If a person, company, or business has caused you injury, illness, or made your health condition worse, you can make them pay a compensation. The legal procedure of recovering this compensation from the person responsible is called a ‘personal injury claim’. In general, the compensation is paid from the other party’s insurance cover.
In England & Wales, you can claim for compensation if
- The event that caused the injury or illness occurred within the last 3 years,
- The injury or illness costed you a lot of money or caused you physical suffering, and
- The injury was caused wholly or partly by someone else
Take a look at some common personal injury claims:
- Accidents at Work: According to the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999, all employers have a ‘duty of care’. If an employee is injured because health and safety rules were not being followed at the workplace, the employer is legally obligated to use the insurance cover of the company to pay for compensation.
- Road accidents: Drunk driving, speeding, or poorly maintained roads can cause serious accidents. If you are hurt in an accident, you can claim for compensation from the other party, the local council, or the Highway Authority depending on who or what caused the accident.
- Medical Negligence: Although medical professionals are highly trained, they could make mistakes. If you become ill or your condition gets worse due to poor quality treatment or the wrong diagnosis of your condition, you can claim for compensation.
- Slips and Trips: If you slip, trip, or fall at a restaurant, bar, or a shop and are seriously injured (perhaps an injury with long-term effects), you can claim for compensation from the business owner if the injury was caused due to negligence of the staff.
How much compensation can you expect
The amount of compensation you get will depend on the nature of the injury and the resulting financial losses. For example, did it cause you a lot of physical pain, stress, or trauma? What were the medical expenses? Did you have to miss work on a loss of pay? Will the injury or illness have an impact on your career? Several factors like these determine the amount you get as compensation.
The amount of time it takes to recover the compensation depends on the complexity of the case and the compensation amount. A simple accident with a minor compensation can be settled within a few months without even going to court. If the issue is a serious one and the court has to get involved, it can take longer.
How a solicitor can help:
- Many do not know if a claim is possible in their particular situation. A solicitor will not only help you know if its possible but also guide you step-by-step through the entire process.
- The stronger the evidence, the stronger your case. But depending on how the accident took place, you may or may not have had a chance to gather evidence like contact details of witnesses, photos or videos of the accident site, CCTV footage etc. A solicitor will help you gather all the evidence possible to make your case strong.
- Going to the court to settle the matter is expensive. A solicitor can negotiate with the other party and settle the matter outside the court.
- Most solicitors offer a ‘No win, No fee’ arrangement. It means that you do not pay anything to the solicitor if your claim is not successful. If the claim is successful, the solicitor will charge you a small percentage of the compensation amount.
If you think your claim matter is genuine but ignored, our experienced Personal Injury solicitors at Aristone Solicitors will guide you through every step for a successful claim. Contact us to arrange a consultation with our experts.
