Personal Injury Claims

Updated: October 8, 2024

Reviewed by: Jenny Stevenson

Updated: October 8, 2024

Reviewed by: Jenny Stevenson

Public Liability Solicitor

Jenny is a Public Liability Solicitor from one of our panel law firms

What is a Personal Injury Claim?

A claim for personal injury is a legal request to the party responsible, to compensate you financially for your accident. This includes any expenses you have incurred as a result of being harmed.

Claims can be made by anyone who has been injured through the fault of another person, either through a physical trauma or negligence. This applies even if the victim was partially responsible themselves.

What Personal Injury Claims Can You Make With a Personal Injury Solicitor?

Many victims are aware they can make personal injury claims if they have been hurt in an accident that was not their fault. However, the accident claims UK process can appear so confusing that even the thought of contacting a personal injury solicitor can put people off. This can potentially leave people financially vulnerable as they heal physically and emotionally.

The Compensation Experts work with some of the nation’s leading personal injury solicitors. Theywill support and guide you to the fullest extent that is possible. The variety of personal injury claims is enormous and can include:

Accidents at Work

Your employers have a legal obligation to reduce the risk of you being injured at work. This not only includes things like making sure equipment is safe to use, but also providing adequate training to educate you about the risks in your workplace, supplying you with relevant safety equipment, and assessing potential hazards at work.

Road Traffic Accidents

According to government figures, there were around 1,600 fatalities in reported road collisions in the year ending June 2023. Casualties of all severities were estimated at 133,443 for the same period.

You may be able to claim compensation if you have been hurt in an RTA that wasn’t your fault, whether you were a driver, passenger, cyclist, or pedestrian.

Sporting Injuries

All sports carry an element of risk, as there is always the chance that participants might be injured due to another player’s actions. You might also be injured due to the negligence of organisers who fail to provide a safe environment in which to play.

Criminal Injuries

If you have a criminal injury claim and have been hurt as a result of a violent crime within the last two years, The Compensation Experts are here to provide you with access to legal representation.

Where you may have a criminal injury claim, you are not required to use the services of a claims management company to pursue the claim. It is possible for you to present the claim yourself directly, for free, to the Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority (CICA).

Accidents Abroad

Being hurt in an accident abroad can be a nightmare. However, if you have suffered an accident on holiday, you  may be able to claim Compensation. You may be able to make a personal injury claim under one of several laws designed to financially compensate people who have been hurt abroad.

Where you have been involved in an accident with a driver and intend to make a claim involving a vehicle accident abroad (EEA/Green Card System), you are not required to use the services of a claims management company to pursue the claim. It may be possible for you to present the claim yourself directly, for free, with the Motor Insurers’ Bureau.

Medical Negligence

The Independent reported that compensation paid out by the NHS for medical negligence claims has risen to £2.8bn in 2023/24, up from £2.7bn the previous year. Medical negligence can relate to anything from misdiagnosis to prescription errors and hospital infections.

How do Personal Injury Claims Work?

There are four main steps to a successful personal injury compensation claim.

• Initial consultation
• Research and proof
• Making the claim
• Negotiation and payment

The initial consultation begins when you contact The Compensation Experts. Our friendly advisors will talk to you about your injuries and what led to them. They will ask a series of questions to help build a picture of the sequence of events, to see whether there is the potential to make a claim.

Some accidents are genuinely nobody’s fault. However, where it is likely that another person’s error caused – or even contributed to – your injury, it is probable you have grounds to request accident compensation.

Before your personal injury solicitor can request accident compensation, they need to build a body of evidence to prove two things:

Showcasing the type and nature of your injury

Your personal injury solicitor will review your medical notes to ascertain:

• The type of accident you’re experienced
• The impact it has had on your life
• The prognosis for your recovery

We may seek the opinion of an independent medical advisor at this point, especially if your injuries are extensive and your recovery is ongoing.

Information you can provide which will help your personal injury claim includes:

• Photos of the accident site showing the conditions at the time, such as poor lighting, potholes, or paths that may have been slippery in the rain.
• Contact details of the other party and any witnesses who may have seen or heard your accident.
• Evidence of lost income as the result of being unable to work due to your personal injury.
• Bills showing reasonable medical costs like private physiotherapy.

