Personal injury claims: who is eligible and what are the options?

If you have been injured in an accident through no fault of your own, you may be entitled to compensation to cover the costs incurred due to loss of earnings, the ongoing cost of rehabilitative treatment and as a gesture for the inconvenience caused.

Thousands of people seek personal injury compensation in the UK every year, and specialist personal injury solicitors deal with a huge variety of different case types every day. Despite this, having a conversation about compensation is not something many people relish. While it can be daunting to initially talk to a personal injury lawyer about a claim, it’s a conversation worth having, because it’s often the catalyst that sets an injured party on the road to recovery.

Personal injury claims and the courts

For many people, going to court can seem intimidating – particularly for those who have done nothing wrong and have simply been injured due to the fault of another party. However, very few personal injury claims actually end up in court – and when they do, they are heard in front of a magistrate as opposed to a jury.

It is estimated that only 5% of personal injury claims actually go to court. If you make a personal injury claim, it is therefore highly unlikely that you will need to attend court to receive the compensation that you are entitled to.

To make a personal injury claim, it’s important to follow these simple guidelines. This will ensure you have the correct information to hand to support your claim.

Report your accident

If you’ve been injured in an accident, it is important to report it to the responsible authorities. For example, if the accident happened at work, it should be reported to your line manager who should then log the accident for you. For road traffic collisions, you should inform the police. They will keep a record of the incident and provide you with a reference number.

Keep any evidence

You will need to keep track of any evidence which supports your personal injury claim. Make meticulous notes, highlighting as much information as you can, including:

– The time and date when the accident occurred.
– The exact location where the incident took place.
– Names and addresses of witnesses to your accident.
– Any other pertinent information (for example, weather conditions or lighting levels).
– Photographs of the accident location.

However, evidence doesn’t stop at the site of the accident. If you have incurred post-accident costs (such as transportation or medical expenses), you should keep receipts. These could be useful in determining how much personal injury compensation you could be entitled to.

Contact a personal injury solicitor

Many personal injury specialists in the UK will be happy to offer free, no-obligation advice on how you could potentially proceed with your claim. After listening to the details of your accident, a good solicitor should be able to give you a realistic rundown of whether your claim is likely to succeed, and how much compensation you could be eligible for.