At The Injury Lawyers, we have a huge number of clients suffering from the symptoms of whiplash.  We hear on a daily basis of the pain the condition causes, and the devastating effect the injury can have on all areas of a person’s life. That is why we treat whiplash with the utmost seriousness and give it the importance it deserves.

Causes

Whiplash is caused by a sudden jolting to the neck, which causes it to move beyond its normal range.  This can lead to damage to the tendons, ligaments, and muscles in the neck area, causing the condition.
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The state of our roads has become a much talked about topic – not just in passing speech, but also in the media. Only today I have seen on the BBC News that road safety charities have warned that unless councils take a fresh approach to repairing roads, the amount they will have to pay out in compensation to injured claimants will escalate. The Institute of Advanced Motorists claim that Councils need to fully resurface roads rather than just filling in the holes. It has been revealed that the Vale of Glamorgan and Newport Councils have some of the largest pay-out figures on pothole claims over the last four years within Wales – the former being £245, 967, whilst the latter have figures of £203,913.

It seems that councils are having trouble fixing the damage caused to the roads due to the bad weather we had over the winter.  If you have been injured due to the presence of a pothole, you may have a claim for compensation.

Local councils have a duty to maintain the highways, and in doing so, reduce the risks to our health and safety.  However, claims due to potholes can be fairly complex for a number of reasons. Firstly, it can be difficult to ascertain who has the responsibility for maintaining the land, as it could be privately owned, be the responsibility of the local council, or highways agency, or even be a private company used by the council for managing the maintenance. Secondly, in the event the land is the responsibility of the council, it can be difficult to get an admission of fault on your claim.
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The Liverpool Echo reports that a former chip shop employee is seeking £1million in compensation having slipped on a wet surface whilst she was at work. 

It is stated that Sylvia Cheung was at the end of the her shift at the Yang Sing takeaway back in 2008 when she slipped and sustained severe injuries to her head and spinal cord.  Unfortunately, it would appear that Ms Cheung will have to use a wheelchair for the rest of her life, and will subsequently need care and assistance.  At the High Court, Judge John Leighton Williams QC found that Miss Cheung was 15% responsible for the accident as she knew the floor was slippery and ‘should have been aware of the risk’, but found that the chip shop had breached health and safety regulations and was therefore 85% liable for the accident.

If you sustained a particularly serious injury as a result of an accident for which you were not responsible, you may be entitled to compensation in a similar sum to what Miss Cheung is claiming.  When you are dealing with such sums of money, it becomes especially apparent that you need to have a specialist, quality, professional injury lawyer with years of experience on your side.  It could well be the difference between thousands, if not hundreds of thousands of pounds, in compensation for you. 
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Supermarkets are a place where we can spend a lot of our time, which is why it is crucial that they are safe places where everything reasonably possible has been done to reduce risks to our health and safety.

You may feel that bringing a claim against a supermarket is a hopeless task, as they are often enormous corporations, and you are acting as an individual. I am here to tell you that all claims are run in the same manner, whether they are against a huge business, or the small individual –that is why you have lawyers like us on your side fighting your corner. Bringing a claim does not only mean that you may be able to recoup your losses and claim for your injuries, but also that health and safety standards are tightened up so the same thing does not happen to someone else.

Supermarkets, have to keep to strict health and safety regulations – plus they must also ensure that their staff are well trained in implementing and maintaining these standards. This training could be to ensure shelves are stacked safely to avoid items falling on customers, check aisles for items left in walk ways to avoid causing a trip hazard, or to have regular checks for spillages to avoid slip hazards to customers.
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Vibration White Finger is an industrial disease which is experienced by many manual workers using vibrating machinery, such as power drills or chain saws, or even sewing machines, as a regular part of their job.
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Road accidents that take place prior to 30^th April 2010 can take a considerable amount of time to run their course. These claims allow the other side 21 days to respond to a Letter of Claim, and a further 3 months to investigate it – so it can take nearly 4 months just to find out whether you have liability admitted or denied on your claim. Getting an admission of liability means that the other side admit fault for your injury, and so is a major hurdle to get over in the course of your claim.

This may mean that many of the straight forward road traffic accident claims are taking a long time to come to a conclusion; meaning claimants are left waiting for information, and claims are left sat on desks waiting to be worked on.  In recognition of this fact, the Ministry of Justice have set up a new system of dealing with road traffic accident claims after the aforementioned date.

This new system is all based around an online portal where correspondence is sent and received instantaneously. This means letters are not taking an age to arrive in the post, and gives the other side no excuses to claim they have not received something. The system is based around 3 stages.  Your claim begins with a Claim Notification Form being sent out which sets out the accident circumstances.  Upon this being sent to the other side, they have 15 business days to respond with an admission or denial of liability (this is in stark contrast to the previous system of nearly 4 months).
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Product liability is legal jargon for claiming compensation for a product that has caused you harm in some way, through no fault of your own.

Product liability claiming can be a complex matter, so it is advisable to get the advice of a personal injury solicitor as soon as possible. The reasons why it can be complex are that firstly, there can be some dispute as to who is responsible for the product – either the manufacturer, or the retailer; secondly, if it is the manufacturer, they can be difficult to locate – so that issue can require some investigation. The product may also need to be tested, which may mean sending it back to the Defendant in the matter – this can be a tricky business as you want to know that you will get it back and get it back in its original state as it is a key part of your evidence.

At The Injury Lawyers, we run many product liability claims – I have listed 2 of the main types below:
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Whiplash can be an extremely debilitating condition. It can leave you in severe pain, which then can have an impact on your professional life, meaning you have to have time off work, domestic life as you can no longer do the tasks that you would have done before the accident on your own, and your social life, as you no longer go out as you did before the accident. 

The condition may also mean that you can no longer do those hobbies that give you great enjoyment – this can all leave you feeling down, frustrated, and upset. This frustration can be compounded by the fact that your accident was due to the negligence of another – if this is the case, you may be able to do something about it and make a successful claim for personal injury compensation.

The Symptoms
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If you have been involved in an accident that was not your fault, and as a result you have been injured, in all likelihood, you will be due compensation.  This is not just compensation purely for your injuries.  You are entitled to be compensated for all losses you have suffered that arise directly out of your accident. 

So, for example, if you have been involved in a road traffic accident and have ended up with a broken arm, and had to take time off work, you are entitled to be compensated for any loss of earnings you may have suffered whilst you were away from work.  If you are paid £250.00 a week, but were only able to get statutory sick pay during your time off, then you can make a claim for the difference in earnings.  I have compiled a quick guide as to your potential heads of claim:

Loss of earnings
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Road accidents are common – we secure compensation for countless road accident victims on a daily basis. You get the more obscure types of road claims, but there are a few common ones that we see a lot of. The thing with accidents on roundabouts is that they can include any (or more) of the common circumstances below; which can all happen any other road accident situation. On a roundabout, they can occur more frequently.

• Rear end collisions – other drivers failing to stop at the entrance of a roundabout, or failing to heed the traffic on a roundabout
• Negligent drivers pulling out on to a roundabout whilst you’re already on it
• Negligent drivers changing lanes on a roundabout when they realise they aren’t in the correct lane – something you should never attempt to do!
• Drivers failing to give way to their right, as per road regulations, and causing a crash with you
• A whole range of motorbike accidents where drivers aren’t looking hard enough for smaller road users

They’re quite common – perhaps many drivers find roundabouts, particularly multi lane ones, rather complicated to negotiate.
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