Sport has a place in many people’s lives, whether this is through direct participation or simply watching it on the television in the comfort of your home.  In fact, for some people sport is everything.  It is what they live for.  For such people, and indeed others, playing sport is an important part of their daily routine.  However, as I am sure many of you are aware, playing sport can lead to injury.  Fortunately, many injuries are minor and are cured on the spot with a little help from the ‘magic sponge’.  However, other injuries are more serious and can take a matter or months, even years to recover from.  If you have suffered a personal injury as a result of your participation in sporting activity you may be able to make a claim for compensation.

When we play sport we know that there is a high likelihood of physical contact between players.  We know of that risk and we accept it.  For instance, in a game of football, the players are well aware that they may get tackled.  Likewise, during a boxing match the boxers are fully aware that they will inevitably be punched.  Does that then mean that if we are injured whilst playing sport we cannot make a claim for compensation? No, not at all.  It all depends on your injury and how it was sustained.  It is therefore important that you seek the advice of a quality personal injury lawyer who can advise you as to whether you may be entitled to compensation.

If you are playing football for example and someone purposely does a horrendous tackle on you and as a result you suffer a broken leg, you may well deserve compensation.  This is because they have been reckless and this was not what you signed up for when you said you would take part in the football match.  Sure, you might get a mistimed tackle, but you certainly did not permit someone to deliberately break your leg.  This action was well beyond what you would anticipate and so a claim for compensation can follow.
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We all love supermarket shopping as the prices are cheaper, there are discounts galore, and everything is all under one roof.  We can see how supermarkets are becoming the fast answer to a busier lifestyle with less and less money to spend.

So we may go to the supermarket with all this in mind, but the farthest thing from our mind is that we will have an accident within our supermarket which was not our fault, and end up injured.

Now there are many potential hazards in supermarkets – for example spillages causing slip hazards, items left in the aisle causing trip hazards, or poorly stacked items falling from the shelves on to us.
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Road traffic accidents are unfortunately almost an inevitable part of everyday life. Whether it is a minor collision on our roads causing a little dent in their car, or whether it is far more serious and someone is horrendously injured, road traffic accidents occur all too often. 

If you have been involved in a road traffic accident and you have sustained an injury as a result you may be entitled to claim for road traffic accident compensation. 
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Personal injury claims are on the increase.  This is partly due to the no win, no fee system making it financially easier for claimants to proceed with their claims.  One of the most frequently asked questions at The Injury Lawyers hear is – Can I claim for x or y? If the answer is yes, it can normally follow – Well, I don’t know where the receipt is for that!

In view of the above, and to resolve any confusion, we at The Injury Lawyers feel the need to explain the possible items of loss, which you may not have even considered, that can be claimed from the other side if they admit fault.

The first and probably one of the most important items of loss a claimant may be able to claim back is loss of earnings.  Now, if you have been off work due to your accident, this time off work may be able to be claimed back. To support this claim normally around 13 weeks of pay slips are needed in proof of this loss.  Even if you have not taken time off work unpaid, but taken them as holidays, these, depending on your employer, may be able to be claimed back. The money to buy them back can be claimed as part of your losses.
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Some of you reading this blog may have heard of the term ‘Third Party Capture’.  For those of you who have not, or are unsure what this term means exactly, here is a brief explanation.

Third Party Capture is when the Insurer of the person with whom you have had an accident investigates and tries to settle your claim for compensation directly with you.  That is, the Insurer settles your claim solely with you and does not afford you the opportunity to obtain independent legal advice.  So, for example, the Insurer will provide you with compensation direct.  Right, so what’s the problem with that?  Well, quite simply, the likelihood is that you will end up undercompensated.  You will not receive the full compensation that you deserve.  You have not had legal advice and may therefore not be aware of what your claim for compensation will be worth.  It may be that your claim is worth £10,000 but the Insurer has attempted to settle your claim for £5,000 – because you have not had legal advice, you think £5,000 sounds like a lot of money and agree to settle your claim.  However, the reality is that in effect you have lost out on £5,000.00.

The only positive thing that I can possibly think of that comes from Third Party Capture is that your claim will be settled faster than it would be with legal intervention.  But is this few weeks or few months really worth £5,000 in lost compensation?  I think many would agree that this is not the case.  At The Injury Lawyers we offer free legal advice and take your claim on a genuine no win no fee agreement.  That means that you never pay us for our services; we recover our fees from the other side.  It is therefore a far better idea to get in touch with a quality injury lawyer like us at The Injury Lawyers to fight your corner and ensure that you receive the maximum compensation you deserve.  It’s a free, fast, and reliable way to ensure that you get what you deserve.  Please remember that the other side’s insurers really only have one thing in mind, and that is to make sure they lose the least amount of money possible.
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OK – so how does it work? There are so many ways you can end up being injured in an accident through no fault of your own; but does that mean you have a claim for compensation? Well, it all depends on what’s happened…

You’re Not at Fault – Who IS at Fault?

This is a key question. To be able to claim for compensation, someone else, whether it’s a company or a person, has to be at fault for your injuries. There doesn’t necessarily have to be malice involved – accidents can easily happen through the negligence of someone else. But either way, if you are injured because someone else has failed you, you may well have a claim for compensation!

