Making personal injury claims is not something you do every day unless you are a qualified personal injury solicitor. So, if you are unlucky enough to be injured in an accident, filing a claim for your injuries might feel like venturing into the unknown.
With this in mind, We’ve compiled a list of the most typical errors we see individuals make after suffering a personal injury. This is not to scoff or imitate these faults – it’s completely natural to make mistakes when doing something we’ve never done before – but rather to assist you recognise often seen risks so that you don’t fall foul of them yourself.
Here are a few things you forget to do while filing personal injury claims:
Assuming that all solicitors have the same level of competence and experience
As a solicitor, We can tell you that we are not all equally skilled and experienced! We would never advise on a home purchase but We can count on one hand the number of times a customer has asked me whether you had ever dealt with a claim similar to theirs. Check that your lawyer is knowledgeable in his or her field. Personal injury claims are extremely significant, therefore don’t entrust your case to an inexperienced solicitor.
Not asking a question because you believe it is stupid
Some advertisements say that filing a personal injury claim is simple, so you may believe you can’t ask a question because your lawyer will think you’re stupid! This is not how you should think. This is your claim, and you have the right to be informed about what is going on. It is not your day job to be an expert in this field of law. Inquire, we’re sure your lawyer couldn’t complete the job. A personal injury claims is quite complex. Our experienced legal staff frequently disagrees on a subject, proving that there aren’t always black-and-white answers to issues.
Assuming that filing a compensation claim will be straightforward
As previously said, many advertisements offer the sense that making claims is simple. However, we would never tell our clients this because that is rarely the case. Sure, some claims, particularly car accidents, might be quite basic, but the majority of claims are complex. And we never believe it is simple to file an employment claim against your employer.
Claims are something you should consider carefully. A lawyer cannot predict how the opposing side would handle your claim, so you never know if you will have to go to court to provide evidence.
Failure to keep the required evidence
So, you’ve been in an accident. The first thing you should do once you’ve taken care of yourself is to gather proof. Consider the accident location to be a murder scene. Keep evidence to assist you to show what happened and how it happened. Take a lot of images and films with your phone’s camera if it has one. Make a list of everything. Speak with every witness there since witnesses are typically hesitant to assist you months later. What were the conditions like on the scene?
If you have been in an accident, take photographs of the vehicle’s position if possible. Get papers. Be forensic since you must establish that someone else’s fault caused your accident as a claimant. You may or may not opt to file a claim, but if you haven’t gathered evidence, any claim you decide to file afterward will be far more difficult to establish.
Making a Personal injury claim without getting medical evidence
Insurers may respond to a claim by paying a lump amount of compensation right away, even before they have seen any medical evidence of your injuries. These are referred to as ‘pre-medical offers’. Their expectation is that you would accept their offer, resolve the claim fast and maybe save them from having to give you additional money once you have researched your injuries.
Unless you have achieved full recovery in a couple of weeks, a lawyer will find it difficult to evaluate your claim without medical documentation. Accepting such a pre-medical offer may be worthwhile on occasion, but we would approach them with caution. There is often a genuine risk of settling your claim for far less than your injuries are ‘worth’.
Making your claim quickly
When this happens, it irritates everyone. Our best suggestion is to settle your claim until when you have fully recovered physically and psychologically from your injuries. Of course, some injuries are permanent, but if this is the case, ensure that the medical proof is definitive, stating precisely the degree of your injuries as a result of the event.
Assume, for example, that a medical expert predicts you will be fully recovered in one year and that you settle your claim before the end of that year. You are still injured, and your injuries may last longer than the expert predicted. If you continue to suffer after one year, chances are you settled your personal injury claim for less than it is worth because the compensation award was calculated using the medical expert’s one-year forecast.
Failure to keep financial loss records
Every personal injury solicitor in the UK despises this! As previously stated, the proof is critical in a personal injury claim. However, the proof is required for more than simply demonstrating how an accident occurred; you must also be able to demonstrate the damages for which you are seeking compensation.
Personal injury claims from Invicta Legal
You should approach filing personal injury claims in the same way you would any other sort of insurance claim. Imagine that your home has been broken into and your wedding ring has been taken. When filing an insurance claim, your insurer will need proof of purchase or ownership, and who can blame them?
Even with little expenses like hospital parking, physiotherapy sessions, and extra takeout (since you can’t cook owing to your ailments), the numbers build up and are possibly claimable. Your solicitor should advise you on what may and cannot be claimed.
