1. How do I know if I can make a claim?If you have been injured because of the fault of someone else, you can claim financial compensation through the courts.
Why not phone 08000 154321 Farnworth Rose Solicitors or click here
www.yourholidayclaims.co.uk to submit a question
2. Who can actually make a claim?You can claim on your own behalf if you are the injured person (the claimant). If the person with a case for compensation is under the age of 18, the court will appoint a ´litigation friend´ who is normally a parent or close relative. If the injured person cannot make decisions for him/herself, or is in any way incapacitated, the court may also appoint a ´litigation friend´, who typically will be a close relative. If a claim is made on the behalf of someone who has died, their dependants have the right to make a claim on their behalf.
3. What is the time limit for making a claim?In most cases the time limit is 3 years from the date of the accident, although you are always recommended to contact a personal injury solicitor as soon as possible. If you fail to settle the matter or to issue court proceedings within 3 years, your claim will become statute-barred under the Limitation Act of 1980. It is worth noting that some accidents, such as those suffered on board holiday aircraft, have to be claimed for within 2 years, so always contact a personal injury solicitor as soon as you can after the incident. If you are claiming for an occupational illness, then you have 3 years to claim after the date you were first diagnosed with the illness. If a person dies, their dependants have 3 years from the date of death to make a claim, as long as that period has not passed during the injured person´s lifetime. If the person is under 18, that period of 3 years will not start until their 18th birthday.
4. Can I still claim if 3 years have gone by?If there is a particularly good reason for the delay in claiming, the court will allow a claim to be made ´out of time´. It is however completely up to the court, and the safest way to make sure your claim is heard is to make it as soon as you can after the accident.
5. What counts as being an injury?You can only claim compensation for an injury or illness that was the fault of someone else. An injury is a physical or psychological harm which must be more than minimal, and you must suffer some actual symptoms. Your solicitor will need to get a medical report to confirm the extent of your injury and to inform the court what was the likely cause of the injury and what is the extent of the injury.
6. What actually is fault? You can only claim compensation if someone was legally at fault for your injury/illness. If that person was negligent or breaks a law or regulation, the injured person can make a claim against them.
7. What constitutes negligence?Negligence can be defined as behaviour or conduct that is blameworthy, as it falls short of what a reasonable person would do to protect another from risk of harm. If an injured person proves another person acted negligently, which resulted in an injury, the injured party can claim financial compensation for harm done. For example, an employer owes a duty of care to ensure his employees are provided with a safe work environment. If an employer leaves wires and cables strewn across the floor of the workplace, and an employee trips and breaks his leg, the employer would be negligent and liable to pay financial compensation. There is also a statutory duty on employers to keep walkways clear and in good repair, so in this instance, negligence could be proved plus a breach of statutory duty.
8. What does financial compensation mean?Financial compensation or ´damages´ is money that a claimant is awarded after an accident, injury or illness which was the fault of someone else.
General damages are lump sums, payable to compensate the claimant for pain, suffering and loss of amenity. The amount payable depends on the severity of the injury and the extent of the symptoms. In most cases, the more severe the injury, the higher the award of general damages.
Special damages are past and future financial losses which are directly linked to the injury. Most common special damages are claims for future lost earnings, the cost of replacement of damaged items and the cost of medical treatment and drugs.
9. How can I make a claim?Firstly, you should know that claims management companies are not qualified to deal with court proceedings, and they cannot represent you in court. Once you contact a claims management company they will normally sell your claim to a firm of solicitors in your area. In other words, claims management companies are the middlemen, who pass on your claim to the highest bidder. Our advice would be to cut out the middlemen altogether and contact a firm of qualified personal injury solicitors directly for a free claim assessment. Once you have asked us to act on your behalf, we will send you a Letter of Engagement, which will state your instructions to us and the terms on which we will act. This will cover any no win, no fee agreement and state exactly how we will work for you.
10. What happens next?Once we have taken a statement from you, based on the facts presented to us, if we agree you have a claim, we will identify the defendant and send a Letter of Claim. This can be quite detailed and has to comply with the relevant ´pre-action protocol´, which is protocol set out by the Ministry of Justice to govern the dealing between parties up to the point of any court proceedings. The defendant must acknowledge receipt of the letter within 21 days and complete their liability investigations within 3 months. The defendant must admit or deny fault when replying. If he admits fault straight away, we can go straight on to investigate how much compensation you are entitled to. If, however, the defendant denies fault, they must explain their denial and disclose any relevant documentation. We will consider the response of the defendant and advise you how to proceed. We will also investigate liability and fault issues for you, or we will let you know if we feel your case is not likely to succeed.
