Following an accident at work, on the road, or in a public place, you will no doubt be asking the question, “Can I make a claim for personal injury?”. This guide aims to provide an answer, examining how a third party breaching their duty of care can result in injuries you may be eligible to start a claim for.
We explore how the claims process works, what you need to do, and how a solicitor could assist you in this regard. You will also find information on how personal injury compensation is calculated and what evidence you can use to support your claim.
At the end of this guide, we briefly look at the No Win No Fee agreement our panel of experienced personal injury solicitors can offer their services under and the benefits of starting your potential claim with them under these terms.
Contact our advisors at any time to ask questions about the claims process, or to get a free assessment of your eligibility to begin a claim. You can get in touch via the following contact details:
- Call us on 020 8050 2736.
- Contact us through our website.
- Click the live chat box.
Can I Make A Claim For Personal Injury? – Learn The Eligibility Criteria
Select A Section
- Can I Make A Claim For Personal Injury?
- What Happens When You Make A Personal Injury Claim?
- Potential Compensation From An Injury Claim
- What Evidence Could Help Me Make An Injury Claim?
- How Do I Pay For Making A Claim?
- More Resources About The Personal Injury Claims Process
Can I Make A Claim For Personal Injury?
To make a personal injury claim, the following eligibility criteria will need to be met:
- You were owed a duty of care by a third party.
- That third party failed to uphold their duty of care.
- This failure was the cause of an accident in which you sustained a physical and/or mental injury.
Per the Limitation Act 1980, personal injury claims are generally subject to a time limit of 3 years, although there are exceptions to this. This means you will need to start the personal injury claims process within 3 years of the accident occurring, although exceptions to this can apply.
You can enquire further about the relevant time limits to your potential claim, and get a free assessment of your particular circumstances from our advisors today using the contact information given above.
Accidents At Work Claims
Employers have a duty of care to all employees. Per the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974, employers are required to take reasonable and practicable steps to ensure the safety of their workforce. If this duty is breached, it could result in you sustaining an injury in a workplace accident.
For example, you were using a band saw to cut wooden planks in a workshop. Your employer had not carried out the scheduled maintenance checks, but you were instructed to use the saw anyway. The guard slipped mid-operation, resulting in a serious finger injury that necessitated surgical amputation.
Road Traffic Accident Claims
All road users owe a duty of care to each other in that they must take all reasonable steps to avoid causing one another to experience harm. This means adhering to both the Highway Code and Road Traffic Act 1988. A failure to do so could result in a road traffic accident in which you suffer an injury.
For example, a driver was reversing out of a side road without due care and attention. You were cycling along the main street when the reversing vehicle cut across the lane at speed. The collision threw you off your bike, causing you to suffer a severely broken leg and fractures to your ribs and arm.
Public Liability Claims
The party in control of a public place, referred to as the occupier, is bound by the Occupiers’ Liability Act 1957. The law requires occupiers of public places to take steps to ensure the reasonable safety of visitors to their premises. If they fail to do so, it could lead to you suffering an injury in a public place accident.
For example, you were walking up the stairs in a cinema when the handrail gave way. A staff member had reported the fault, but a repair had not been organised, and no warning sign had been displayed. You fractured multiple vertebrae in the fall, causing a substantial paralysis injury to your lower body.
The above scenarios have been included to illustrate how a third party could breach their duty of care and cause an accident and subsequent injury. For further guidance on the question “Can I make a claim for personal injury?” contact our advisors using the details above. They can assess your specific case and help you understand your options.
What Happens When You Make A Personal Injury Claim?
The Pre-Action Protocol for Personal Injury Claims sets out the actions that need to be taken to prevent a personal injury claim from needing to go to court. These must be carried out before any case is heard in court. We have outlined these actions here:
- Letter of Notification: Sent to the defendant informing them you are likely to begin a claim against them.
- Rehabilitation: All parties should consider whether the claimant is in need of medical treatment or rehabilitation, which should be done as soon as reasonably possible.
- Letter of Claim: A letter sent from the claimant to the defendant outlining what grounds the claim is being made upon and an overview of the injuries the claimant has suffered.
- Response: A deadline of 21 working days is imposed on the defendant to acknowledge the Letter of Claim. They then have 3 months to conduct investigations.
- Disclosure: Exchange of relevant documents to assist in the clarification or resolution of issues in the dispute.
- Experts: Expert testimony can include the claimant receiving an independent medical assessment and having a report generated.
- Negotiations: A Part 36 offer can be made during negotiations. This means claimants and defendants can make offers to settle before proceedings.
- Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR): ADR is the last resort before a claim goes to court. The parties will come together in a mediation or arbitration to try and reach an agreement. If a resolution is not reached, the claim will go to court.
A solicitor could take these actions on your behalf. Contact our team today for a free assessment of your eligibility to claim. If our advisors decide you have valid grounds to proceed, a solicitor from our panel could take on your claim.
Potential Compensation From An Injury Claim
Now we have provided more insight into the question, “Can I make a claim for personal injury?” this section examines how personal injury compensation is calculated. Compensation awards for personal injury claims can be made up of two different heads of loss, which are:
- General damages, which compensate for the physical and psychiatric harm caused by the accident.
- Special damages, which compensate for financial losses associated with your injuries.
When calculating a potential value for general damages in your claim, the Judicial College Guidelines (JCG) may be used as a reference. This is a publication from the Judicial College that details guideline award brackets for an array of different injuries. We have used some of these brackets, with the exception of the first entry, in our compensation table.
