Personal Injury
People sustain injuries in many different ways, whether following an accident, employer negligence, medical (clinical) negligence or assault. If a person or party is potentially to blame for the injury sustained by you, there may be a claim for compensation which could be pursued. Our dedicated personal injury specialists are here to help and will assess your claim free of charge.
At all times we strive to be sympathetic to our clients needs and as personal injury experts in pursuit of the highest standards of professional service we provide:
FREE INITIAL CONSULTATION
NO WIN NO FEE
100% COMPENSATION GUARANTEED
Hospital and Home Visits upon request
Friendly professional service
Every case conducted or supervised by a Partner and Head of the Litigation Team
The Goal of obtaining the maximum amount of compensation
We aim to provide you with an assessment as to the merits of your case at the initial free consultation. Based upon the prospects we are confident that we can win your claim or advise you upon your options.
Our goal is to obtain the maximum amount of compensation for you in the shortest space of time and to take the worry of pursuing a claim away from you.
All personal injury claims have a limitation period of 3 years from the date of the accident or date of knowledge of a possible injury claim. Court proceedings must be issued within this period unless the claim is settled otherwise the Claim would become time barred. For any person under the age of 18 years the limitation period would expire on their 21st Birthday.
Accident claims
If you suffer an accident which was not your fault you may be able to claim compensation.
Employers have a duty to comply with Health and Safety Regulations with a primary focus on providing an employee with a safe place of work. Accidents at work can vary from instances where an employee has received inadequate training to carry out a job safely to being required to use defective or dangerous machinery.
Slip and trip accidents may result in liability upon those responsible for maintaining certain areas. A Local Authority is required to carry out regular routine inspections of Highways and undertake repairs of any significant defects identified. Owners or occupants of buildings are required to undertake reasonable steps to maintain the floors of the building free from any slipping or tripping hazard.
Road traffic accidents result in the most common types of accident claims. All drivers are under a duty to drive with due care and attention. A failure to do so resulting in an injury to a person would normally lead to a claim. In circumstances, where the driver at fault is uninsured or drives off and cannot be traced, compensation for injuries sustained can still be pursued. In such cases, a claim would be made to an organisation known as the Motor Insurers Bureau.
There are many other instances in which injury can be sustained as a result of an accident where someone else is at fault.
Industrial Injury / Work related disease claims
It is fairly common for individuals to suffer injury as a result of repetitive work practices. Instances can include back injury due to repetitive manual handling jobs, development of carpal tunnel syndrome due to frequent exposure to vibrating tools or machinery and injury due to the type of frequent working practices carried out.
People may develop an illness or disease as a result of coming into contact with harmful substances in their workplace such as exposure to asbestos or latex.
These are all types of claims where an employer may have failed in complying with the duty of care owed to their employees as a result of which a claim for compensation can be pursued. All employers are required to have insurance cover in the event of any such claim.
Criminal Injuries Compensation
If a person is a victim of a crime and sustains injury it may be possible to pursue a claim for compensation to the Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority (CICA).
All claims to the CICA must be made within 2 years of the incident which caused the injury unless there are exceptional circumstances. There are other requirements in relation to being able to qualify for compensation which we would be able to advise upon and assess at the initial consultation.
It is often the case that an initial application to the CICA is rejected or an insufficient award of compensation is made. Our specialist team has successfully recovered the maximum amount of compensation for clients at all stages, including review and appeal to the Criminal Injuries Appeal Panel.
Clinical / Medical negligence
Doctors, Dentists, Hospitals and any other Medical Practitioners who provide treatment or care are under a duty to meet the standards expected of a reasonably skilled practitioner. Unfortunately, in many instances the service provided by such individuals and organisations is inadequate and results in injury or fatality.
Our specialist team would seek to investigate any possible clinical negligence claim and pursue compensation in circumstances where there appears to have been any form of negligence.
