By Lewis Lennon. Last Updated 28th April 2023. Have you sustained an injury in an accident that was caused by a third party’s negligence? If so, you could be entitled to make a personal injury claim for compensation. And when you’re considering pursuing compensation following negligence, you may be wondering if you need a solicitor for a personal injury claim.
Do you need a solicitor for a personal injury claim guide
You may think that it would be straightforward enough for you to represent yourself. This could especially be the case if you feel that liability is clear-cut. However, even in cases where it seems obvious that the other party is at fault, there are some aspects of making a claim that a solicitor would be more adept at handling.
This guide will explain why we advise that you seek the representation of a personal injury solicitor when claiming. We’ll also take a look at how compensation claims are calculated. In addition, we’ll look at how a solicitor’s representation could be helpful in valuing your claim.
You can get in touch with us to ask for advice and information about making a claim, in the following ways:
- Calling 0161 696 9685
- Filling in this callback form
- Sending a message through our pop-up messenger at the bottom right of this screen.
Select A Section
- A Guide On If You Need A Solicitor For A Personal Injury Claim
- How Do I Know How Much Compensation I Should Get?
- How Much Compensation Could A Lawyer Help Me Claim?
- Personal Injury Claim Special Damages
- What Is A Solicitor For A Personal Injury Claim?
- Dealing With The Other Parties Insurance Company
- What If The Other Parties Insurance Company Disputes Your Injuries?
- Could I Handle My Own Claim?
- No Win No Fee Solicitor For A Personal Injury Claim
- Contact Our Specialist Team
- Related Claims Guides
- Personal Injury Claim Statistics
- Personal Injury Claim FAQs
A Guide On If You Need A Solicitor For A Personal Injury Claim
An injury could have a serious impact on your life and the lives of those close to you. It could cause temporary disruption, or it could change your life permanently. If you were injured because someone failed in their duty of care, then you may be entitled to compensation.
It is possible for you to represent yourself and put together your own claim. However, this will involve many different tasks and responsibilities. These will need to be carried out correctly in order to increase the chances of your claim’s success.
We advise that you seek the help and advice of a solicitor to help you in your claim. Their expertise and training will help to ensure that you get the maximum compensation you’re owed. Furthermore, it will mean that you don’t have to undergo the stress and complications that may arise when you handle a personal injury claim without legal training.
This guide has been written to outline the different responsibilities of a solicitor in regards to making a compensation claim. We aim to highlight the benefits that you can experience by having a solicitor handle your claim. We’ll look at how a solicitor could help you in making different kinds of claims for compensation.
If you want more information, you can use the contact information we’ve included at the beginning and end of this article.
How Do I Know How Much Compensation I Should Get?
There is not a fixed amount of compensation that you could be awarded in most compensation cases. When you make a personal injury claim, the amount of compensation you’re awarded will depend on you’ve been impacted by your injuries. In addition how your injuries have impacted your finances.
A typical claim for compensation could be made up of two “heads”, each of which aims to compensate you for a different kind of harm caused by your injuries. We will go over what these heads of claim are and how they’re calculated in the following two sections.
How Much Compensation Could A Lawyer Help Me Claim?
Now that we have answered the question, ‘Do I need a lawyer for my personal injury claim?’ you might be wondering, ‘‘How much compensation could I receive if my claim is successful?’
Following a successful personal injury claim, you will receive general damages. This aims to compensate you for the pain and suffering caused by your injuries. Many personal injury claim lawyers will use the Judicial College Guidelines (JCG) to help them value claims. The JCG provides compensation guidelines for a number of injuries, both physical and psychological. For the table below, we have listed some of the amounts stated in the 16th edition of the JCG.
Please only use the figures below as guidance.