Compensation Table
We emphasise that this table has been provided to act as guidance only as personal injury claims are calculated on an individual basis.
| Injury | Severity Level | Guideline Compensation Brackets | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Multiple Very Serious Injuries with Financial Losses | Very Serious | Up to £1,000,000+ | Compensation for the physical and psychological impacts of multiple very serious injuries with lost income, expenses for care and other special damages. |
| Paralysis | Tetraplegia (a) | £324,600 to £403,990 | Paralysis of the upper and lower body. The top of this bracket would be for cases featuring significant brain damage with a significant effect on the senses and physical pain. |
| Paraplegia (b) | £219,070 to £284,260 | Paralysis of the lower body. Awards for paraplegia depend on the injured person's level of independence, the presence and extent of any pain, impact on sexual function and associated psychological impacts. | |
| Back Injuries | Severe (a) (i) | £91,090 to £160,980 | Damage to both the spinal cord and nerve roots giving rise to very serious consequences including severe pain, paralysis and significant impairment of bladder and bowel function. |
| Chest Injuries | Total Removal of One Lung and/or Serious Heart Damage (a) | £100,670 to £150,110 | Causing permanent scarring of a significant nature and serious prolonged pain and suffering. |
| Hand Injuries | Total or Effective Loss of One Hand (c) | £96,160 to £109,650 | This bracket includes injuries where all fingers and most of the palm have been traumatically amputated. |
| Serious Hand Injuries (e) | £29,000 to £61,910 | Cases where several fingers have been amputated but joined to the hand, leaving the hand clawed and unsightly. | |
| Leg Injuries | Severe (b) (iii) | £39,200 to £54,830 | Serious comminuted or compound fractures necessitating prolonged treatment and a lengthy period of non-weight bearing. |
| Severe (b) (iv) | £27,760 to £39,200 | Cases involving complex or multiple fractures or a severe crush injury to a single limb. |
Special Damages
As we said above, the second of the two heads of claim that can be awarded in successful personal injury claims is known as special damages and compensates for financial losses associated with your injuries. Possible examples of costs you could be reimbursed for include:
- A loss of earnings due to time taken off work to recover from your injuries.
- The cost of transport, such as taking buses, trains, or taxis to and from medical appointments following injuries that render you unable to drive.
- Domestic care and support with regard to meal preparation, cleaning, or maintenance of your property if you are unable to carry out these duties by yourself.
- Out-of-pocket medical expenses, such as prescriptions or physiotherapy.
Claiming special damages as part of your personal injury compensation will require supporting evidence. Return copies of your payslips, travel tickets, invoices for care, or other documentation as proof you incurred financial losses.
The information provided in this section is intended to offer guidance on how personal injury compensation is calculated. To get a more detailed estimate of what your particular claim could be worth, talk to a member of our helpful team via the contact information given below.
What Evidence Could Help Me Make An Injury Claim?
You will need to provide supporting evidence when making a personal injury claim. This is used to demonstrate the third party’s liability for the accident, as well as show the extent of the injuries you sustained. We have compiled a list of what evidence could be used in support of your personal injury claim:
- Always seek the proper medical care following an accident. Not only is this beneficial to your health, but you can request copies of your medical documents, such as any scans that were performed, to highlight your injuries.
- Following an accident at work, you can acquire a copy of your particular incident report from the workplace accident book. You can also use other workplace documents, such as maintenance or training records, to demonstrate that these were carried out improperly or not at all.
- If available, you can request a copy of any CCTV or dashcam footage, such as following a road traffic accident.
- Pictures of your injuries.
- Proof of any financial losses sustained as a result of your injuries.
It may be beneficial to work with a personal injury solicitor as they can help with collecting evidence for your claim. Get in touch with our advisory team for an answer to the question, “Can I make a claim for personal injury?”. If our team decides you could start a claim after assessing your particular circumstances, an experienced solicitor from our panel of personal injury experts could take on your case. A solicitor could not only support you with collecting evidence but also make sure your claim is brought within the relevant time limit.
How Do I Pay For Making A Claim?
Firstly, it’s important to note that there are no initial fees involved in starting a personal injury claim. Furthermore, if you decide to instruct a solicitor to assist you, you could do so under a type of No Win No Fee contract called a Conditional Fee Agreement (CFA). This typically means:
- Not paying a fee for the solicitor to begin work on your case.
- No fees during the personal injury claims process itself for this work.
- No fee to pay for the services provided if the solicitor does not win your claim.
If your solicitor wins your claim, you will receive personal injury compensation. You will pay for the solicitor’s service through a success fee. This is a percentage of your compensation that is automatically deducted from your compensation. Solicitors can legally charge a maximum of 25% as their success fee. This means you keep the majority of your awarded compensation.
Contact our advisors at any time to ask questions about the claims process, or to get a free assessment of your eligibility to begin a claim. You can get in touch via the following contact details:
- Call us on 020 8050 2736.
- Contact us through our website.
- Click the live chat box.
More Resources About The Personal Injury Claims Process
You can get further information on different types of personal injury claims by reading our other guides:
- Find out if you could be eligible to start a personal injury claim following an accident caused by your being given no manual handling training at work.
- You can read our guide to making a gym accident claim here.
- This guide to restaurant accident claims explains when you could be eligible to start a claim for a public accident.
You can also see these external pages for more guidance:
- The Health Safety Executive explains the importance of keeping an accident book in the workplace on this webpage.
- You can read more about strains and sprains using this NHS resource.
- The Government has prepared this resource on requesting copies of CCTV footage you appear in.
Thank you for reading this guide exploring the question, “Can I make a claim for personal injury?”. You can contact our advisors 24 hours a day with any questions you may have. They can also assess your eligibility to begin a personal injury claim free of charge. Get in touch today using the contact information given above.