Being involved in any road traffic accident can cause a great deal of stress and inconvenience. We deal with many claims for client’s who have been involved in an accident which we refer to as a concertina collision. This is best explained in an example. Say you are driving vehicle A and you are stationary positioned at red traffic light signals. Vehicle B is directly behind you. Vehicle C negligently collides into the back of vehicle B which in turn causes vehicle B to shunt into the back of your vehicle (vehicle A). This is a concertina collision.
In this type of accident, injury can occur just as if vehicle B had collided into the back of your vehicle directly. The difference ordinarily is that at face value it appears that the driver of vehicle C is the driver at fault for causing the accident. This would ordinarily be the case. A claim may initially be pursued against the driver of vehicle B but you would expect the blame be passed onto the driver of vehicle C and this is usually the case. There are other factors to consider such as whether the driver of vehicle B did anything wrong such as by being too close to your vehicle or whether they could have prevented the collision with vehicle A.
Concertina collisions are not unusual and they can involve many different parties. We have all heard of major “pile up” accidents most commonly found on motorways. Unfortunately one accident can lead to multiple collisions and multiple vehicles being involved. If you have sustained injury in a concertina collision then you may be entitled to claim compensation. Common injuries include whiplash and musculo-ligamentous strains. Head injuries are also common especially when the injured party collides into the interior of the car. Some people underestimate the psychological effect of an accident. You can claim for a recognised psychological condition just as much as a physical injury. As with any injury, physical or psychological, we would need to obtain medical evidence in support of the injury.
Road traffic accident claims are normally processed in a different way to most other personal injury claims. We gather the necessary information from you before submitting the claim through an online portal. The Defendant’s insurers thereafter have 15 business days in which to respond to the claim. Unfortunately insurers often fail to respond in time which means the claim is then removed from the portal and continues in a normal way (in a way similar to most personal injury claims). The Defendant or their insurers have a set period of time in which to investigate the matter and provide a liability decision. If liability is admitted we can proceed to obtain medical evidence and other details of your losses. If liability is denied we would expect some documentary proof or evidence as to why liability is denied. This allows us to determine the prospects of success in your case. In most cases, if we believe you still have good prospects of recovering compensation, then we would look to obtain medical evidence in support of your claim.
Once medical evidence is submitted to the Defendant we would look to settle your claim by making offers to the Defendant and (hopefully) receiving offers to settle. If settlement cannot be agreed we would look to issue Court Proceedings upon the Defendant. However you should note that the vast majority of cases settle before a court hearing is required.
Do not hesitate to contact us to discuss a potential claim.