| Injury | Compensation | |
|---|---|---|
| Severe Leg Injury (i) | £96,250 to £135,920 | Injuries are significant and fall short of amputation. |
| Severe Knee Injury (i) | £69,730 to £96,210 | The joint is disrupted potentially causing a loss of function. |
| Very Severe Ankle Injury | £50,060 to £69,700 | Deformity is caused by extensive soft-tissue damage. |
| Serious Achilles Injury | £24,990 to £30,090 | You might left with a limp or residual scarring from your injuries. |
| Less Serious Leg Injury (i) | £17,960 to £27,760 | Soft tissue injuries are included in this bracket. |
| Serious Damage to Both Hands | £55,820 to £84,570 | Anticipate a significant loss of function in both hands. |
| Severe Injuries to the Pelvis and Hips (i) | £78,400 to £130,930 | The lower back joint is dislocated and the bladder is ruptured. |
| Severe Neck Injuries (i) | In the region of £148,330 | Little to no movement in the neck and severe headaches have proved intractable. |
| Severe Back Injuries (i) | £91,090 to £160,980 | The spinal cord and nerve roots are severely damaged. |
| Severe Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder | £59,860 to £100,670 | All aspects of your life are detrimentally affected and you are unable to work or function at the same level prior to your injury. |
| Fractures of Cheekbones (i) | £10,200 to £15,780 | Serious fractures cause for surgery with the potential risk of permanent disfigurement. |
Personal Injury Claim Special Damages
There are various costs that could ensue from a personal injury sustained in an accident that was not your fault. These costs can be claimed back in compensation. The part of your claim that covers the financial costs incurred as a direct result of your injury is known as special damages. Special damages can cover things like:
- Medical costs: This includes costs like prescription costs or treatment that’s not available on the NHS.
- Travel costs: Your injury may prevent you from driving and mean that you have to rely on public transport. If so, you could be entitled to claim these costs back as compensation. You can also claim fuel and parking costs for visits to the hospital and medical appointments.
- Loss of income: any income lost from being unable to work can be claimed back as part of your compensation. This includes future loss of earnings if you’re unable to work due to your injuries.
You will need to provide the paperwork to support these compensation claims, in order for them to be covered by your claim. Losses and expenses that you cannot verify with receipts, bills, invoices, and so on cannot be included in your compensation.
What Is A Solicitor For A Personal Injury Claim?
A solicitor is a professional who has taken years of training in order to practice law. They can represent and advise their clients because they are able to apply their full knowledge of the law to a case.
Unless you are a qualified solicitor yourself there is a risk that you may make mistakes, overlook details or become overwhelmed by the amount of work that goes into making a successful claim. We advise that you seek the representation of a solicitor to ensure that the process is easier and requires less work from you. This way, you can focus on recovering from your injuries without the added stress of handling your claim.
Claims For Severe Injuries
If you have had severe injuries then your situation may be more complex. You may be in a situation where you are having to take some time to recover from the injury. In these cases, you may not have the time and energy to be distracted from recovering your health by representing yourself in a personal injury claim.
Furthermore, there may be complicating factors if, for instance, you’re unable to return to work at all. In these cases, your solicitor may need to calculate the value of your lost earning potential. This can be much more complicated than ascertaining how much you’ve lost for any time you’ve taken off work. We feel these kinds of tasks are best left to a solicitor who has the training and experience needed to get you the compensation you deserve.
Claims For Multiple Injuries
You could claim compensation for each of the injuries that you have sustained in a personal injury. This means that you could have each aspect of your injury compensated rather than being left feeling like you have only partially been compensated for your injuries.
However, it could also mean that the task of calculating the amount of compensation you’re owed becomes more complex. A solicitor would have the knowledge to be able to include all injuries. Ensuring you receive the right amount of compensation for your case.
Medical Negligence
One situation in which you could be entitled to make a compensation claim is if you have been the victim of medical negligence. Medical negligence is any situation in which you come to harm as a result of medical practitioners’ failure to uphold the proper standards of care expected of them.
Medicine and law can be multidimensional. A solicitor would who specialise in medical negligence would not only have previous experience but would have the skills and capabilities to ensure the claim is filed correctly. Claims disputed by the NHS or by the healthcare provider in question could be counteracted by a good medical negligence solicitor.
Road Traffic Accidents
If you make a personal injury claim yourself after being injured in a road traffic accident, you may have to prove that the other party was responsible for the accident. You may also have to engage with the other party’s lawyers and insurance firm to discuss a settlement. If the driver responsible cannot be identified or has no insurance, then there would have to be liaisons with the Motor Insurance Bureau.
If you did not want to tackle such a process, a personal injury solicitor could help you through the claims process.
Slips, trips, and falls
One type of accident that might occur resulting in personal injury claims are slips, trips, and falls. These might occur while you’re in public or in the workplace.
Business and property owners, employers, and public bodies have an obligation to make sure they have done everything within their power to ensure your safety while on their premises. Failure to do this could cause an injury, resulting in a claim. Working with a personal injury lawyer could make the process of determining liability much simpler than if you chose to pursue a claim yourself.