Why not phone 08000 154321 and ask Anne Thomson from Farnworth rose solicitors a question or click here
www.yourholidayclaims.co.uk and submit an enquiry
11. What is partial admission on the part of the defendant?Partial admission is when the defendant admits he is partly guilty for an accident or injury, but also claims the incident was not all his fault. He may allege that the Claimant was partly to blame for injuries sustained or that another party was at fault. If the defendant is only proved to be partly at fault, a Judge could reduce the amount of compensation to be paid to the claimant. For example, if a claimant is injured after his car has been hit by another vehicle, and his injuries are made worse by the fact he is not wearing a seatbelt, the Judge could reduce the compensation award by 25%.
12. What does expert evidence mean?Claimants in personal injury cases always have to obtain an expert medical opinion, so that they can inform the court about the exact injury caused by the accident, plus the likelihood of any long term effects. When serious injury takes place, more than one expert medical report is normally required by the court.
If treatment or recovery is ongoing, it may take more time for medical evidence to be obtained, or it may not be possible to give a long term prognosis until a longer amount of time has passed. Claimants can often become frustrated when claims are delayed, but medical matters are often out of the hands of the personal injury solicitors.
A non-medical expert could be instructed to advise the judge on specialist areas such as reconstruction after an accident, but the expert´s duty is always to the court and not the claimant.
When medical evidence has been presented and agreed, claimants can normally be informed how much compensation is likely to be awarded, and an offer to settle out of court can be made by either party.
13. What does an ´offer to settle´ mean?An ´offer to settle´ is an attempt to come to an agreement without court proceedings. This offer can be made at any stage of the claims process by either party. This agreement can relate to liability or value.
14. What if the case is not settled?If both parties cannot come to an agreement, or if the 3 year time period is about to end, we would recommend that court proceedings take place.
15. What is an issue of court proceedings?An issue of court proceedings means lodging the claim form with the correct fee at the court office. The form is then stamped with the court seal and a form will be issued called the ´Notice of issue of Court Proceedings.´ This document, along with the claim form are known as ´Proceedings´, and this is a formal step which starts the legal process and can end up with a court trial before a judge. The claimant, or his representatives, must issue court proceedings within 3 years of the date of the accident.
16. What happens after court proceedings have been issued?Court proceedings must be served once they have been issued, which means they have to be sent, delivered or handed to the defendant at their home, place of business of registered office. This can be done by the court or by us, and the documents have to be served within 4 months of the date of issue.
The defendant then has 14 days to acknowledge receipt of the proceedings, which can be done easily by posting the reply slip on the back of the document. If the claim is for personal injury, other documents which must be served within 4 months include:
• Particulars of the claim, which is a formal statement explaining the actual circumstances of the accident, the fault alleged by the claimant and the injury suffered, plus medical evidence and details of financial loss.
• A medical report, written by a qualified medical practitioner, that states the circumstances of the accident, the injuries to the claimant, and the affect they have had on him.
• A schedule of financial loss, which sets out any special damages.
17. What is the Defence?The Defence is the reply from the defendant to the particulars of the claim. He will either admit liability, partially admit liability or deny liability completely. The Defence is due just 14 days after acknowledgement of service is filed, but if all parties are in agreement, an extension up to 1 month can be arranged. If a longer extension time is required, court permission is needed.
18. What happens after the Defence has been received?The court will invite both parties to submit a timetable to trial, but if they can´t agree, the Judge will impose a timetable which is known as the court ´directions.´ This document will make clear the steps both parties need to take to prepare the case for trial, and will allocate a trial window, within which the date of the trial will fall. The court will attempt to arrange a trial date as soon as possible, and the ´directions´ will include a date for exchange of documents and witness statements, plus other necessary documents so both sides are ready for the trial date.
19. What is included in a list of documents?A list of documents includes everything the claimant may rely on to support his case in court. This can typically include: witness statements and medical reports showing evidence of injuries.
20. What is Exchange of Witness and Expert Evidence?
Each party, the claimant and the defendant, will send their witness and expert evidence to the other party on a date decided by the court. Both parties can put questions to each other´s expert witnesses to try and find some common ground with the issues being disputed.
21. What happens if the case is still not resolved?If both parties cannot reach an amicable agreement, there will be a court trial, presided over by a Judge. You will probably need to attend court to answer questions from the defendant´s legal team, but this is not particularly daunting, and the personal injury solicitors who represent you will give you a full brief before this happens. Interestingly, only 5% of all claims for personal injury end up in court.
If you have been injured or suffered illness through the negligence of another person, you can claim compensation with Farnworth Rose Personal Injury Solicitors. We are experts in holiday illness and accident compensation claims, and we can get you a significant payout if you suffered personal injury after an accident at work or a road traffic accident that was not your fault. You get 100% of the compensation and we work on a no win no fee basis so there is no risk to you. Don´t suffer in silence. Call us now for a free assessment of your claim on 080001 54321 or fill in the
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