Children

Have I got a personal injury claim?

Contact one of your specialists on 0800 389 0385 or contact us online to find out if you have a claim. If you do have a claim we will guarantee you 100% of your compensation.

We deal with all sorts of personal injury compensation claims. You may have tripped over a paving stone, or fallen from scaffolding. You may have been in a car crash, or developed a lung condition from contact with asbestos.

Whatever your problem, our personal injury solicitors are here to help.

What should I know about making a personal injury claim?

To obtain compensation for an injury or illness, this must be caused by the mistake or 'fault' of someone else. However even if you are partly to blame, you may still have a case.

The fault may be clear, for example a drunk driver running someone over on a zebra crossing, or less obvious such as an employer failing to check that employees are following safety procedures.

How much will I get?

There are two parts to accident or personal injury compensation:

Some of the compensation covers your pain and suffering. This is assessed with the assistance of expert medical evidence. We arrange your medical examination and report. There are guidelines referred to by the court for the amounts payable in respect of particular personal injuries – for example for a broken leg, depending on severity, around £12,500.

The rest covers all your financial losses and expenses - both past and future. Your financial losses are assessed according to the evidence that we can piece together to show what you have lost. This can include loss of earnings, travel costs to and from hospital appointments, and the cost of any care and assistance you have had.

Time limits for personal injury claims

Personal injury claims must be brought within strict time limits - usually 3 years from the accident or for a child by the time he or she is 21, although there are exceptions.

The law states that court proceedings for personal injury and accident claims have to be issued within a certain time known as the limitation period. The time limits are strict and set out in the Limitation Act 1980.

If you do not comply with the limitation period that applies to your claim, you are likely to lose for ever the chance to make your claim.

All negligence claims are subject to time limits and it is therefore important that you do not delay in making your personal injury claim as soon as you know that something has gone wrong.

Most personal injury claims must be issued at court within three years of the date of the accident. For children, the personal injury claim must be issued no later than their 21st birthday.

There are exceptions:

• In some cases, the time does not start to run if it was reasonable that you did not know you had suffered an injury until later, for example in cases which involve a disease or condition contracted by exposure to a chemical at work.
• Similarly, if as an adult you did not have the mental capacity to instruct a lawyer to make a claim, the clock doesn't start ticking until you have regained capacity.
• In some limited cases the courts may agree to waive the time limit completely, for example in cases involving abuse suffered in childhood.
• There are different time limits for accidents overseas or on planes or boats.
• If your injury happened more than 3 years ago there may still be a way of making your claim.

Let our specialist personal injury solicitor assess your claim or pick up the phone and speak to us on 0800 389 0385.