The early stages of personal injury claims are governed by something called the pre-action protocol. These are specific steps that must be followed prior to the commencement of a claim at court. The point of the protocol is to try and encourage contact and early exchange of information so that claims can be settled at an early stage, preferably without litigation. However, the steps of the protocol mean than both parties are better prepared if proceedings are issued which again means that the verdict on cases should be reached more swiftly.
Minor infringements of the protocol are not deemed serious but if the protocol is not followed then the court can penalise the non-compliant party. Making a personal injury claim is often perceived as a long and arduous process in which the third party insurer do everything they can to avoid coming to a decision. This isn’t (always) entirely the case! As detailed below, when an insurer is made aware of a claim they are given a reasonably lengthy time period under the pre-action protocol in which to conduct their investigations as detailed below
When we take on your case, one of the first things that we have to do is to send a letter of claim to the defendant in proceedings, detailing the basis of the claim and asking them to pass the letter on to their insurer if applicable.
The defendant should then reply within 21 days of the date of posting the letter, identifying their insurer. The insurer will then have a further three months to investigate the claim and reply to us, stating whether liability is admitted or denied for your claim.
This might seem like an awfully long time and we understand that it can be a frustrating for clients, particularly those with ongoing suffering and that is why we always do our best to progress your claim as quickly as possible at every opportunity and provide a quality service to our clients.