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We understand that there is ALLOT of competition out there when it comes to personal injury solicitors. However, we have focused primarily on what we think is the most important aspect of any personal injury claim – YOU. We have ensured that our primary focus is ensuring that you, the client, receive the best service possible to ensure your personal injury claim is straightforward, quick and successful!

We are a genuine law firm who specialise and deal only with injury law so we consider ourselves experts in the field. The reason I say GENUINE is that there are some personal injury ‘firms’ out there that are claims management companies rather than actual solicitors – they will take the details of your claim and sell it across to a solicitor for a tidy referral fee.

To us this seems a bizarre way to pursue a claim, as surely you would want to ensure that the solicitor running your case is one you are comfortable with – not one that has just been picked for you. We see claims as a 3 stage process:
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One of the main worries when looking to pursue legal action is the worry of cost! Solicitors can be extremely expensive so many people are put off from pursing a claim because of this. However, this should not be the case as solicitors often act on conditional fee agreements, which is the posh name for a No Win, No Fee.

These types of agreements are based on the outcome of a case- win or lose. They were originally brought in to fill the gap between those that were eligible for legal aid and those that could afford to pay for legal representation however, they are now extremely common as it allows solicitors to still recover the same fees without having to charge their clients.

So how do they work? Many people often find it difficult to understand how they can pursue a claim, receive compensation (which in some cases is a large sum) and not have a bill to pay. To many it seems strange for a solicitor to be doing so much work for them but not sending them a bill. But please do not worry- we do get paid (after all we are still a business).
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There are a lot of horror stories out there about 100% compensation turning into a “nightmare” as solicitors come after the case and take all the compensation away to cover their fees.

However, this is far from the truth here at The injury lawyers, as we GUARANTEE you 100% of your compensation and there is a reason why we can do this.

The standard conditional fee agreement (The No Win No Fee) states that a solicitor will seek to recover fees from the other side. This all seems well and good, but the word seek leaves you open to the possibility that if they have trouble recovering fees from the other side, they are able to come to you for the shortfall. So say the solicitors costs are £5000.00 and the other side agree to pay £3000.00m the shortfall of £2000.00 may have to be covered by yourself. Of course, many reputable solicitors may not do this – however there is always the possibility that they CAN. Many solicitors hold this power to charge you.
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A pre-medical offer is an offer made by the Defendant’s insurer to settle your claim without the need for medical evidence in support of your injuries.

These offers are usually made when the accident is pretty straight forward, liability is not an issue, and the insurer just wants the case off their desk. If you have a legal representative, they should inform you of the risks of accepting such an offer once it has been made.

Basically, the main issue we at The Injury Lawyers have with pre-medical offers is that, if accepted, you never know if this accurately reflects the amount of compensation you deserve.
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In a claim for personal injury and loss you can claim General Damages for pain suffering and loss of amenity (PSLA). This covers compensation for your injuries sustained in the accident or the illness developed due to exposure at work etc. In addition to General Damages you can claim Special Damages. Special Damages can include things like loss of earnings (say because of the injury sustained you were not able to work for 1 month), damage to property (say you tripped over a raised slab and as a result you ripped your clothing). You can also claim for care and assistance, this is another head of loss which comes under Special Damages.

Care and assistance covers all the things that you were not able to do as a result of your injuries. Say you tripped and broke your arm; you may need help from you partner, daughter, son etc in getting dressed. You may also need help with household chores such as ironing, cooking, cleaning, preparing meals etc. You may need help with gardening or cleaning the car. Care and assistance covers things that you did before the accident that you are not able to do following the accident due to your injuries. Family members and friends will of course provide you with the care, such as helping you to get ready, free of charge. However you are entitled to recover Special Damages from the Defendant. It is settled law that the Claimant (the person bringing the claim) is entitled to recover damages in respect of the fair and reasonable value of such care and domestic assistance.
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Being hit in the rear by another vehicle is seen as a pretty straight forward type of accident, and usually it is. After all, how can you control what the person behind you is doing?

Under Rule 126 of the Highway Code you must:

“Drive at a speed which will allow you to stop well within the distance you can see to be clear: You should leave enough space between you and the vehicle in front so that you can pull up safely if it suddenly slows down and stops”

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Maybe you have taken on some part-time hours to help out with the bills or maybe you are a student with a part-time job to help you fund your studies – whatever your circumstances it is a sad fact that you may suffer an injury at work while at your part-time employment. What you need to know is if this does happen to you what can you do about it?

The truth is that the answer is fairly simple: you can still claim against a part-time employer. Just because your hours are part-time it doesn’t mean that you only have part of the rights to claim of a full-time employee!

Employers are required by law to have insurance policies in place to cover all of their employees regardless of employment status; these policies are known as Employers’ Liability Insurance which is required under The Employers’ Liability (Compulsory Insurance) Act 1969.
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A gas explosion is some kind of explosion which may result from a gas leak in the presence of an ignition source.  Explosive gasses include methane and propane to name just a couple.

The BP oil disaster was caused by a methane bubble which triggered the explosion. The deadly bubble of methane forced its way up from beneath the ocean floor and caused the explosion in the Gulf of Mexico, according to workers who survived the disaster. The disaster itself caused severe consequences with 11 deaths and more than three million gallons of crude oil pouring into the sea. Such a disaster highlights the dangers of a gas explosion.

Of course we should be well aware of the dangers anyway as the BP oil disaster was certainly not the first disaster of its kind. Many people will recall the Cleveland East Ohio gas explosion which occurred back in 1944. The gas leak, explosion and resulting fires killed an estimated 130 people and destroyed one square mile area on Cleveland, Ohio’s east side.
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Well there are two notable things to point out here; firstly, as it’s an injury at work, if it was caused through no fault of your own then it is likely you have a good chance of succeeding with a claim. The reason for this is that there are numerous health and safety rules and regulations that employers must abide by, and if we can prove that they have breached at least one of them, making a successful claim is a possibility.

The other thing to point out is that it’s nigh impossible to value a claim for personal injury accurately without proper medical evidence and a fully qualified personal injury lawyer, like us, to value the claim. Other than that, the other thing to note on the topic of the injury and its potentially worth is that ligament injuries to the knee is a very broad term.

Basically, the more you suffer and the longer you suffer the more compensation we get for you. If you are suffering for 9 months, you will likely receive more compensation than if you were suffering for just one month. If you have ruptured multiple ligaments in your knee, requiring you to have reconstructive surgery, months on crutches non weight baring, and a heavy stint of physiotherapy, you will likely get more compensation than if you have just strained ligaments in the knee that required you to hobble, albeit painfully, for a few weeks with the hope of a full recovery in a couple of months.
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Really, the best advice we can give is for you to just be honest! The point of the medical appointment is to allow a suitably qualified expert to produce a medical report that confirms the nature, extent, and impact of the suffering that has been caused to you as a result of your accident / injuries. It should also confirm how long you will be suffering for as well.

So really there is no right or wrong answer – you just need to advise the above. The expert will judge what’s reasonable; i.e. don’t try and cheat the system by saying your whiplash stopped you from being able to go to work because it was too painful to move! Whilst this can happen in severe cases, you would need medical proof that it was silo bad it stopped you from even being mobile!

The expert will know what to ask you anyway, so you shouldn’t need to worry too much. They will look at your relevant medical history and records, and ask how the injury has affected you in all aspects of your life; socially, domestically, at work, etc. They will also examine you to see if there are any noticeable symptoms that they can write about in their report as well – like your back still being stuff, or limited ranges of movement.
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