Insurance, Claims & Accidents

Archive for the ‘No Win No Fee’ Category

One option for people who want to file a personal injury claim, but can’t afford it, is to enter into a conditional fee agreement, or no win no fee, with the solicitor. Under this type of agreement, fees are waived until the case has been heard. Depending on the outcome of the case, fees may or may not be paid.

No win no fee agreements mean that if the case is lost, you will not have to pay your own legal fees, although you may be responsible for some expenses. Unfortunately, if you do lose your case, it is likely that you will have to pay the legal fees of the other side. In some cases, these fees may be even higher than your original fees.

Before some solicitors agree to a no win no fee case, they may ask that ‘after the event insurance’ is taken out. After the event insurance is a type of insurance policy that will cover the costs incurred due to losing a case. Not every insurance company offers after the event insurance and not every person will be able to obtain cover.

Like solicitors, insurance companies review claims on a case-by-case basis to determine the likelihood that the claim will be successful. If the insurance company feels that a case is unlikely to be won, the company may refuse to insure that person making the claim. After the event insurance can be expensive in itself, so it is important to take this into consideration before going forward with a claim as this should be factored into the potential costs of making the claim.

Compensation may be awarded for any personal injuries that are due to someone else’s negligence. Commonly, people claim personal injury compensation due to a road accident, an accident at work, a sports injury, medical negligence or a slip and fall in any public place, although these are not the only reasons. Basically, personal injury claims are awarded any time an injury is the fault of another, either directly or indirectly.

Unlike in the past, it is highly unlikely that a person making this type of personal injury claim will receive legal aid. As a result, some don’t make a claim due to the fact that legal fees usually have to be paid up front. Also, if the case isn’t successful, these legal fees are not reimbursed. Combined with the expense of the injury and any loss of wages, the legal fees make filing a compensation claim too expensive.

One option that is available for those who cannot afford the legal fees or do not have insurance to cover them is a no win no fee compensation agreement. With this type of agreement, the person making the claim will not have to pay any legal fees if the case is unsuccessful, although there may be some expenses that will need to be covered.

Should the case be won, the person will have to pay the solicitor’s fees, but these are usually covered by insurance or paid by the other side. Even after paying the legal fees, there should be a good percentage of the compensation left. What is important to note before agreeing to this type of agreement is the exact amount that will need to be paid in both cases to ensure that it can and will be paid.

Many people question whether or not they have the right to make a no win no fee claim if they are not a citizen of the UK. The fact of the matter is that regardless of whether you are on holiday in the UK, working in the UK, or simply visiting, you may have a valid claim for any injuries you suffer, and any corresponding losses that occur. The no win no fee laws in the UK stipulate that you must first establish that someone or something else was at least partially responsible for the injuries suffered, and are therefore liable for those injuries. If you can establish that you are entitled to compensation, it simply boils down to determining how much you are entitled to claim.

The first thing you need to do if you have been injured is contact a no win no fee solicitor and go over the details of your injury with them. These professionals will let you know immediately whether or not you have grounds to make a personal injury claim. Under this system you can have a solicitor take on your case without any subsequent to fees paid out of your pocket, and the no win no fee solicitor will take his fee from the defending party, regardless of whether you win or lose the case. Bear in mind that personal injury claims must be proven beyond a shadow of a doubt, and the sooner you make the claim the better.

We are all familiar with the dramatised court scene beloved by film makers. A witness is magically produced to turn the course of events and render the likely (and unjust) outcome meaningless. Or a brilliant advocate makes a speech so brilliant, so forceful, that a weeping jury comes to a correct (and quite unforeseen) verdict.

Unfortunately, in real life this is infrequently the case. Indeed, if it were so, then there would be no legal dramas at all. In fact, the vast majority of ‘no win, no fee’ personal injury claims are settled in accordance with a process known as the Alternative Dispute Resolution, which takes place outside of the courtroom.

Alternative Dispute Resolutions can be sectioned into three distinct processes.
Firstly, is what is known as Mediation; an impartial arbiter meets with the claimant and his opponent to discuss the case. The arbiter will attempt to guide both parties to a consensus of events. By so doing, an agreement can be made on which everybody is satisfied.

The second, Conciliation, is a development of Mediation. The arbiter will offer suggestions to both parties and trust commonsense to prevail without the need for any external intervention.

Finally, there is the so-called Mini Trial. Although not held in an actual courtroom, a neutral will take place of a judge and hear both points of view in much the same way as would happen in a real court.

A ‘no win, no fee’ lawyer will advise you if any of these circumstances take place during your case.

Whether or not your no win no fee compensation is 100% depends on a wide variety of factors. As a general rule, almost every single cost related to the legal and other fees are covered by the no win no fee system, although there are extenuating circumstances. Whatever the amount of compensation your no win no fee lawyer wins on your behalf you are guaranteed to receive and keep. However, your lawyer can charge a “win” fee, whereby he is awarded a bonus above and beyond any compensation should he actually win the case.

