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Given our extensive experience in dealing with road accident claims successfully, you come to appreciate more and more just how easy it is to end up in an accident. In fact, I personally notice potential hazards on the roads better than I used to having given advice and taken on the claims of countless victims in road accidents.

I also find that the law of averages, for some unknown reason, often applies to any near misses I’m involved in. I recall a few months ago I was almost a victim of 4 road accidents in one week alone! Well, it’s happened again the other day – I had two near misses in just one night, which really shows how easy it is to become a victim of a road accident!

My experiences the other night were, funnily enough, both similar in circumstance; and it got me thinking about an important area of road regulation: Lanes! Unfortunately, it seems there are still some drivers out there that do not appreciate the importance of changing and merging lanes safely:
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I would hazard a guess that most people are aware that driving without insurance is illegal.  However, we have many clients that come to us at The Injury Lawyers after being hit by an uninsured driver.  It can be a particular point of frustration for an accident victim that the driver who caused them to have an accident has been driving without the insurance; something which most of us have the burden of paying monthly or annually. It has been quoted that on average 23,000 people are injured and 160 people are killed after being involved in an accident with an uninsured driver.

Many of our clients are not only involved in accidents with uninsured drivers, but also with untraced drivers.  This again can be a point of anger and frustration for an accident victim that they have been involved in an accident, that was not their fault, whilst the driver at fault has fled the scene of the accident without the potential claimant being able to gain their contact/insurance details, and without being able to take note of a registration plate.  A recent news article brings this topic of untraced drivers to the forefront as it details an accident which took place on the M3 near Camberley where a man sadly died at the scene whilst another of the cars involved fled the scene.

The first question many of our clients ask after being involved in an accident with an uninsured or untraced driver is: ‘can I still claim?’  The answer to this is ‘yes’. Any claims with uninsured or untraced drivers can be dealt with through the Motor Insurers Bureau, or the MIB as they are more commonly known.  The MIB was formed in 1946 and is funded by motor insurance companies.  Ultimately the MIB is funded through a portion of what we pay for our motor insurance premium. The cost to us can be calculated at between £15 – £30 per policy.
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Supermarkets; you can either love them or you hate them. Many people favour supermarkets as they have everything under one roof, discounts galore, and plenty of choice. For some, they dread the weekly ‘big’ shop due to the hassle of queuing at tills and queuing in traffic to get in and out of the shop car park.  Whatever your feeling on supermarkets, I can hazard a guess that you would not anticipate having an accident whilst shopping in one that was not your fault.

There are many potential hazards in supermarkets. These can include a spillage that has been negligently left unmopped on the floor, causing a dangerous slip hazard, or an item left on the floor causing a trip hazard, or a poorly stacked shelf causing an item/items to fall on someone.  This is not an exhaustive list, as our clients here at The Injury Lawyers can vouch for having suffered all sorts of accidents whilst in a supermarket.
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Britain’s roads seem to be getting busier than ever. We always seem to be going the wrong way to the traffic – we may be in jams going to work, coming home from work, going to the shops on a Saturday, or even doing the school runs.

Not only this, but people’s lives seem to be busier and more chaotic. This fact coupled with the above means that we have roads that are more clogged with users who may not be paying the necessary care and attention to the road.

The result of the above can lead to more road traffic accidents.  If you have been involved in a road traffic accident and it was not your fault, then you may have a personal injury claim for compensation.
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We seem to hear information regarding personal injury claims a lot. It may be through adverts on the television or radio or a marketing person stopping you in the street.  It may be for this reason that a lot more people are aware of what rights they have when it comes to claiming for injuries. In saying this, however, we have many clients that come to us needing advice and their first question is: ‘have I got a claim?’

This is why our team here at The Injury Lawyers write our blogs – to inform and educate our readers. At The Injury Lawyers we deal with all sorts of claims; some of which I have listed below:

1. Road Traffic Accidents – these are probably one of the most common accident claims we receive.  The system for dealing with these types of accidents was changed last year; it’s a much more simplified and more stream-lined process, making claims run at a faster pace. If you weren’t at fault in a road accident, it’s likely you have a claim.
2. Clinical Negligence – if you feel you have received inadequate care from a healthcare professional, whether it’s in a hospital, clinic or GP’s surgery, then you may have a claim for any suffering and loss caused.
3. Accidents at work – if you have had an accident at work and it was not your fault, then you may have a claim with your employers insurance. Accidents at work may involve a fall from a height or an injury resulting from heavy lifting; it may however be an industrial disease such as Hand Arm Vibration Syndrome developed through the use of power tools or similar vibrating equipment at work. It can be a mentally difficult task to claim from your employers’ insurer, but that is why we are here to act on your behalf.  Employers have a legal duty to be covered by insurers which deal with these situations.
4. Accidents in a supermarket – there are many hazards in a supermarket: these may include items falling on you from a poorly stacked shelf, slipping on a spillage that has negligently been left un-cleared, or tripping on an item negligently left in an aisle. If the accident was not your fault then you may have a claim against the supermarket.

