WHAT TO CONSIDER WHEN MAKING A PERSONAL INJURY COMPENSATION CLAIM

May 14th, 2008 Hinchliffes

Published in Truckstop News - October 2007.

This article deals with the basic elements that need to exist for a claim for personal injury compensation to be made following an accident.

The accident must have happened because of the negligence or fault of another party, by whom you were owed a “duty of care”. This means that there must be a sufficiently close relationship between you and the other party for them to be aware that their actions (or lack of action) may have an impact upon you. This is normally the case when the other party is your employer, a company to whom you are delivering or another road user.

Accidents often happen at work and there is significant legislation that employers have to comply with. However, many employers simply fail to comply and as a result put their workforce unnecessarily at risk. Your employer must provide you with a safe working environment, and ensure that you have sufficient and appropriate equipment and training to allow you to carry out your job. Your employer is also responsible for the actions of your colleagues while they are carrying out their jobs. Similarly, the companies to whom you deliver must ensure that you are safe while on their premises.

If you were partly responsible for the accident it will still be possible for you to make a claim against the other party, but the amount of compensation you will recover if the claim is successful is reduced to reflect your level of contributory fault.

You must have suffered injuries or have an existing medical condition that was made worse as a direct result of the accident. If your injuries were minor and can be valued (usually by solicitors) at less than £1,000 you will not be able to recover your legal costs from the other party and you may therefore want to consider pursuing the claim with the minimum of legal advice. However, if the value of your injuries is £1,000 or more, you can instruct a solicitor to handle the matter on your behalf, as the other party will be required to pay your legal costs in addition to your compensation if your claim succeeds.

In addition to compensation for your injuries, you can also include in the claim any financial losses you have suffered or any expenses you have had to incur because of the accident. Lost wages tend to be the major item of financial loss and if the accident results in serious injuries and you are unable to return to work for a significant period, this element of the claim can amount to a considerable sum. You may also have to attend medical appointments, pay prescription charges or buy pain killers, and all these items can also be included. The ultimate aim of the claim is to put you back in the position that you would have been in had the accident not happened.

For all accidents that come within the jurisdiction of the Courts of England and Wales, a formal claim must be served on the other party by the Court within 3 years of the date of the accident, otherwise no claim can usually be made. This time limit can differ depending on the type of claim made and where the accident took place, and in some situations is less than 3 years.

Even if the accident occurred abroad, for example while you were making a delivery, the claim may still come within the scope of English Law if the other party (whether your employer or the company to whom the delivery is being made) is registered at Companies House.

Once a formal letter of claim has been sent to the other party, the matter is almost always put in the hands of their insurers, who will investigate the allegations and then make a decision whether they will accept responsibility for the accident. There is a set protocol that must be followed, which requires both parties to act in an open and reasonable way, and sets a timetable for the insurers to reach their decision. This means that it is normally possible to bring a claim to a conclusion within 9 to 12 months, unless the medical position is complicated or the insurers firmly deny responsibility, in which case the Court may need to become involved.

Not all accidents result in an entitlement to compensation and some are simply pure accidents for which no one can be held responsible. However, despite the headlines in the press, the country is not in the grip of a “compensation culture” and in fact many people are very reluctant to make a claim, even when they have suffered significant injuries and have been unable to return immediately to work.

If you have been involved in an accident it is always best to discuss the matter with solicitors who have sufficient experience in this field to advise you on a) whether you are likely to be able to establish that the accident was someone else’s fault and can therefore make a claim and b) the likely value of the claim, so that you can then consider your options.

ENDS

PERSONAL INJURY CLAIM SOLICITORS:-

If you have suffered any form of accident contact personal injury specialists Hinchliffes Solicitors for immediate legal advice, to find out if you are entitled to make claims for injury compensation. All cases are conducted on a No Win - No Fee basis, where the Client keeps 100% of the compensation recovered.

Call now on 0800 138 1348 to speak direct to a personal injury lawyer or go to our Start Your Claim Now page to submit details of your personal injury claim online.