Given the stint of adverse weather we’re having, I imagine most people are struggling to actually catch their train given the amount of delays and cancellations I’m hearing about on the radio! But if you’re lucky enough to have caught your train, but unlucky enough to have been involved in an accident, what are your rights for making a claim for personal injury compensation?
Common Cases
Common examples of cases we deal with for claims for injury caused on trains are:
- Sudden stops or collisions (which are fairly rare)
- Trips and slips due to hazards on the ground
- Falling objects from racking
- Falls from the general movement of the train
For you to be able to make a claim for compensation there has to be negligence – so something must have been done wrong or incorrectly that has caused your injuries. If you tripped or slipped due to a hazard than there could be a claim to answer for. If there is a crash, you should be able to claim.
If you fell just because of the motion of the train, the company will probably argue that this is not negligence and just an unfortunate accident. If they failed to provide adequate means of bracing yourself, with rails as an example, than that could be an argument in your favour for a claim. But the main point is that someone has to be to blame.
Making a claim
The train company should be insured and it is their insurers we will normally pursue for the case. They will investigate the claim and either accept or deny liability. If they accept, the claim works in the same way as any other – we obtain medical evidence and we use this to value the claim and settle the case with the other side on the best terms possible.
100% Compensation
For this type of claim we should be able to offer you a 100% compensation agreement – even though the law changed this year which has resulted in most other law firms now charging their clients if the claim wins.
