Any accident can have consequences, and if you have suffered an illness or injury as the result of an accident, then you may be interested in finding out how to make a personal injury claim. Personal injury claims are designed to help to grant people compensation to support them as they deal with the consequences of an accident. If the accident was not your fault (even if your actions played a part in the accident happening) then you may be entitled to make a personal injury claim seeking compensation.
Get An Expert Opinion
If you are interested in making a personal injury claim, the best thing that you can do is to seek the advice of a professional. You can talk to a qualified solicitor or a claims advisor. Many professionals will offer their initial advice for free, or on a “no-win, no-fee” premise. This means that you will have the opportunity to find out whether you have a valid claim without having to worry about losing any money. You will have the chance to discuss what happened to you, and what you think caused the accident. The expert may ask you whether there were any witnesses, or they may put you in contact with a relevant specialist (such as a doctor) who’s opinion and report on injuries whether physical, mental or possibly both could support your claim. A claim advisor may also put you in touch with a solicitor.
If you want to stand the most chance of winning your personal injury claim, you should follow the advice that is given to you by the claims expert you speak to. Once they have ascertained that you have a valid claim, they will draft and send a letter to the defendant which sets out your claim.
What The Defendant Needs To Do
In the UK, the defendant is given the right to reply to the case within a fixed period of time. They are normally required to reply to this case within 3 months or less. The reply must state whether the defendant accepts or denies liability for your injury or illness. If they deny liability, the claim may go to court. If they are willing to accept liability, it is likely that your solicitor or claims expert will try to get them to agree to a sufficient settlement outside of court.
Making Offers
Your advisor will discuss with you the amount that you should expect to receive for the claim. They may talk about the upper limits of the claim, and also discuss with you what you are willing to settle for. This will help to manage your expectations. It is likely that they will take part of your award to pay for their services by way of a conditional fee agreement. Once you have agreed on an offer, they will take this offer to the defendant, to see if the defendant is willing to settle as well. The defendant may make a counter offer, and your solicitor will then negotiate on your behalf. If both parties cannot come to a reasonable compromise, then the case may be taken to court.
Taking Your Claim To Court
If the defendant does not agree that they are responsible for your injury, or if they are not willing to give you the amount of compensation that you feel that you are entitled to, your solicitor may suggest that you take your claim to court. Some people would prefer to settle out of court, because going to court with a claim can be a daunting experience, as your testimony may be aggressively questioned.
Although there is the possibility that you will be awarded a higher value of compensation than the defendant was prepared to offer, the possibility also exists that you will lose your case and not be awarded anything at all. Your claim may only be partly successful, at which point the judge will have a control over how much compensation you are being awarded. Your solicitor or claims advisor will discuss with you whether they think that it is a good idea to take the claim to court. If there is a good chance that you might lose in a court setting, they may advise you that it is not worth taking the claim to court. It should be worth noting though that most law firms that offer “no-win,no-fee” only do so if they are very sure that you indeed have a good chance of winning compensation.