Whilst we may be able to offer to act on a no win, no fee basis in pursuit of clinical negligence claims. Public Funding may be available depending upon the merits of the claim and an individual’s financial circumstances with a firm of solicitors with a Contract from the Legal Services Commission to undertake clinical negligence work.
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
1. When should I pursue a claim for an injury?
It is always prudent to pursue a claim for compensation as soon as it is reasonable to do so. It is in your interest where possible to report an accident to those who may be responsible as soon as you can after an accident. A record of the incident should be recorded in the Accident Book and it is always advisable to take names and addresses of any witnesses.
In the event of a defect or hazard having caused the accident, it is recommended that you take photographs of the hazard. In the case of slip and trip accidents, for a claim to be viable, the defect would usually have to be in excess of 1 inch in height and as such, the use of a ruler in the photograph or a 50p piece (as this is 1 inch in height) placed against the defect when the photograph is taken would enable you to record for evidence the size of the defect.
2. How long have I got to bring a claim?
In nearly all personal injury claims, Court proceedings must be commenced within 3 years of the date of the accident. The 3 year limit is often called the limitation period.
In some instances where an injury is sustained, there is no clear accident date. As such, the limitation period of 3 years would commence from the date upon which the injury was identified or it was reasonable to assess that the injury was the fault of another party against whom a claim could be pursued.
If a Claimant is under 18 years of age, the limitation period would not expire until their 21st Birthday. However, even with claims pursued on behalf of children, in the event evidence of the circumstances of the accident diminish due to the passage of time, it would then be harder to pursue a claim and therefore, it is always prudent to commence a claim as soon as possible.
In Criminal Injury Compensation claims, the limitation period for submitting a claim to the CICA is 2 years.
In exceptional circumstances, the 3 year limit may be increased by the Court such as where a Claimant is suffering from a mental disability or was incapable of pursuing a claim within the 3 year limitation period for some other reason.
3. What is No win No fee / Conditional Fee Agreement?
A No win No fee Agreement otherwise known as a Conditional Fee Agreement (CFA) is a form of agreement between you and your solicitor which means that provided you assist in the pursuit of the case you will not be required to pay any of your legal fees in relation to your claim. The solicitor will assess the merits of the claim and subject to the assessment, decide whether or not to offer to act on a no win, no fee basis, with the goal that upon a successful outcome of the case, the legal fees would be recovered from the party responsible for the injury or their insurers.
During the pursuit of a claim, disbursements such as the cost of obtaining medical records and a medical report may be incurred. Usually such expense is paid by Davisons solicitors, as the disbursements would then be recovered at the end of the case if successful. However, ultimate responsibility for payment of disbursements, as these are not legal fees, rests with the client.
4. What compensation can I claim?
The amount of compensation that you may be able to recover will depend upon the seriousness of the injury sustained and the extent of any financial losses suffered due to the injury or accident.
The amount of compensation for pain, suffering and injury is usually based upon the assessment of the medical evidence obtained, which is normally in the form of a medical report.
Losses and expenses such as loss of income due to being unable to work as a result of the injury, the additional cost of travelling to and from Hospital, the cost of medication and any other losses attributable to the accident or injury can also be claimed. In more serious personal injury cases, where there is an impact upon the person’s future life, future losses and expenses can also be claimed.
Claims can also be pursued on behalf of the Estate and/or Dependants of a person who has passed away who sustained injury or even fatal injuries.
5. Will there be any deductions from my compensation?
At Davisons solicitors, we confirm that we will not deduct any fees for our services from the compensation and as such, subject to the cost of all disbursements being recovered, which is normally always the case, we guarantee that a client keeps 100% of their compensation.
6. How will my solicitor get paid?
The solicitor would be paid upon the successful outcome of the case, as legal fees would be claimed and recoverable from the person or party responsible for the injury or their insurers.
In the event the claim is unsuccessful, as we have acted on a no win, no fee basis, none of our legal fees would be payable.
In the event you have any queries or wish to arrange your free initial consultation, whether this is by appointment or telephone advice please do not hesitate to contact our specialist team.
