If you have been involved in a road traffic accident which was not your fault, and as a result you have sustained injuries and loss, in all likelihood you could be due compensation. For example, if you were stationary at a roundabout and someone has driven into the back of your vehicle, and you have suffered a whiplash injury as a result, you are entitled to be compensated for the whiplash injury.
Similarly, if you have been correctly proceeding down your side of the road and another driver negligently pulls into your lane and collides head on with you, you could be compensated for any injuries you have sustained in the accident. The best thing to do, once you have been able to attend a hospital or your GP, is to contact a specialist personal injury lawyer with experience in dealing with road traffic accident claims – they can advise you as to whether you have a potential claim and will be able to provide quality representation. In the meantime, here is a quick guide as to how the compensation process works.
On the 30th April 2010 a new protocol was introduced to deal solely with road traffic accidents between particular values. The majority of road traffic accidents will be dealt with under this process and it must be said that this new process is much, much quicker than its predecessor.
The first stage is to submit a Claim Notification Form (‘CNF’) through the Ministry of Justice internet Portal online. Your injury lawyer will be able to do this for you and all that is required is that you provide your details, the other side’s details, and information about the accident. This is then submitted to the Defendant’s insurers who must acknowledge the CNF within 1 business day. From then they have a period of 15 business days in which to admit or deny liability on behalf of the driver that caused your accident. At The Injury Lawyers we only take on claims if we genuinely believe they will be successful. What this means is that, in our experience, we are able to achieve admissions of liability very quickly in the majority of cases – the Defendant does not often take the full 15 business days they are allowed.
Once liability is admitted for your accident we will arrange for you to attend a medical appointment with an expert who will compile a legal medical report on your injuries and your likely prognosis. This will be arranged for a time and place convenient for you. Once your injury lawyers receive your report back they will check it over and let you have a look to make sure you are happy with it. It will then get disclosed to the Defendant and your lawyers will then negotiate your settlement.
This new Protocol deals with claims in a much speedier way than before, where the other side were allowed a period of nearly 4 months to acknowledge and investigate your claim. If you want some further information or advice please give us a call today and we would be happy to assist.