Dealing With The Other Parties Insurance Company
When a compensation claim is made, the compensation is usually paid by the other party’s insurance policy. This could be their driving insurance or business insurance, for example. This means that in the process of making a claim there will need to be communication with the other party’s insurance company.
This is one of the many jobs that a solicitor can take on for you. Not only would it reduce the amount of work you would have to do, but it would also mean that you are able to concentrate solely on your recovery. A solicitor will have the knowledge and the experience of the law to ensure that these negotiations are fair for you.
What If The Other Parties Insurance Company Disputes Your Injuries?
If the other party in the claim attempts to dispute your injuries or their responsibility for them, then the case may have to go to court. Here, you and the other party will each put your cases and arguments forward. It is very rare for a personal injury case to go to court but not impossible.
Your solicitor can represent you if there is a court case. In the majority of cases, the issue will be settled by the other party or their insurance company. Because of this, going to court is not usually something you will have to worry about. However, you won’t know whether or not your claim will go to court before it begins, so we advise seeking the representation of a solicitor.
Could I Handle My Own Claim?
It is possible for you to represent yourself in your claim. There is no legal requirement for you to have a solicitor, or for you to be legally qualified, in order to represent yourself. However, representing yourself could present a number of potentially difficult tasks and responsibilities.
If you were to make a compensation claim in which you provided your own representation, you would have to:
- Write and send an official letter of notification to the third party you are claiming against, or their insurance company and lawyers.
- Collect and present all the evidence to support your claim sufficient to prove it successfully.
- Gather medical evidence so that it can be used to value your claim
- Attend court in order to make your representation in person in the event that the claim goes to trial
All of this is technically possible for someone with no legal training to do. However, it would add extra strain and take up time that you could otherwise use to focus on your recuperation from the injury.
No Win No Fee Solicitor For A Personal Injury Claim
You may be hesitant about seeking legal representation because you’re concerned about the costs of hiring a solicitor. In addition, you might be worried that you’ll be left paying large legal fees for an unsuccessful claim. This could leave you in a worse financial position than you were before you claimed.
When you fund a solicitor with a No Win No Fee agreement, this risk is may be reduced. A No Win No Fee agreement means that you won’t be asked to pay your solicitor in order for them to start working on your claim, or while it’s ongoing. Furthermore, you won’t be asked to pay your solicitor anything if your claim doesn’t succeed.
The only time you’ll be asked to cover your solicitor’s fees is if you succeed in your claim. In this instance, a percentage of your compensation will be deducted to cover your costs. This percentage is agreed upon beforehand and you’ll always receive the majority of the compensation awarded to you.
All of the solicitors on our panel offer No Win No Fee agreements. If you want more information about how this deal could work out for you, please feel free to get in touch with us and have a chat with one of our advisors. They will be happy to offer you free legal advice about moving forward with a claim.
Contact Our Specialist Team
You can contact us through our callback page, by ringing 0161 696 9685, or by sending a message through our chat pop-up.
Related Claims Guides
Making an accident claim against your employer
How to make a medical negligence claim against the NHS
A guide to car accident compensation claims
NHS- When to visit a walk-in centre
Personal Injury Claim Statistics
The amount of people making personal injury claims is coming down from a historical peak a few years ago. The figures from April to June 2020 from the Civil Justice Statistics Quarterly show that the number of unspecified money personal injury claims was down by 42% from the equivalent quarter of the previous year.
Part of this is likely down to the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic and the lockdown conditions. These circumstances limited people’s ability to spend time in public and to go to work. Personal injury claims as a percentage of monetary claims have decreased from 91% in 2019 to 84% in the same period.
Personal Injury Claim FAQs
How long do personal injury claims take?
The length of time that a claim takes depends on the circumstances. For instance, a claim that is straightforward and is not contested could be resolved in a matter of a few months. A claim in which the third party or their insurance disputes the issue could take more than a year.
How much time do you have to make a personal injury claim?
There time limit to making a personal injury claim is three years from the date of the accident. There are some exceptions to this, however. Get in touch with our team today to find out more about the exceptions that apply.
Who could make a personal injury claim?
Anyone who has suffered injuries from an accident that stemmed from a breach of the duty of care by a third party could be entitled to claim. Get in touch with our team today to see if you could be entitled to claim.
Who could claim when a child is injured?
If a child is injured, a litigation friend can claim on their behalf until they reach the age of eighteen. Once the child is eighteen, they could have the right to make their own personal injury claim if one hasn’t already been made.
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