How To Claim Personal Injury - Can Make The Difference Between a High Payout or A Few Pennies In Damages
There is no mystery about
how to claim personal injury but the actual nuts and bolts of what to do may seem a bit daunting to some people. I guess they become a bit intimidated because they are aware that solicitors are involved in such claims and mention of any legal proceeding terrifies them.
I guess the worst scenario you could face as a personal injury claimant is having to go to court to give evidence before a county court judge. At the other end of the scale is the scenario where you formulate and pursue your own personal injury claim. Most people’s claim fall between these two extreme poles which
how to claim personal injury shall deal with below.
How To Claim Personal Injury Settlements In Court
First of all only a tiny percentage of all personal injury claims ever get to court, something in the order of less than two percent of cases. Even within this two percent range of cases a number of them settle before trial to save on the cost of the trial which can prove very expensive for the losing party.
Some cases even settle at the court doors which is a testament to the skills of solicitors/counsel in
how to claim personal injury thus saving on the actual trial cost that would necessarily be incurred.
In a number of small claims including slips and trips in supermarkets on wet floors people need to know
how to claim personal injury against the super-markets involved. Even in motor accident claims where the accident circumstances are straight-forward such as being hit in the rear cases some claimants do not know
how to claim personal injury.
Pursuing Complex Claims
However, in the case of more complex claims such as employers’ liability claims or public liability claims against the council due to defects in the pavement, loose paving slabs or tripping hazards caused by deep holes in the pavement then these are usually taken up by personal injury lawyers.
Employees do not feel comfortable claiming against their employers so these claims are usually for the more serious injuries as trivial claims are not pursued for fear of losing their jobs.
How to claim personal injury against the council can prove to be a complex issue involving getting through the right department as some councils handle their own claims and only go through insurers for the more complex claims with reserves or estimates over a certain figure.
If you decide to pursue your own claim then you will need to submit a formal written letter of claim to the guilty party’s insurers. If you ever get a chance to see a letter of claim from solicitors then there is a certain format they follow in
how to claim personal injury which ensures that certain pertinent information is given to the defendant’s insurers.
This is to allow the defendants insurers to contact their insured in order to begin investigating the claim in respect of which they have a set time of three months to conclude their enquiries. The insurers must however acknowledge receipt of the claim promptly to the claimant.
Evidence Required To Make Your Claim
Some of the information solicitors will need include details of their insured and policy number and driver’s name in the case of a motor accident. They need the date and place of the accident and full details of the circumstances of the accident if that information is available. If there are any witnesses to the accident then they will need details of their identity and address so that witness evidence can be obtained from them.
If you are in possession of any witness statements then you can disclose these if they are supportive of your claim. Once insurers are in receipt of appropriate information the time-table will start to run for them to complete their investigations. At the conclusion of their investigations they will write to you with their initial findings.
It may be that at the conclusion of their investigations they write to accept liability in full in which case the only remaining issue is quantum for the assessment of damages for pain and suffering and the assessment of any claims for special damages including but not limited to loss of earnings, medical fees, physiotherapy etc.
How to claim personal injury follows a strict process under which you will be required to substantiate any claims you have for special damages. That means submitting wage slips, physiotherapy session fees or hire invoices in the case of a motor accident resulting in the hire of alternative vehicle. This part of the claim is for a liquidated sum which can be accurately calculated.
For the more substantial claims involving future loss of earnings and pension loss these are outside the realm of expertise of the average person not in the personal injury claims field as a specialist handler therefore you will need to instruct a personal injury solicitor to handle these for you.They are more familiar with the procedures involved in
how to claim personal injury involving the more complex claims
In the case of general damages for pain and suffering these are what is called un-liquidated damages. It means that there is no fixed sum for individual injuries which is set in stone. There are guidelines for the assessment of general damages but in general this head of claim must be assessed by experience using whatever guides are available including previous case laws and the JSB (Judicial Studies Board) Guidelines for the Assessment of Personal Injury Claims.
If you approach a firm of solicitors to seek advice on
how to claim personal injury they will follow the procedure laid out above. However, they will need to see you for an initial consultation in order to obtain full details of your claim. This is usually face to face at the solicitor’s office.
Risk Assessment By Solicitors
The solicitors will make an initial assessment of your prospects of successfully bringing a claim for personal injury based on the information you provide. If they believe that your chances of winning are less than fifty percent they are unlikely to take on your case as they will be unable to get ‘no-win-no-fee’ insurance to cover the legal costs.
If they assess your claim as having more prospects than fifty percent then they will take your case on a ‘no-win-no-fee’ basis. I will deal with the issues of no win-no-fee claims in a subsequent article as there is more to it than would be justified by a few lines here.
Now that we have covered how to claim personal injury for accidents in various circumstances you should now have a better understanding of what is involved in
how to claim personal injury and know that you can do this yourself if necessary.
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There is no mystery about how to claim personal injury but the actual nuts and bolts of what to do may seem a bit daunting to some people. I guess they become a bit intimidated because they are aware that solicitors are involved in such claims and mention of any legal proceeding terrifies them.
I guess the worst scenario you could face as a personal injury claimant is having to go to court to give evidence before a county court judge. At the other end of the scale is the scenario where you formulate and pursue your own personal injury claim. Most people’s claim fall between these two extreme poles which how to claim personal injury shall deal with below.
