There are a lot of compensation solicitors out there ready and willing to take on your case. However, unfortunately things are not always what they seem – something that advertises itself as a firm of lawyers, may actually be a claims management company that then refers you across to one of their “panel” of lawyers; so the people you speak to initially may not be legal professionals at all!
Usually these companies will put in their small print “we are a cohesion of lawyers” or a “group of lawyers” or something similar, which is a posh way of saying we are a claims management company who put you in touch with lawyers that we have chosen. Of course, this seems an absurd way of doing things as you can simply go to a solicitor direct and cut out the middleman! Not many people hire a middleman to find them a dentist, hairdresser or accountant; you simply go to them direct. So why should finding a compensation lawyer be any different?
What makes these “middlemen” even more irritating to genuine law firms like us is that they will be paid to pass your details across to their solicitors, which means essentially they are buying your details from you. It is highly beneficial to them as they get a nice fee without having to do the rest of the work; but unfortunately this can be detrimental to you and your claim.
If a solicitor pays for the details from the claims management company, the money that is used for the referral fee is taken away from their funds to run your case. Bearing in mind how expensive legal fees can be, this basically reduces the amount of a work a solicitor will be willing to do on your file as they may not get paid for it because they’ve wasted a chunk of their budget on the referral fee! This is especially important in road traffic accident claims where solicitor’s fees are capped at considerably low amounts. Therefore, it is always sensible and best for you and your claim to speak with a genuine law firm direct. Here at the Injury Lawyers, all our Clients have come to us direct and many that have had friends or family injured will recommend us to deal with their claims!
Another thing to look out for in the compensation legal world is No Win No Fee agreements! These are a fantastic way to pursue a claim however you should always be sure to read the conditions carefully. Here at the Injury Lawyers, we have tailored our paperwork to make it safer for you! We limit our fees to what we can recover from the other side if your claim is successful. Many other firms simply seek to recover their fees and leave it open to being able to come to you the client for any unpaid monies! These are the horror stories many people relay to me on a daily basis.
Therefore if you are looking to seek compensation contact us direct!
