For most road accident personal injury compensation claims in the UK, it’s the lawyers that have to make the first offer to the insurance company to settle the claim. Before, and in many other types of claims such as accidents at work or slips and trips, we provide the other side with medical evidence and losses information and invite them to make an offer for settlement to us.

But now, due to legal reforms that came in to force from April 2010, we have to make the first offer to the other side when we provide the medical evidence and losses information.
Read More

Given there are so many lawyers out there who can represent you for a claim for personal injury compensation choosing the right one can be a mission in itself. Competition has been extreme in the personal injury industry, which is why some firms have thought of clever ways of reeling you in to using their services.

Cash up-front and a free iPad have been two of the most popular hooks used by firms to get you to sign up to their legal services. For the purposes of this article, I’m going to look at the free iPad offer and why you probably no longer see it, and why you shouldn’t really trust it…
Read More

A bit of a niche area of law here – what are you rights if you have an accident in a restaurant, or perhaps a bar or a cafe, because of a chair? Well, let’s look at the law and whether you may be entitled to make a claim for personal injury compensation.

Generally speaking, unless you work at the restaurant, the law that applies is the Occupiers Liability Act, and this vital piece of legislation dictates that the occupier of a premises, i.e. those in charge or responsible at the restaurant, have a duty to take all reasonable steps to prevent an injury occurring.

When it comes to chairs, what are classed as reasonable steps? Well a system of inspection would be a good start – checking to make sure that the structure of the chairs is stable and ensure there are no breaks or defects to make sure that the chair is not liable to break or collapse. A record of this should be kept as well.
Read More

At work, your employer is under a pretty heavy duty to look after your health and safety, and make sure you are not injured whilst working. When I say heavy, I mean there are a lot of workplace rules and regulations that employers must abide by, and breaching any of these regulations can pave the way to you making a work injury claim for personal compensation.
Read More

April 1^st 2013 saw the biggest shake up in the personal injury compensation claiming world ever. Some of changes affect clients directly, and we are not too happy with them, but others we are more than happy with.

The banning of referral fees was one of the highlights of the reforms we think! No longer can claims be sold for profit by claims management companies (CMC’s), insurers, garages, and all sorts of companies. People would search the net, see a company advertising No Win, No Fee services, likely not realise it’s not a law firm, and instruct them to deal with the case. They would then pass the claim to a lawyer for up to £1,000 – money that comes straight from the budget for running your claim; leading to poor levels of service and under settled claims.

So what are the new changes? Well according to updates from the government, the rules which came into force on the 8th of July mean that:
Read More

Highways agencies and local authorities have a duty to maintain highways. Slips, trips and falls on defective highways, streets, roads and pathways are very common.

Common defects can include potholes, cracked or broken paving slabs, missing manhole covers, uneven ground and no barriers or rails found on public walkways and stairs.

The Highways Act 1980 is the act for governing and maintaining the highways. Under S41 of the 1980 Act, the local authority have a duty to maintain the highways, and that duty ‘is to ensure as reasonably practicable’ that the public will have a safe passage along the highway.
Read More

It is common for accidents to occur on roundabouts, but it is sometimes difficult to determine who is at fault. Accidents can occur on roundabouts due to drivers failing to look properly when approaching traffic, speeding, failing to get into the correct lane or by sudden braking.

The Highway Code can be used as a guide to help see who is liable for a roundabout accident, as it sets out the ‘rules of the road‘.

The Highway Code (184 – 187) sets out how to approach and drive on a roundabout, and also gives a warning to drivers as to what to be aware of.

According to the Highway Code, when approaching a roundabout, a driver should be travelling at slow speed, checking all road markings and must be aware of all other road users.
Read More

Damages are compensation to be paid to a claimant for a personal injury, which they have suffered, resulting in some form of loss. The aim of damages is to try and put the person back into the position they were in before the accident occurred.

There are two types of damages which can be awarded – general damages and special damages. General damages are commonly defined as damages which are awarded for pain, suffering and loss of amenity. Special damages are damages related to expenses and losses on your part.

Special damages are not simply awarded, they need to be evidenced and claimed for and the court may assess the figure to be awarded. All aspects of the injuries impact on the claimant’s daily life are to be considered.
Read More

A Concertina Collision is defined as ‘a collision in which vehicle after vehicle hits the one ahead in a sequence of events, triggered by the first car crash‘. Basically, to summarise a concertina collision is an accident involving 3 more or cars, with the first car bumping into the second and forcing it into the one in front, and so on, with a domino type effect.  The collisions often happen very quickly and those driving towards the accident are often unable to slow down in time to avoid further collisions.

Concertina collisions are common in heavy traffic, with someone causing an accident at the back of the traffic, which radiates down the line of traffic. Obviously, if a concertina collision occurred on a motorway, it could be much more serious, as drivers would be unable to stop due to the high speed they were driving at.

Common injuries arising from Concertina Collisions are whiplash and back injuries – which can often be made worse if there are several impacts.
Read More

When supplying products to consumers, the products must always be safe. It is the responsibility of producers, manufacturers, shops and wholesalers to ensure the safety of the product they are selling. Injury may occur when a product is sold in a defective manner, or have been sold to the consumer without adequate instruction and warning.

Under the Supply of goods and Services Act 1982, all products which are sold must be safe. Manufacturers or sellers of the product must ensure that they:
Read More