How do Personal Injury Claims Work? FAQ’s

You may have heard lots in the media, such as on television or online about making claims for personal injury, and you may have asked yourself, “what is personal injury?” and “how do personal injury claims work?” To help you understand, we have compiled a list of frequently asked questions and answers regarding the process of making a personal injury claim.

What is Personal Injury?

In legal terms, personal injury refers to any type of injury or damage suffered by a person, as opposed to damage to property or personal belongings. A personal injury can include and type of damage to the body of a person, and also includes mental injuries. Personal injuries are usually suffered as the result of an accident, which may have been caused by a person’s own negligence, or someone else’s negligence.

What is a Personal Injury Case?

There are many different types of personal injury case, including, road traffic accidents, accidents at work, and public liability claims. If a person has sustained an injury as the result of an accident which wasn’t their fault, they may wish to bring a personal injury case against the person or party who they believe was to blame for their injury.

Will My Personal Injury Claim be Successful?

There is no guarantee that your personal injury claim will be successful. We will agree to take on your claim of we believe you case has more the 51% prospects of success. To be successful in making a claim, you must be able to prove that a person or party has breached their duty of care, and that this breach led to your accident and injuries. If we are unable to prove that another party has been negligent, your claim will be unsuccessful.

What is an Employers Liability Claim?

An employers liability claim is one which is brought against an employer for an accident at work. Your employer has a duty of care to ensure that you are safe whilst at work. If you employer has been negligent, and this negligence resulted in you suffering an injury, you may be able to make an employers liability claim against them. Your employer should have employer’s liability insurance to cover the costs of any claim being brought against them.

What is a Public Liability/ Occupier’s Liability Claim?

Public and occupiers liability claims are usually brought against the owner or manager of a building or location, such as a shopping centre, café, restaurant, park, playground, or any other area. The occupier will have a duty to ensure that people are safe whilst using their premises. If , for example, you had a slip in a supermarket, you may be able to bring a claim for compensation against the owners. Most places will have public liability insurance in place to cover the costs of any claims brought as a result of their negligence.

What is an RTA Claim?

A Road Traffic Accident Claim (RTA claim) is a type of claim which can be brought if you have been involved in a car accident, or any other type of accident on the road. If you have been involved in an RTA which wasn’t your fault, you may be able to make a claim against the responsible driver or their insurers.

How do Personal Injury Claims Work? The Personal Injury Claim Process

If you have asked yourself the question, “how do personal injury claims work?” you may require information on the personal injury claim process. After you have decided that you would like to make a claim, and provided your instructions for a Solicitor to act on your behalf, the Defendant to the case will be notified that you intend to make a claim against them.

The Defendant will have a specific period of time to respond and provide their decision on liability. If the Defendant denies liability, we would be required to issue Court proceedings at this point, if we believe your case has good prospects of success.

If the Defendant admits liability for your accident or if liability has been proven through litigation, we can proceed to settle you claim.

Personal Injury Claim Settlement Process

As soon as liability has been established, we can initiate the personal injury claim settlement process. The first step in settling your case is by obtaining medical evidence for your injuries. We will seek to obtain your G.P and Hospital records and you may also be required to attend an appointment with a medical expert, who will document your injuries and provide a prognosis period in a medical report. If any further treatment is required for your recovery, this may be arranged at this point.

When you have fully recovered from your injuries, or following the receipt of the medical report, we will be able to negotiate a settlement based on the information provided within the report.

We will provide you with a valuation of your injuries and will negotiate a settlement based on this valuation with the Defendant to get you the compensation you deserve.

How Much Can I Expect from a Personal Injury Settlement?

Personal injuries compensation varies greatly and depends on your injury type, the severity of your injury, and the amount of time it takes for you to recover.

Injury compensation is referred to as General Damages. This is the amount of compensation you will receive for your pain, suffering and loss of amenity. The figure is based on the severity and the impact the injury has had on your life or will continue to have on your future.

You can also claim damages in relation to your financial loss as a result of the accident. This type of compensation is known as Special Damages and can include loss of earnings, travel expenses, prescription costs, costs of any private treatment you may have required.

We can provide a more accurate figure of the level of compensation you could be entitled to by discussing the circumstances of the accident and the level of injury sustained. In most circumstances, we will be unable to provide a valuation for your injuries until you have been assessed by an independent medical expert who will provide a medical report on your injuries.

How Much Does a Personal Injury Claim Cost?

When asking yourself “how do personal injury claims work?”, you may also be wondering about the costs of making a claim. The good news is, you should not be left out of pocket when making a personal injury claim. We offer our services and legal advice on a no win, no fee bases. This agreement means that you will not be required to pay our fees if your claim is unsuccessful. Our fees will be deducted from your compensation on the conclusion of your case if you are successful in making an accident claim.

The only requirement for this agreement is that you cooperate with us throughout the process of your claim and that you are honest with us.

Why Choose Beacon Law?

Beacon Law are a leading firm of personal injury lawyers, offering a range of personal injury claim services to our clients. We provide a high level of service to all our clients and work hard to ensure they receive the appropriate treatment and highest level of compensation for their injuries.

We work closely with all clients, following their instructions whilst providing specialist legal advice on each case. We aim to support all our clients throughout a time which is already difficult, and provide the best case management possible throughout all legal proceedings.

If you require advice on a potential case or assistance, please contact us on 0330 1332 857. Alternatively, please complete our online form, and a Personal Injury expert will contact you to discuss your potential case.

Beacon Law are a Solicitors registered in England and Wales with our registered office based in Manchester. We are authorised and regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority.