What happens if the other driver admits to and accident?

comercrawley

the personal injury lawyers

Your questions answered……

Question:  I was injured in a car accident last year.  The other driver admitted that the accident was his fault and his insurance company have recently made me an offer of settlement.  I have been dealing with the claim on my own and have not consulted a solicitor.  I am still suffering quite badly from the effects of the accident.  I am worried that the offer may not be enough if I continue to have problems in the future.

Answer:   You are right to be concerned about accepting the offer.  Personal injury claims are normally settled on a full and final basis which means that if you were to accept the offer, the likelihood would be that you would be prevented from claiming further compensation in the future.

It is therefore important to be satisfied that the amount of any settlement offer is sufficient to cover not only the pain and expense that you have suffered to date but also the ongoing problems and financial losses that you are likely to suffer in the future.

It will not be possible to make a proper assessment of the value of your claim until final medical evidence has been obtained.  This means obtaining a report (sometimes more than one is needed) from an independent medical expert detailing the injuries that you have suffered in the accident and stating what the long term prognosis is.  As well as knowing whether your ongoing symptoms are likely to be permanent, it is also important to know whether your symptoms may get worse.

As well as obtaining final medical evidence, it is also essential to have full details of all the financial losses and expenses suffered as a result of the injuries, both past and future.  This will include loss of earnings, pension loss, medical expenses, care costs and help with other tasks such as DIY.

The best advice is therefore for you to consult a specialist personal injury solicitor who will be able to give you specific advice about your claim and the settlement offer that the insurance company have recently made.  You do not need to be concerned about the payment of solicitors’ costs as the insurance company will pay your legal costs as well as your compensation.

If you have a question for our legal advice team you can submit it by email: enquiries@comercrawley.co.uk or in writing to:  Chancery House, Victoria Road, Diss, Norfolk IP22 4HZ.

If I make a claim - does that affect my benefits?

comercrawley

the personal injury lawyers

Your questions answered……

Question:  I have had an accident and am considering making a claim for compensation.  I am concerned however that if I receive compensation it may mean that my benefits get stopped.  Could this happen?

Answer:   There is a risk that this could happen but there is a way that it can be avoided.

The risk only applies to state benefits that are means tested, examples of which are Income Support, Housing Benefit and Council Tax Benefit.  Certain benefits are non means tested (such as Incapacity Benefit, Disability Living Allowance and Child Benefit) and there is no risk of these being affected by the mere fact of receiving compensation.

For means tested benefits, there are financial eligibility limits including those relating to capital.  What needs to be considered is whether, by receiving the compensation payment, it may take you above a limit that will mean that either your benefit is reduced or stopped altogether.  This will depend on a number of factors including how much compensation you will be receiving, what other capital you have and what the financial limits are for that particular state benefit.  Any capital that your partner has may also be taken into account.

It is possible however to prevent benefits from being affected by setting up a Personal Injury Trust and paying the compensation directly into an account specifically set up for the trust.  The Benefits Agency must still be informed of the change in your circumstances but upon being advised that the compensation has been paid into a Personal Injury Trust, should disregard that capital in their assessment of your means so far as your benefit entitlement is concerned.

Your solicitor will be able to advise you as to whether a Personal Injury Trust is advisable in your case and, if so, to explain what is involved in setting up a Trust and how to go about doing this.

The fact that it is possible to protect your entitlement to benefits means that the fact that someone may be in receipt of a means tested state benefit should not deter them from pursuing a claim for compensation.     

If you have a question for our legal advice team you can submit it by email: enquiries@comercrawley.co.uk or in writing to:  Chancery House, Victoria Road, Diss, Norfolk IP22 4HZ.

What happens if your in a car accident?

comercrawley

the personal injury lawyers

Your questions answered……

Question:  I was injured in a car accident.  The accident was the fault of the driver of another car but I understand from the police that he was not insured to drive the car.  Can I still claim compensation?

Answer:  Yes, the fact that the driver was uninsured is not a bar to you claiming compensation.

