Serious injury: claim compensation

During your free, no obligation consultation our specialist serious injury solicitors will discuss whether you are entitled to make a claim. If negligence is established, we will discuss the various options with you, including the no win, no fee element of your personal injury claim. You will be provided with a step-by-step breakdown of how we will proceed with your accident compensation claim without obligation to proceed.

The process can be a lengthy one, requiring detailed evidence to fully define the impact to you and your family. Your injury lawyer will do all of the hard work for you, but you may be required to meet with specific experts to help document what has happened to you. You may also be required to attend court if a settlement can’t be reached through out of court negotiations.

Choosing the right lawyer is key to ensuring the process is properly managed. You should make a shortlist of personal injury solicitors and speak with each of them about their experience and ability to help you. It’s important to remember that if you live in England or Wales, any personal injury law firm within that jurisdiction can help you. Lawyers based in central locations such as London or Cardiff can generally have greater expertise than your local high street firm, which could result in higher injury compensation awards. An attorney who is not local to you won’t necessarily need to meet with you face to face, but if they do, they will usually travel to you. Appointments to see experts to assist with your case can also be made locally, meaning you won’t be required to travel.

The Hugh James Personal Injury Team has been top ranked by independent legal guides for their expertise in this area of law. We offer free consultations, allowing you to ask us any questions you may have, without obligation.

A Conditional Fee Agreement (CFA) is more commonly known as a ‘no win, no fee’ agreement. This ensures that you as our client will not have any financial risk when making a claim against another person or company. Follow the link to find out more information on a no win no fee agreement.

There are a number of factors that affect a personal injury claim. These make it difficult to give an exact timescale and are affected by:

• The availability to collect evidence
• Where the entity responsible admits liability
• The nature of your injury and illness

It’s important to consider all these factors as our specialist solicitors need evaluate the true impact of your injury or illness when calculating your compensation.

We will look at the compensation for your injuries as well as the financial losses you have as a result of the accident, injury or illness. Compensation is made up of general and special damages.

General  damages

General damages compensate you for the injury itself: the pain and suffering you have already experienced and will continue to go through and what you are no longer able to do as a result of the accident.

In order to accurately inform you of the level of damages that you may be awarded, we will arrange for specialist reports to be obtained from various leading medical and legal authorities. They will examine you and have access to your medical records and be able to provide an accurate diagnosis and prognosis within their report. Once this evidence is in place we will be able to notify you how much we think that your claim is going to be worth.

Special damages

Special damages are to compensate you for any past or future losses that you have incurred or will incur as a direct result of the accident which caused your injuries.

Past losses include:

• private medical treatment and rehabilitation;
• prescription charges/medication;
• the purchase of aids and appliances;
• loss of earnings;
• travel expenses;
• care costs;
• personal belongings and clothing damaged in the accident; and
• housing adaptations.

Future losses can include:

• future loss of earnings;
• loss of pension;
• accommodation costs;
• future private medical treatment and rehabilitation;
• care costs; and
• aids and appliances.

This list is not exhaustive and we will carefully consider your situation and will try to anticipate your future needs.

We suggest that you start to keep a list of things that you have had to pay for since, and as a direct result of the accident. We will need to prove the financial losses and documentary evidence such as wage slips, receipts and invoices will be very important in proving your special damages claim. In addition, it may also be sensible to keep a log or brief diary of problems that you encounter as this will help us to prepare comprehensive witness statements.

It is always advisable to contact a solicitor quickly to ensure that your case is dealt with within specified time limits.

Commonly, the time limit is three years from the date the accident occurred, or the date you were diagnosed. The rules can be extremely complex and it will be difficult to know which time limits apply to you until further investigations are made. In some cases these limits can be extended depending on the circumstances, so you shouldn’t be deterred from contacting a solicitor.

Your free personal injury consultation with Hugh James will allow us to further investigate whether your case is within the required time limits or subject to any exceptions.

Only a small percentage of personal injury claims brought will actually proceed to trial, though we do prepare every case in depth to make sure we are ready should it go to court.

The personal injury procedural system is geared towards encouraging parties to be open with each other so that any claims for compensation can be settled without the need for going to court, which can save both time and cost.

A lot of people are naturally nervous and uncomfortable about going to court. We understand this and will advise you every step of the way, should your case reach a trial.

Yes, you will almost certainly have to undergo at least one medical examination as part of your personal injury claim.

The death of a loved one is an extremely difficult and challenging time. Making a personal injury claim will be the last thing on your mind, but if you have suffered financial loss and ongoing financial problems as a result of the death, then a solicitor may be able to help.

You should consider:

• The financial impact.
• The psychological implications to you and your family as a result of the death.
• And whether seeking professional support or counselling will be of any benefit.

Time limits are in place for this area of law. These time limits can be complex and varied, however, the general limit is three years from the date the injury happened or the illness was diagnosed.

If you would like further information about making a fatal accident personal injury claim, contact our team of expert solicitors for a free, no obligation, consultation.

If you have been injured at work and then exercise your right to bring a claim for compensation against your employer, you should then not be adversely treated by your employer. The reality is that although you may be bringing a claim against your employer in name, your claim will actually be handled by your employer’s insurers or solicitors.