This month Steven Hinchliffe of the specialist Personal Injury Compensation firm Hinchliffes Solicitors considers the GOVERNMENT PLAN TO DENY INJURED VICTIMS THEIR RIGHT TO BE COMPENSATED.

This article outlines the current rules about who pays the legal costs in making a claim for personal injury compensation following an accident, but warns that the clock is now ticking as the Government plans to change these rules.  This could drastically affect how much of the compensation an injured person may be allowed to keep.

Currently, there are a variety of ways to fund an accident claim, but the most frequently used (and the one most advantageous to the innocent victim) is a “No Win No Fee” agreement.  This is a phrase that many people are probably very familiar with, but the way the agreements operate is not always fully understood or appreciated.  This type of arrangement is more correctly described as a Conditional Fee Agreement (“CFA”), the present form of which was introduced in 2000 by the previous Government.  At that time the aim was to ensure that full access to justice was made available to all injured people, so that even if they could not afford to pay a solicitor, they would still have the opportunity take legal advice and make a compensation claim.

Published in Truckstop News August 2011.

This month Steven Hinchliffe of the specialist Personal Injury Compensation firm Hinchliffes Solicitors considers a specific SUCCESSFUL ROAD TRAFFIC ACCIDENT COMPENSATION CLAIM.

Continuing his review of successfully completed accident claims, Steven Hinchliffe looks at just one situation experienced by a reader of Truckstop News that resulted in an award of personal injury compensation.

All of the accident victims mentioned in these articles are actual clients of my firm, Hinchliffes Solicitors.  They have kindly given their permission for the disclosure of their details, and in particular of their real life experiences of incidents resulting in personal injury claims, and the steps taken to make a successful accident compensation claim.  All of these clients contacted my firm after seeing our details in Truckstop News – and readers may recognise some of the names referred to.

In this article I highlight a common type of road traffic accident, often referred to as a “rear end shunt”.  As with previous articles the common trend remains the effect on the individual’s life, and although using the process of law to make personal injury claims as a means of redress cannot truly compensate for the trauma and inconvenience suffered, it can assist in requiring the guilty party to provide medical treatment and rehabilitation, in addition to financial relief by way of awards of compensation.  As previously indicated, the basic aim of an accident claim is to try and return the injured party to the position that he or she would otherwise have been in had the accident not happened.

Published in Truckstop News July 2011.

This month Steven Hinchliffe of the specialist Personal Injury Compensation firm Hinchliffes Solicitors gives a REPORT OF HIS EXPERIENCES AT THE SHROPSHIRE TRUCK SHOW.

Unlike the previous articles I have written dealing with the Personal Injury Claims process, this month I reflect upon my observations after having had an exhibitors’ stand at the Shropshire Truck Show at the Oswestry Showground on 14^th and 15^th May.  If you were there you may have seen me on my firm’s stand, together with my Business Manager Nicky Hodges.

This was our first experience of exhibiting at this type of event and I was not sure what to expect.  In fact, Nicky and I were a little nervous as we had not done anything like this before.  Our worries were not helped by having to set up our stand in a howling gale during the late afternoon of Friday the 13^th!

Published in Truckstop News Summer Edition 2011.

In this issue Steven Hinchliffe of the specialist Personal Injury Compensation firm Hinchliffes Solicitors will consider more SUCCESSFUL ROAD ACCIDENT COMPENSATION CLAIMS.  

Continuing his review of successfully completed accident injury claims, Steven Hinchliffe looks at 2 similar types of accident experienced by readers of Truckstop News.  Each claim ultimately lead to an award of personal injury compensation.

All of the accident victims mentioned in these articles are clients of my firm, Hinchliffes Solicitors.  They have kindly given their permission for the disclosure of their details, and in particular of their real life experiences of incidents resulting in personal injury claims, and the steps taken to make a successful accident compensation claim.  All of these clients contacted my firm after seeing our details in Truckstop News – and some of the names referred to may be familiar to you.

In this article I highlight common examples of accidents that happen while driving on the UK’s roads.  As with the previous articles in this series, the common trend remains the significant effect on each person’s life and both of my clients suffered painful injuries that required medical attention.  Although using the established legal processes for making personal injury claims as a means of redress cannot truly compensate for the trauma and inconvenience suffered, in appropriate cases it can assist in requiring the guilty party to provide medical treatment and rehabilitation, in addition to financial relief by way of awards of compensation.  As previously stressed, the fundamental aim of all accident claims is to try and return the injured party to the position that he or she would otherwise have been in had the accident not happened.