The first thing that will need to be investigated is whether the other vehicle was insured.  If it turns out that the vehicle was insured but the driver was not covered under the insurance policy, then your compensation claim will be dealt with in the usual way.  The insurers of the vehicle will deal with your claim (assuming of course that negligence of the other driver can be proved), the only difference will be that the insurance company will not agree to indemnify the driver and thus the insurance company can seek to recover from him their outlay in respect of your claim.

We can find out whether a vehicle is insured, and if so obtain the necessary details, by carrying out a check on the Motor Insurance Database.

If it turns out that both the vehicle and driver were uninsured, then a claim for compensation can still be pursued.  A claim can be made to the Motor Insurers’ Bureau (MIB) under the Uninsured Drivers’ Agreement.  The MIB basically compensates the victims of drivers of uninsured vehicles and also the victims of untraced drivers.  The MIB is funded by motor insurance companies in proportion to their market share.

The procedure for making a claim to the MIB differs to the usual compensation claim dealt with by an insurance company.  There are also certain rules and requirements in terms of successfully making a claim to the MIB.  Your solicitor will however be able to specifically advise you on this and will ensure that the appropriate procedure is followed. Generally speaking, a claim dealt with by the MIB tends to take longer.

Once however a claim to the MIB is accepted (that is, negligence of the uninsured driver proved and the criteria of the scheme satisfied), your compensation claim will proceed in the same general way and your compensation claim will be valued in the usual way, with the MIB paying the normal amount both in terms of compensation and legal costs. 

If you have a question for our legal advice team you can submit it by email: enquiries@comercrawley.co.uk or in writing to:  Chancery House, Victoria Road, Diss, Norfolk IP22 4HZ.

Injured On The Bus...

comercrawley

the personal injury lawyers

Your questions answered……

Question:  I was recently injured whilst travelling on a bus.  I gather that the bus driver turned a corner too quickly with the result that I was thrown from my seat and injured my shoulder.  Can I claim compensation?

Answer:  Yes, a compensation claim can be pursued if it can be proved that the reason for you being injured was due to the negligence of the bus driver.  A bus driver owes a legal duty of care to passengers on the bus to ensure that they a not exposed to a foreseeable risk of injury.  It can be argued that by failing to drive at the appropriate speed and to turn the steering wheel appropriately, the bus driver caused for passengers on the bus to be at risk of suffering an injury.  The risk of injury can be said to be foreseeable particularly taking into account the fact that passengers will not be wearing a seat belt.

The bus company will be legally liable for the bus driver’s negligence as he or she was acting within the course of his or her employment.  The claim will normally be covered by the bus company’s motor insurance policy.

You can claim compensation in the normal way, both for your shoulder injury and for any financial losses and expenses that you have suffered as a result.

If you have a question for our legal advice team you can submit it by email: enquiries@comercrawley.co.uk or in writing to:  Chancery House, Victoria Road, Diss, Norfolk IP22 4HZ.

I suffered an injury to my eye in an accident at work....

comercrawley

the personal injury lawyers

Your questions answered……

Question:  I suffered an injury to my eye in an accident at work.  I was operating a piece of equipment, a circular saw, and a splinter of wood flew into my eye.  The accident happened at my last job and at the time I was reluctant to make a claim against my employer.  Unfortunately, I did not enter details in the accident report book.  Can I still make a claim?

Answer:   The description that you have given of the accident suggests that you were not wearing eye protectors, such as goggles, when the injury occurred.  Under the Personal Protective Equipment Regulations 1992, an employer is under a duty to ensure that suitable personal protective equipment is provided to employees who may be exposed to a risk to their health and safety while at work.  Therefore, if your employer failed to provide you with eye protectors, you would be able to pursue a claim under the Regulations for the injury and financial loss that you suffered as a result of the accident.

The fact that you did not enter details of your accident in the accident report book will not prevent you from claiming compensation.  It is always best for an accurate record to be made of an accident as soon as possible after it occurs as this helps in proving the accident and injury.  In your case however there will still be many other ways of proving your claim including your own evidence, the evidence of any work colleagues who witnessed your accident and your medical records.  It is also anticipated that your previous employer will recall your accident and will be able to confirm the circumstances to their employers liability insurers who will deal with your claim.  Additionally, your employer should have sent a written report of your accident to the Health and Safety Executive. 

