Most people have no idea if they are entitled to make a claim for compensation; but thankfully, most of you know nowadays that there is an Injury Lawyer just a phone call away who is ready to fill you in.
So – here’s some general advice that may help you out when it comes to finding out if you are entitled to thousands of pounds in compensation for your injuries and suffering:
When am I Eligible to Make a Claim for Compensation?
If the accident was not your fault, but rather the fault of another person, then you may have a claim for compensation against the person responsible for your injuries. If it is a company responsible for your injuries, then you may be able to claim from any insurance they have. In a road accident, you can make a claim from the persons insurance.
For example, you could make a claim if:
- Another driver crashes in to the back of your car.
- You slip in a supermarket on a wet floor where no signs or preventative measures are in place to warn you of the hazard.
- You trip over a defective section of flooring – perhaps out and about on the street, or in a privately owned premises.
- You have an accident at work – perhaps similar to one mentioned above or perhaps because your employer fails to train you adequately, or fails to provide you with adequate work or protective equipment.
Should I Make a Claim for Compensation?
If you fit the criteria for the above, then yes – you are entitled to claim for a compensation sum reflective of the length and severity of your injuries and suffering. You are also entitled to claim for any financial losses incurred, such as lost of earnings, or medication and treatment expenses.
Ultimately, you are the victim of someone else’s negligence – you are legally entitled to recover compensation from the party at fault. It’s more than likely they will have insurance to cover them; so all you’re doing is claiming form a policy of insurance they already have in place.
When Should I Make a Claim?
In reality, its far, far, far better to make the claim as soon as possible when events are fresh in your mind (and the minds of any witnesses to the case), and you’re still in the recovery process. As well as documents and evidence being more easily available, you can get the benefit of private medical care with no costs to pay right from the start of the claim (providing you have a good lawyer on board!).
On a more serious note, you do only have, in most cases,3 years from the date of the accident to make a claim. Trying to start your claim just weeks before this is not always feasible to do. In order to save your case from the perils of limitation expiry, the case needs to have either settled or needs to be issued at a court of law before this date expires.
Please note that some claims have shorter limitation periods – so don’t just accept you have 3 years when in reality you may need to claim as soon as possible in order to be eligible to make a claim.
So, the time to claim is NOW.