Road Accidents

The most common form of injury claim – they unfortunately happen all the time. It’s so easy for a driver to lose concentration and pull out of a side road, or fail to stop and crash in to the back of you. If you are injured in a road accident that wasn’t your fault, instruct an independent injury lawyer to represent you for your claim.
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School complaints can often be a bit of a touchy subject – it’s not nice to think that we would ever have to claim from a public institution serving the generations of tomorrow. But, as I would like to think many of you would agree, health and safety is of even more importance in schools; particularly at infant and primary level.

As specialist personal injury lawyers, we rarely hear of an accident we haven’t already got experience in – so a great deal of our new claims come as no surprise. But when you hear of a child being injured through the schools negligence, it always feels different. I often ask myself: “how has an institution catering for the education of such young people allowed something like this to happen?” Naturally, the parents and guardians of the child claims we take on normally express their frustration and concerns to us quite honestly and openly; it’s a parent’s natural instinct to safeguard their children.

In infant and primary schools, health and safety should be at the forefront of every staff member’s minds. So, if your child has been injured at school, when can you make a claim for compensation?
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Hand-Arm Vibration Syndrome (‘HAVS’), also known as Vibration White Finger, is an industrial disease which has been diagnosed in thousands of people.  It occurs where someone is exposed to lots of vibrations in their hands and arms.  As such, those affected tend to feel numbness in their fingers and may even witness their fingers turn white.  Indeed, should the condition get worse, they may lose feeling in the whole of their hand and the hand my turn completely white.  In the worst case scenarios the sufferer may actually lose their fingers.

So when does this condition occur?  If you are a manual labourer for example and handle vibrating hand tools, such as drills and chainsaws, on a regular basis or prolonged period, you may well suffer from HAVS.  If you use vibrating hand tools regularly and you believe you may be suffering from HAVS, it is important that you seek medical advice.  It is then key that you seek the advice of a professional, quality injury lawyer who can advise you as to whether you may be entitled to make a claim for compensation.  By way of example, back in 1997 seven coal miners who regularly used vibrating tools obtained over £125,000 in compensation after being diagnosed with vibration white finger.  Moreover, since 2004 the Government has paid out over £100m to ex-coalminers who have brought claims having suffered from HAVS.

Why might you have a claim for compensation if you have been diagnosed with HAVS?  Simply because by way of The Control of Vibration at Work Regulations 2005 your employer must limit or protect your exposure to vibrations.  What does this mean?  It means that you employer has a duty of care towards you to ensure that you are not over-exposed to vibrations whilst you work.  It may be that you are only allowed to use vibrating tools for a certain period of time and that you are better trained in how to use these tools for example.
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Everyone enjoys going on a night out.  It may be for a meal with your loved one, for a good dance with your friends, or for a few after work drinks down the pub.  Whatever your night out, you would hope that you have a good time, relax, socialise and let your hair down. The furthest thought from your mind is that you may have an accident causing an injury.

There are many possible injuries which can be caused on a night out.  If we take the example of a night club – there may be spillages on the floor causing a slip hazard, or even items such as broken glass on the floor which could compound a fall injury making it worse, or could cause a laceration to the foot.  Even if someone else slips on a spillage which has negligently been left untreated, and pulls you down with them, you may still have a claim for compensation.

Like anywhere else, pubs, bars, nightclubs and restaurants have to abide by strict Health and Safety Regulations in order to keep their customers safe from harm.  You may think that the accident was your fault as you had consumed too much alcohol – but before you come to this conclusion you have nothing to lose by calling a solicitor who can advise you, free of charge, whether you have a claim.
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How can a child bring a claim on their own? Can someone deal with my claim for me?  These are just a couple of the questions we face at The injury Lawyers on a daily basis.  So what are the answers? Well, as you might expect in the case of a child, they are unable to undertake legal proceedings of their own accord.  After all, the child may be three, four or five years old, and could not possibly be expected to do so.  The law recognises this and understands that those under the age of 18 do not have the ‘legal capacity’ to bring claims on their own.  It is therefore necessary where the person who has sustained an injury is under the age of 18 that they have what is called a ‘Litigation Friend’.  In other words a responsible adult who can act on their behalf.  In the case of children, this will usually be the child’s parent or guardian.  Equally, this could be a social worker or another adult.  Importantly, this is also applicable to those who, by way of the Mental Capacity Act 2005, are deemed to be a ‘protected party’ and would similarly require a Litigation Friend.

Okay, but what if I am an adult myself, but I am frequently in and out of hospital as a result of my injuries and therefore cannot frequently deal with my claim?  It is not that you do not wish to deal with your claim yourself; it is simply that it is not practicable to do so.  Or maybe you are elderly or feel too distressed by your accident and do not wish to deal with your claim yourself. This is not a problem either.  Like a child, you can nominate a Litigation Friend, or simply have another person with the written authority to act on your behalf.

At The Injury Lawyers, we always advise that those nominated to be a Claimant’s Litigation Friend should have the very best interests of the Claimant at heart.  The Litigation Friend must be someone who the Claimant can put their wholehearted trust in.  They must be reliable and able to address all issues raised, just as you would.  Naturally, the Litigation Friend must not have a conflict of interest with the Claimant.
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