A recent report showed that during 2011, the General Medical Council (GMC) the organisation that manage, register, and licenses doctors practicing medicine in the UK, received a total of 8,781 complaints from patients

The three most commonly reported types of complaint were related to:

• concerns with investigations and treatment, such as failure to diagnose or prescribing inappropriate medications
• problems with communication – such as not providing appropriate information or not responding to people’s concerns
• perceived lack of respect for the patient – such as being rude or dishonest

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Claiming for an injury is often something that nobody knows they will do; after all, an accident is by definition something you did not mean or want to do. However, if you have been affected and make the decision to pursue a claim an important part of this is, of course, is making sure you have a solicitor that will get you the maximum amount of compensation you deserve.

Now, claiming for compensation gets bad press sometimes – however an injury caused by an accident can have devastating consequences; for example, you suffer from loss of earnings or in serious cases you can no longer pursue the career you were heading for. Of course this is a main concern for many, however there are others such as medical and travel expenses that start to mount the longer your rehabilitation time is.

So how is compensation calculated? Basically, the compensation you are awarding depends upon how serious your injury is and how long this will affect your everyday life. For example; if your injury is going to affect you for the rest of your life, you are entitled to more compensation than someone who’s injury will be fully recovered in a couple of years (generally speaking).
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It is a question that many people want to know and a question which we are asked time and time again. In terms of how long a claim will take from us taking it on to you receiving a settlement cheque, it is always difficult to say as it depends on a number of factors.

We as a firm pride ourselves on being efficient; we move cases forward as quickly as possible. However, to an extent we do rely on others such as insurance companies, the courts, medical experts etc.

A claim is likely to go through quicker if liability is not an issue and if the symptoms are relatively minor so only one medical report is required. However every case is different and at the outset any time frames given by any Solicitor would be effectively a guess.
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With the London 2012 Paralympics in the headlines, the sad story of Simon Richardson has pulled at the nations heartstrings.

Simon Richardson is a successful Paralympic cyclist. In August 2011 Simon was out in South Wales riding his bike training for the Paralympics when a farmer collided with Simon with his van and fled the scene. The farmer was later arrested for the incident and was found to be twice over the drink-drive limit.
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One of the worst parts about being injured after an accident can be the need to rely on those around you to be able to perform the simplest of everyday activities. This can also not be the most convenient set-up for those helping as sacrifices may have to be made – such as time off work. So can this be included in your claim for compensation? Simply put: Yes!

In your claim we look to recover what are called special damages and these include things such as loss of earnings, medical expenses, travel expenses and the subject at hand – care and assistance.

A common miss-conception is that only professional care and assistance can be recovered; but help from family and friends is also recoverable.
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Most of the time, if a vehicle has collided into the rear of your vehicle then they will be at fault. These types of accidents are the most common type and are known to us in the business as rear end shunts.

However, sometimes it is possible that the driver that has been hit will be at fault for the accident. I know it does sound ridiculous given that you have no control over the actions of the driver behind – but if you have made a sudden or emergency stop, and this was done for no apparent or sufficient reason, then you could be liable for the accident.

So when is it reasonable to brake or stop suddenly?

Well the answer is that the law is unfortunately not too clear on this subject and therefore each case is assessed on the individual circumstances.
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Well to start, what is whiplash? Whiplash is an injury that affects the neck, back, and shoulders (commonly). The actual whiplash injury is caused by the soft tissue in the neck back and shoulders being stretched and strained after a sudden jolt or movement. Whiplash can occur in slips and trips but is mainly an injury which results from a road traffic accident.

Some whiplash injuries are quite minor and resolve in a matter of weeks – however client’s with moderate whiplash symptoms can be suffering for a lot longer than this. A lot of people see whiplash as a minor injury but whiplash can be severely debilitating.

Client’s with moderate whiplash symptoms are significantly restricted in their movement and experience constant pain and stiffness for quite some time. This type of whiplash injury can result in cervical discs or nerve roots being damaged and even fractures in the neck. This can result in surgery being necessary to rectify this damage.
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Turning 17, these days, just means one thing – you can now learn to drive! The independence, the freedom, and the confidence that can come with driving makes learning to drive one of the most beneficial things to do. As a driver myself, I often say to people who are looking to start learning that it will be the best thing they ever invest time and money in.

The requirements of learning to drive are quite simple:

• You must hold a provisional driving licence
• You must be supervised when driving by a driving instructor or someone over the age of 21 who has held a full driving license for at least 3 years
• You must display “L” plates

Your driving instructor or supervisor has a duty to ensure that you are driving in a safe manner and therefore learner drivers should feel in safe hands when learning to drive: but the person sitting next to you in the car is not normally the problem.
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As a pedestrian, a motor vehicle is a dangerous piece of machinery. The consequences are often devastating when a pedestrian and a vehicle come together in an accident.

Placing fault for an accident involving a pedestrian and a vehicle often depends on the individual circumstances. The main questions to be asked would be what was the speed of the vehicle? When or how quickly did the pedestrian step into the road? And was the driver aware of their surroundings?

Even though a pedestrian could step out suddenly, not giving the vehicle time to react, the law is very pedestrian friendly. With that I mean that the law seems to be built around placing the blame or most of it, on the motorist.
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The ability to overtake stationary traffic and skip to the front has got to be one of the most beneficial aspects of riding a motorcycle. I know I would love to do this on my way to work some mornings!

However, it can be fraught with hazards due to other road users or even the carelessness of the rider. The main reason for this would be that drivers of vans, cars and lorries can fail to check their mirrors and surroundings properly before making a manoeuvre. Obviously as a motorcyclist you are more difficult to detect in traffic; however other road users checking properly, and not just glancing, can avoid accidents.

Unfortunately people can look but not see or register what is there and this is one of the main causes of accidents for people riding motorcycles. The most common circumstance, involving motorcyclists, is that of a motorcyclist overtaking stationary traffic and a vehicle pulls out of the line of traffic to turn or to change lanes.
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