The above list is by no means exhaustive; at The Injury Lawyers we have many more sorts of personal injury cases that we deal with.  In summary, if the accident was not your fault, then you may have a claim.

School can be a turbulent time for some, or a greatly enjoyable time for others.  Whatever your feelings surrounding your time at school, you do not think that an accident could occur there which was not your child’s fault.

I have seen how a child’s first day at school can be traumatic for a parent. Waving them off at the school gate for their first day of independence.  Leaving a child at school can be a difficult thing to do but we put our trust in schools to care for our children; and on the most part they do.  At The Injury Lawyers we have a number of clients that come to us after their child has suffered an injury whilst at school.  It can be a traumatic time for parents if their child has an injury, and for many, their trust in schools can slip.

It can be a mentally difficult thing to do, placing a personal injury claim against your child’s school; but you should remember that it is us who will be dealing with the claim on your behalf and schools should be covered by insurance to cover these situations (normally through the local council).
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I read today on the Health Safety Executive website that a man has been injured having been involved an accident at work back in 2009.  The HSE reports that Mr O’Brien has lost all movement in three of his fingers for life as a result of an incident at a construction site he was working at.  Mr O’Brien was using a drill at his work when his hand became caught in it as a result of it not being properly guarded.  As a result of the accident, Mr O’Brien needed to have a number of skin grafts and cannot resume work.

Jex Engineering Company Ltd, the company who employed Mr O’Brien, was taken to the court by the HSE for failing to ensure the drill was properly guarded.  That is, Jex Engineering had not recognised that the drill was not guarded when providing it to Mr O’Brien.  In fact, Mr O’Brien’s employers had instead stated that the drill had a guard when completing a risk assessment on it.  Later, Mr O’Brien’s’ employers did indeed plead guilty to the charges, in particular, to breaching Regulation 11(1)(a) of the Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations 1998 which require employers to prevent their employees from using dangerous machinery.

If, like Mr O’Brien, you have sustained an injury whilst at work, it is important that you firstly report the accident in the accident book which your employer has to keep by law.  This is important because it provides evidence as to your accident, and is the basis from which a claim for compensation can be made on your behalf.  The next stage in obtaining compensation is to get the advice of a quality personal injury lawyer who can provide you with free legal advice and no cost representation.  Good personal injury lawyers have years and years of experience in dealing with these types of claim and know exactly how to conduct your claim and make sure you get the maximum compensation you deserve.
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Night outs are something most of us look forward to. We look forward to the end of the working week when we can relax and meet up with friends and family. Whether it be going to the pub on a Friday night, a night club for a dance with friends, or for a meal in a restaurant with our loved one, most of us like to get dressed up and excited for these type of events. We do not anticipate an accident happening which is not our fault.

If you have had an accident whilst on a night out and it was not your fault, then you may have a claim for compensation. Many clients come to us after an accident of this sort and think they may not have a claim due to their consumption of alcohol. This may not be the case.  Our specialist team at The Injury Lawyers can give free assessment of claims – so there is nothing to lose by trying.

There are many potential hazards in venues, including slipping on a spillage, broken glass left negligently on the floor causing a laceration to the foot, or an accident which has been caused by the venue being overcrowded.  It may even be the case that another person has slipped and pulled you to the ground with them – this could also be a possible claim.
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Hand Arm Vibration Syndrome, also known as Vibration White Finger, is an industrial disease which is suffered by people in careers which require the use of power tools and machinery which have a vibrating effect.  These can include hand held power tools such as drills and chain saws or sewing machines, or pneumatic drills.

The name Vibration White Finger has started to be less commonly used in recent years as it became apparent that the disease involves many more symptoms than having white fingers.  The symptoms can also include numbness and/or a tingling sensation in the fingers, cold sensations in the fingers with some discolouration, and general aching up through the hand radiating up the arm.  In more serious cases of the disease, the sufferer may have a complete loss of feeling in the fingers which can radiate in to the hands. The symptoms can be different for different people, but for most sufferers, it can be a point of frustration.

The condition is thought to stem from the vibrations in the power tools / machinery causing minor injuries to the blood vessels and nerves in the hand. These injuries then build up to cause Hand Arm Vibration Syndrome.
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It seems that the roads are forever getting busier: we seem to be forever in a traffic jam going the wrong way to the traffic. Not only this, but people seem to want to get every where faster.  These factors together can mean there are more road traffic accidents as there are more people on the road who are driving without using the necessary care and attention.

Now we all know that not wearing a seat belt whilst driving is breaking the law. But with these increasing road traffic accident figures in mind, it can also be a life saving device.  Furthermore, and what many people do not realise, is that if you are not wearing your seat belt and you have an accident, there may be an affect for any personal injury claim you later make.

If you are not wearing a seat belt and you are involved in a road accident, the compensation to which you may be entitled to further on down the line may be reduced by up to 25% – in legal terms this is known as a reduction due to contributory negligence.
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