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.