A huge part of my job is to give free claims advice, and assess claims over the phone for anyone who has been injured in an accident through no fault of their own. It’s nice to let people know when they have a good claim, and it’s nice when the claimant instructs is there. I thoroughly enjoy it!
There, is however, another part that I do not like so much; in fact, it’s safe to say I don’t enjoy it at all. It’s never nice to hear when an accident victim calls up and they have already been taken advantage of by insurance companies, claims management companies, and solicitors willing to buy cases for extortionate referral fees.
For this article, my focus is on the insurers.
So, you’ve been in an accident that wasn’t your fault. You report it to your insurers, and the insurers for the driver at fault are also made aware. As quickly as the accident happened, you get a phone call from the insurers of the driver at fault, apologising that their driver has hit your car and hurt you, and they offer to help out.
They advise you that they can send you a cheque for your injuries in a matter of days. They offer you £1,000 and offer to pay for lost earnings and any extra things you may need, such as hire charges and repair charges. If you accept their seemingly generous offer, you will have a grand in your bank within days, and no worries about any other costs they’ve agreed to meet.
Thing again: Call a personal injury lawyer, literally, the second you’ve finished reading this – because you’re about to be “Third Party Captured”.
Their offer of £1,000 is calculated on thin air. The only way to value a claim for compensation is with proper medical evidence and a fully qualified injury lawyer representing you for your claim right from the start. There is no other way. Without medical evidence, £1,000 is guesswork. Although in actual fact, it’s the industry standard for captured claims as it’s the minimum you can be awarded in the majority of most minor claims.
The problem is, if you accept this offer, and you are still suffering 2 or 3 months down the line, you HAVE under settled your claim. It’s likely you’re suffering from a whiplash injury – most minor whiplash cases should settle for around £2,500. The official guidance bracket ranges from £1,000 – £5,000.
Once you accept the amount from the insurers directly, it will be in full and final settlement of your claim. As soon as it’s banked, its game over – your claim is concluded, and you cannot return to it. The insurers are happy they’ve saved themselves thousands of pounds in duping you out of a fair and proper claim, and they can now start retracting their promises to pay your lost earnings and extra vehicle charges.
Why? Well, they’ve already captured your claim and saved themselves a bucket load of money, leaving you with a poor settlement figure. But also because you have accepted an amount in final satisfaction of your claim. Technically, unless it’s stated in writing, they owe you not a single penny more.
We could go a little further here. What if you end up suffering for months and months, or even years? You won’t be able to claim any lost earnings from time off work, and you won’t be able to claim back any medical treatment costs, or even enjoy private medical care at the expense of the insurers.
My best advice: DON’T RISK IT
It may seem like a safe and simple option, but you really are playing with fire here. Even if the insures offer to get you medical evidence, you are still in their hands when it comes to valuing it.
With a proper personal injury lawyer on board, it costs you nothing. You keep 100% of any compensation; no deductions, no hidden charges.
So, why not have a lawyer? At the end of the day, it doesn’t cost you anything, and you will be guaranteed a maximum payout.
Luckily, we have managed to save hundreds of claims from being destroyed through third party capture when the victims approach us for advice before settling directly. But every now and then, we get a call from someone whom has already banked their thousand pounds, and I, unfortunately, can only advice one thing:
It’s probably too late; we cannot help you.
I urge you – it costs you nothing to pick up the phone and check in with a lawyer first. You could save yourself thousands of pounds with one quick phone call.
