Here we go again! Its snow joke out there; snowmaggeddon has returned; there’s snow way it’s as bad as this; and all the usual jokes and trends on twitter about the weather we’re having at the moment. I remember when I was a kid I was praying for snow to get me off school so I could spend all day sledging and snowball fighting. Now, as a commuter, I hate the stuff!
As well as the obvious delays it can cause, road accidents due to snow are extremely common. All drivers need to adjust the speed and manner in which they drive in to meet the conditions of the road. Snow and ice causes obvious traction issues, so we all need to slow down and take it steady on corners, hills, and country roads. Sadly, not everyone listens to that.
The point of this article though is to let you know that the weather is not an excuse when it comes to personal injury compensation claims. If you have been injured because another driver has skidded in to the back of you, or veered over from their side of the road, or in any other circumstance because snow and ice on the road has caused them to lose control of their vehicle, they are more than likely liable by law! The at-fault driver cannot use the excuse “I was driving as safely as I could, and I wasn’t speeding; there’s just too much snow and ice and I couldn’t keep control of my car!”
So if you are hit by another driver because they lost control due to the snow, get in touch with us now and make your claim for personal injury compensation. You need to make the claim now because…
Time is Running Out!
The days of 100% compensation are looking to be long gone after 1st April 2013. Due to Parliamentary changes, the rules are being changed for most claimants making a claim for compensation. The rule changes mean that insurance premiums that protect claimants from adverse costs when making a claim, and a success fee for the lawyer for taking the risk of the case on under a No Win, No Fee agreement, are no longer recoverable from your opponent.
What Does This Mean?
This gist is that if you enter in to an agreement with a lawyer or a barrister, or take out a policy of insurance, after 1st April 2013 (i.e. a couple of weeks away!) it is likely that you will NOT receive 100% of your compensation payout. Basically the government have changed the rules so that you, the innocent injured victim in all of this, has to pay something for making a claim.
We of course appreciate that this entirely unfair, but we cannot change what the government do. It’s out of our hands; but the point I’m making is that the longer you leave it to start a claim, the higher the risk you will not receive the full amount of your payout.
It’s a grim future for personal injury claims; as grim as this weather by the looks of things. You may still be in time so give us a call on our free claims helpline on 0800 634 75 75 and we will do our best to try and secure your case on pre-April terms. The hour is late though, so there are no guarantees – but do not delay!