If you happen to lose your no win no pay compensation claim, it is exactly as the title suggests: if you do not win, you do not pay, period. The system was put in place to ensure that every individual has equal access to representation in a court of law as a result of personal injury claims, regardless of their financial, physical, or psychological status. As to whether or not there are any extra fees above and beyond compensation for the personal injury claim, you need to discuss the particulars with a no win no fee lawyer. In order for a no win no fee lawyer to determine exactly what a case will require, you must call and provide adequate proof of your personal injury, including a medical exam and any and all records dating back to the accident which caused the injury in the first place. You have nothing to lose with a no win no fee compensation claim, so there is really no reason not to try and claim reimbursement for your pain and suffering if you are injured.

When dealing with surveyors and builders who have failed to either find existing faults after a building has been constructed, or failed to build a project according to industry specifications, you could have a situation on your hands where you are eligible for some form of compensation. If this occurs, you will want to contact a no win no fee solicitor to determine whether or not you can claim some form of no win no fee compensation. Despite the fact that there are a wide variety of qualifications and excellence standards that surveyors and builders hold themselves to, mistakes do happen on occasion, and should you happen to be a suffering as the result of negligence, you have the right to claim compensation.

Your no win no fee solicitor will use every resource available to ensure that your claim is not only completed in as efficient a time period as possible, but also to ensure that you are awarded a fair compensation amount. In most cases, it is in everyone’s best interest to make sure that the claim is completed as flawlessly as possible. Remember, it costs absolutely nothing to make a no win no fee compensation claim under the law, and regardless of whether or not you win or lose you are not required to pay any fees whatsoever. All no win no fee solicitors are required by law to provide this service, so if you believe your surveyor or builder is liable for injuries suffered as a result of negligent actions, contact a professional at your earliest convenience.

One thing that many people do not understand is that if you have tripped while walking down the street, on the sidewalk, in a car park, or any other public area, this does not mean you are automatically eligible to file a personal injury claim, nor is there any guarantee that you will receive any form of compensation for slips, trips and falls from the local highway authority or owner of the property, if the property is not under the governance of the local authority. While the roads and pavements around your local community are maintained by the local council, and they do have a responsibility to ensure that those streets are maintained in reasonable condition, it does not mean that just because there is a defect in the pavement that they are automatically liable.

The main question that your no win no fee lawyer will be finding the answer to is what the ‘reasonable conditions’ are. This is a matter of degree, and each specific case will rely on facts such as the weather, the lighting conditions, the age of the individual involved in the accident, the type of defect that caused the accident, whether or not there were any warning signs, and whether or not the individual in question contributed to the accident. If you find yourself injured in some form of slip, trip or fall on the street, you should contact your local no win no fee lawyer at your earliest convenience to determine whether or not you are eligible for compensation as a result of a personal injury claim.

Although it is of obvious importance to begin a personal injury claim as soon as possible after the event of your accident, this is not always possible.

Perhaps the injury has been unwittingly caused by a close friend or relation, or that the full extent of the injury has not manifested itself until after a certain time has elapsed.

While your ‘no win, no fee’ solicitor would undoubtedly prefer initiating proceedings immediately after the injury occurred, if you allowed a period of time to elapse there should not be any reason why you delay further in seeking no win, no fee compensation.

The solicitor is eager to begin work on your case for a number of reasons. First is the matter of witnesses involved in the accident. It is preferable to record eyewitness depositions as soon after the accident as possible as the memory of witnesses is notoriously unreliable. Remember, even the slightest detail may be pertinent to your no win no fee claim.

If medical records and statements need to be used to process the claim, these will need to done systematically. Doctors and hospitals are usually very busy. Appointments need to be made and interviews conducted. All of this takes time.

Last, the courts are frequently booked for months in advance. Preparations need to be made to ensure you get the court time you need.

However, in accordance with the Statute of Limitations, a three-year period after the cause of accident is now regarded as the benchmark whereby ‘no win, no fee’ claims are judged to be acceptable.

This may of course vary. Injuries caused by exposure to certain industrial chemicals often take a while to manifest. However, a good rule of thumb is to notify the personal injury solicitor immediately.

Shoulder injuries are one of the most common types of personal injury caused by accidents in the workplace. The majority of these injuries are caused by insufficient implementation of Health & Safety procedures and are therefore directly attributable to the employer.

It should be remembered that the shoulder is an exceptionally complex joint. Not only that, it is responsible for the mobility and flexibility of our hands. For many, impaired dexterity could signal the termination of their job which results in a substantial loss of earnings and a very precarious financial future.

An expert ’no win, no fee’ personal injury solicitor will pursue your claim in a court of law. A ’no win, no fee’ agreement means that you can seek redress from your employer at no cost to yourself.

If you are unfortunate to be unsuccessful, then you have lost none of your own money and will have hopefully highlighted health and safety issues in the workplace that may well aid legislation at a later date.

However, if you are successful, then every penny that you were awarded in compensation is yours to keep. The personal injury solicitor will collect his success fee from the negligent party’s insurance policy.  

Even a shoulder injury that, although uncomfortable, gradually becomes better over the course of 10 to 12 months could pay out compensation of up to £2500, while one lasting for a couple of years may well net you between £3-4000. In the unfortunate case where there is lasting damage and acute pain, the amount may be as high as £22,000.