How to Make Personal Injury Claims

If you have been injured in an accident that was not your fault, you may be entitled to compensation. The sensible first step is a conversation with a specialist personal injury solicitor, who can assess the prospects of your claim and explain what pursuing it would involve.

The course a claim takes depends on how the injury arose. In a road traffic accident, for instance, the claim is ordinarily directed to the other driver's insurer. Much also turns on whether liability is disputed. A claim formally begins with a letter before claim, prepared by your solicitor and sent to the proposed defendant, setting out the basis of the claim, the facts of the accident and the approach taken to compensation. The defendant may accept liability, deny it, or accept it while disputing the sums claimed. Where liability is accepted, most claims settle by negotiation, which is quicker and less costly than court. Where it is disputed, proceedings take longer, and the severity of the injury also affects the timetable.

The first steps

Two things matter at the outset: preserving the evidence, and taking advice promptly. Time limits apply. A claim for negligence resulting in personal injury must generally be issued within three years of the date you became aware of the injury, and if you were a child at the time, the three years run from your eighteenth birthday. Those limits are less generous than they sound, so early advice is important.

Keep a record

See a doctor after any accident, both for your own health and because it creates a clear contemporaneous record of the injury. In the course of a claim, a medical expert will assess the severity of your injuries and any longer term needs, and both feed directly into the calculation of compensation. Photographs, witness details and notes made while memories are fresh all earn their keep later.

Choosing a solicitor

Instruct a solicitor with real experience of cases like yours. The Law Society's find a solicitor service lists local firms by specialism and can verify a solicitor's SRA record. A local firm with a track record in personal injury work is usually the right choice, and many, ourselves included, will assess your case without charge.

What does no win, no fee mean?

Most personal injury work is done under a conditional fee agreement, better known as no win, no fee: you pay legal fees only if the claim succeeds, so pursuing compensation need not carry financial risk. Because an unsuccessful claimant can occasionally face an adverse costs order, solicitors ordinarily arrange After the Event insurance to guard against that possibility.

How a claim proceeds

An undisputed claim commonly concludes within six months to a year; disputed claims, and those involving severe or unusual injuries, take longer. The Pre-Action Protocol for Personal Injury Claims governs the conduct of both sides, ensuring each has the information needed to understand the claim, and providing a framework for medical evidence, rehabilitation and the contents of key documents such as the letter before claim.

How compensation is calculated

Damages fall into two parts. General damages compensate for what cannot be tallied arithmetically: pain, suffering and loss of amenity. Special damages cover what can: earnings lost to the date of trial, medical expenses, travel and similar outlays. For future losses, the courts use the Ogden tables, actuarial tables applying multipliers for matters such as life expectancy to produce a fair lump sum.

Will it go to court?

The great majority of personal injury claims settle without a hearing. A claim is likely to reach court only where liability remains disputed or the proposed defendant simply does not respond.

About the author: Dr Aamir Nawaz, LLB (Hons), LLM, PhD, Solicitor, Barrister (np) and Notary Public.