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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Whiplash injuries can range from the very minor to the severe and debilitating. Therefore, it is important that you seek the help of a expert personal injury solicitor to ensure that the compensation you receive is the right amount.

Compensation is awarded based on the severity of your injury and how long this will affect your everyday life, so it is important that the right amount is awarded – if you settle and then are still suffering you may statutory barred from bringing another claim (for the same accident) or trying to reopen or continue the original claim.

As well as personal injury solicitors, there are a number of claims management companies that will try and get you to instruct them. Similarly, your insurance company will also try to refer you to a solicitor and finally, there is also the possibility that the third party will try and capture you. All of the above may also say that they can get you the optimum amount of compensation but there may be more to this than first meets the eye.
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If you are pursuing, or have pursue in the past, a personal injury compensation claim, then you are more than likely aware of the importance of medical reports. A medical report is key in any personal injury claim as it helps Solicitors and Barristers to properly value your claim.

If a medical report is wrong, incomplete or inaccurate then this could have serious repercussions for you and your payout. Obviously this is why we always check if you are happy with a medical report before disclosing it to the other side. Once a report is disclosed to the other side you cannot seek to get the report amended. A medical report is only disclosed to the other side once you have confirmed that you agree with its contents.

So, if you receive a medical report and you are not happy with it, what can you do? First of all you should take some time in studying the report, bearing in mind that a medical expert will have got the information from you at examination and he or she may have also used information from medical records such as GP and Hospital records, accident reports etc. You should clearly state to your Solicitor which parts of the medical report you agree with and which parts of the medical report you do not agree with. Also state the reasons why you do not agree with certain parts of the report. Simply saying “I do not agree with the report” is not really of much help.
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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 any personal injury claim, the amount of compensation you will receive is not a figure just plucked out of the air; the figures are based on your representative’s expertise and experience but also from the Judicial Studies Board Guidelines.

This is a set of guidelines which are used in order to help your legal representative to assess your claim and the value of it.

The assessment of compensation for your injuries will consider the following:
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Tripping accident claims are probably one of the most common types of claims that personal injury Lawyers deal with.

We often see defects in the pavement and if such a defect causes you to trip and sustain injury, then it is your right to bring a claim for compensation. These claims have received a substantial amount of bad press but that should not prevent people from bringing a genuine claim. I guess the main difficulty is filtering out fraudulent claims but this applies to all claims, not just tripping claims.

In the past certain roads have become notorious as multiple claims have been made against the respective Council for accidents occurring on the same road. This can raise eyebrows as the respective Council would usually repair the defect and it appears more than coincidence when you are talking about a number of claims on the same area of pavement etc. Notwithstanding the above, a person should not be discouraged from bringing a genuine claim.
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Whatever your profession, the place where you work is likely to contain various hazards that may cause you to suffer an injury. Of course if you work with machinery there are the fairly obvious dangers of moving parts to watch out for and if you work in a place where vehicles are common place then you will need to watch out for traffic. However, there are many unobvious hazards in a workplace that you could fall foul of and a question that we at The Injury Lawyers are often asked is; “Can I claim against my employer?”

The answer is that while you are at work your employers have a responsibility to keep you safe from hazards that it is within their power to prevent – for instance, they should provide guards to cover the moving parts of machinery and therefore reduce the risk of you injuring yourself. So if you are injured as the result of an accident at work then yes you could be entitled to claim against your employer.

However, that is not the end of the story and for most people contemplating a claim against their employer they will be worried about losing their job or suffering at work as a result. In actual fact, employers have responsibilities in this respect as well. All employers are required to hold insurance policies that cover their employees under the Employers’ Liability (Compulsory Insurance) Act 1969.
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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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In the Motorcycling Manual, it is permissible to undertake traffic, but only if the traffic is slow moving in queues or signalling to turn right, or if the motorcyclist is turning left at a junction.

Liability in accidents involving a motorcyclist undertaking traffic are not clear cut and liability is often split between the parties for the simple fact that both parties will probably have been negligent in not keeping a proper look out for each other.

In the case of Fagan V Jeffers and the Motor Insurers Bureau the motorcyclist was travelling to the left of two lanes of traffic and collided with a vehicle which turned right across them. The vehicle was turning right through “Keep Clear” markings on the road.

It was held that both parties were equally to blame for the accident. The motorcyclist for failing to keep a proper look out for turning vehicles whilst performing a dangerous manoeuvre and the motorist as he should have been aware that there was sufficient room for a motorcyclist to travel on the left of the traffic.
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In this tough economic climate, many people have opted to volunteer at workplaces, perhaps with the hope that later down the line a job may become available for them. Others may volunteer as a personal choice as they may have retired and although are not interested in a wage paying job, still wish to go to work in the morning.

Unfortunately, just because you are volunteering does not exclude you from the possibility of sustaining an injury in the workplace. However, many may think that as you’re “just volunteering” you’re not entitled to make a claim – however this isn’t the case…
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