Finally, there is a general time limit of three years that applies to personal injury claims such as yours.  Therefore, provided that your accident occurred less than three years ago, you will still be within time to pursue a claim for compensation.  Please be aware however that the time limit specifies that court proceedings must be commenced within three years of the date of the accident.  It is not sufficient to merely notify your previous employer of your claim within that time.  If your claim is not issued at court within the three year time limit, you are likely to be barred from claiming compensation.  A solicitor will be able to advise and assist you further with this.

If you have a question for our legal advice team you can submit it by email: enquiries@comercrawley.co.uk or in writing to:  Chancery House, Victoria Road, Diss, Norfolk IP22 4HZ.

My son was in an accident.

comercrawley

the personal injury lawyers

Your questions answered……

Question:  My ten year old son was injured last year in an accident when he was hit by a car whilst crossing the road.  The driver of the car was driving within the speed limit and the police have told us that they are not taking any action against him.  Can my son still seek to claim compensation from the driver?

Answer:   Yes, the fact that someone has not been convicted of a criminal offence relating to an accident does not necessarily mean that they will not be found to be negligent in a civil claim for compensation.  The standard of proof in criminal cases is much higher, beyond all reasonable doubt, compared with in civil claims where it is on the balance of probabilities or in other words more likely than not.  Also different evidence may be presented at a criminal trial than any subsequent trial in a civil claim for compensation.  A criminal conviction (such as driving without due care and attention) is helpful as it can be used as evidence of negligence; the lack of a criminal conviction or prosecution however does not mean that a civil claim will fail.

Also the fact that someone was driving within the speed limit does not mean that they have not been negligent.  The Highway Code makes it clear that the speed limits are simply to be regarded as the absolute maximum and that it does not mean it is safe to drive at that speed irrespective of the conditions.

In particular, drivers are expected to be wary of children who may be intending to cross the road.  There have been cases where drivers have been found to be negligent despite travelling within the 30mph speed limit as they failed to slow down when a child was either walking towards the road or standing near to the edge of the pavement.

In summary therefore, your son may be able to successfully pursue a claim for compensation against the driver if it can be shown that in all the circumstances he acted negligently in causing the accident.

If you have a question for our legal advice team you can submit it by email: enquiries@comercrawley.co.uk or in writing to:  Chancery House, Victoria Road, Diss, Norfolk IP22 4HZ.

Your questions answered……

comercrawley

the personal injury lawyers

Your questions answered……

Question:  I have been told that if I pursue a claim for compensation I must agree for my entire medical records to be disclosed.  This is putting me off making a claim as I don’t want, say, an insurance company to know my personal medical history.  Is this true?

Answer:  It is true that someone pursuing a claim for compensation needs to be agreeable to their medical records being disclosed.  This includes general practitioner records and records relating to any relevant treatment such as hospital or physiotherapy.  It is also true that all of a claimant’s GP medical records need to be disclosed and not just those that relate to the treatment that s/he has received in connection with the injuries to which the claim relates.

The reason why all of the medical records need to be obtained is because the medical expert who prepares the report on the claimant’s injuries needs to be in a position to report fully on the injuries suffered.  As part of this process, the medical expert needs to consider whether there is anything in the claimant’s medical history which may be relevant.  This includes whether the claimant has had any similar problems in the past (for example, in the case of a back injury, whether the claimant has had any problems previously with his/her back).

The fact that all of your medical records would need to be obtained should not however put you off pursuing a claim for compensation.  The medical expert will only include in the report information which is relevant to the claim.  Consequently you do not need to be concerned that personal information in your medical records which is irrelevant to your claim will be included in the report.

Finally, it is important also to mention that those who have had sight of your medical records are required to treat them entirely on a private and confidential basis.

If you have a question for our legal advice team you can submit it by email: enquiries@comercrawley.co.uk or in writing to:  Chancery House, Victoria Road, Diss Norfolk, IP22 4HZ.