Road traffic accidents are straight forward enough; normally it’s relatively simple to establish which of the vehicles involved was responsible for the accident. If someone drives in to the rear of your car – they’re at fault. If someone pulls out of a side road and hits your car – they’re at fault. But as a passenger, there is normally very little you can do to contribute to prevent an accident – and in the vast majority of cases, you are an innocent party!
As an innocent party involved in an accident attributable to another person, you have a claim for compensation. If you are in a taxi and another vehicle causes an accident, you have a claim for compensation. If the driver of the taxi you are in causes an accident – you still have a claim for compensation; your claim is against the taxi driver / taxi company.
So, are there any instances where you may have been at fault for the accident as a passenger? Well, yes – but very rarely. Say for example if you stepped out of a taxi before it had stopped, then you have yourself to blame if you are injured as a result! If perhaps you tripped and fell over whilst getting in to a taxi and it was your own (possibly drunken!) fault, then again, it’s likely you don’t have a claim. But generally speaking, if there is a collision involved, or the driver slammed their brakes on because they were going too fast, you have a claim for compensation.
There is one very important thing to remember however – seatbelts!!! A lot of people forget to put them on in a taxi. If you are in an accident and you weren’t wearing your seatbelt, then it’s likely you have contributed to your injuries, as they may not have been so bad had you have worn your seatbelt. If a seatbelt is not provided, then there is nothing you could have done – and there is usually no affect on the claim. But failing to wear a seatbelt and subsequently contributing to your injuries means that you may receive a reduced payout. It’s called Contributory Negligence – the other side can allege that you in some way contributed to your injuries through your own negligence. If this is the case, then usually your reward is reduced by a percentage appropriate to how much you contributed to your injuries. Wearing a seatbelt is the law – so failing to put it on will affect your claim for compensation!
So, what should you do if you are injured in an accident as a passenger? Speak to an expert independent personal injury lawyer as soon as you can for the best advice and representation for claiming! Avoid at all costs going with a solicitor appointed through the insurers of the taxi if they were not at fault – the insurers will sell the details of your claim on to the highest bidding solicitor, meaning you get a much poorer service than you deserve, and your payout is ultimately affected. Also avoid dealing with the third party insurers directly – get an expert on your side to fight your corner and make sure your claim is maximised.
There are no costs for instructing a genuine no win no fee lawyer like us – we recover our fees directly from the other insurers, and never make any deductions from your compensation or charges to you! With a genuine expert injury lawyers, you receive the highest payouts in the quickest possible time – your claim is guaranteed to be maximised.
Chose an expert, and chose them carefully. The choice is yours – don’t let anyone ever take that away from you with referrals or “appointed solicitors”!