Proving negligence

Your personal injury solicitor will also need to demonstrate that the other party was at fault, and it was their error, rather than random chance, that caused you harm.

The more detailed your solicitor is at this point, the stronger your accident compensation claim will be.

Evidence may include anything from photographs of the crash scene, to witness statements, copies of a company’s maintenance schedule, or information from a business’ accident report book.

This stage can take several months, but it is important to be thorough in obtaining the maximum possible payment.

Once they have collated the body of evidence necessary to prove your claim, your personal injury lawyer will contact the relevant party and ask them to acknowledge responsibility.

They will ask for damages not only for your physical injury, but also to compensate for the money you have had to spend as the result of your injuries.

For instance:

• Lost earnings
• Cancelled holidays
• Private physiotherapy
• Travel expenses for ongoing medical treatment

As well as factoring in the extent of your injury, the long-term implications it has for you, and any financial expenses you have incurred, the other party will also seek to prove if you were partially responsible. For example, if you were injured in a car accident (which was wholly the fault of the other driver) but your injuries were worsened by the fact that you were not wearing a seatbelt.

The other party has a set time to respond with an agreement or denial of liability. As with the research, this period can take some time to complete, depending on the stance they and their lawyers take, which is why your personal injury solicitor will ensure that your case is as strong as possible from the outset.

Your solicitor will negotiate accident compensation on your behalf and ask for a figure based on your injury and expenses. The other party may pay this straight away, or they may counter with a different offer.

Your lawyer will keep you informed and provide you with legal advice, but they can’t accept any offer you are not satisfied with.

If the other party denies liability or feels you may have been in some way responsible, they may refuse to make any accident compensation payment. In this instance, your lawyer may recommend you challenge the claim in court where a judge can award damages.

How Long Does a Personal Injury Claim Take?

There is no definitive time in which a personal injury compensation claim must be settled. Most personal injury claims must be submitted within three years of the date of injury. Or, within three years of the date an injury was attributed to the accident – whichever is the most recent. As a general rule, the less severe the injury and the clearer the evidence, the shorter the claim time will be.

Does Personal Injury Compensation Affect Benefits?

If you’re awarded more than £6,000 in compensation, or your savings plus your compensation payment will take your savings to more than £6,000 then it is likely claiming compensation will affect your benefits.

Not all benefits are affected by a compensation payout, and there are things you can do to protect your benefits. Find out more about how personal compensation affects benefits.

Is Personal Injury Compensation Taxable?

No, personal injury compensation is exempt from tax, so you won’t have to pay tax on any payout you receive.

Does a Personal Injury Claim Involve Going to Court?

Most personal injury claims settle without the need to attend court, and your solicitor will do all they can to resolve your case outside of the courtroom if possible.  

However, some personal injury claims do result in court proceedings. For example, where liability cannot be resolved, or if the case is particularly complex. Going to court is a lot less intimidating than it seems, and your legal team will support you throughout the process.

How Much Compensation Will Be Paid?

As with processing time, it is not possible to predict an exact amount of personal injury compensation. Compensation can vary greatly depending on the type and severity of your injuries, as well as other factors.

However, there is guidance that indicates how much you could claim for an injury, known as the Judicial College Guidelines. Below we have given examples of the compensation amounts given by the Judicial College in their 17^th edition of the guidelines:

Shoulder injury claims can result in compensation of up to £2,990 for minor injuries which resolve quickly, and up to £58,610 for the most severe cases.

A fractured clavicle might attract compensation of between £6,280 and £14,940.

Arm injury claims. A simple fracture of the forearm might see compensation awarded between £8,060 – £23,430. Compensation for severe arm injuries, which fall short of amputation, can reach £159,770.

Compensation for leg injuries varies greatly. For modest injuries which heal quickly, you might receive less than £2,990. The most serious leg injuries, such as an extensive degloving injury, could attract compensation at the higher end of the scale, up to £165,860.

Knee injury claims. A soft tissue strain-type injury that is resolved within six to seven months might lead to compensation of around £2,750, while serious knee injuries can reach up to £117,410.

Back injury compensation might be up to £2,990 for minor injuries where a recovery is made within three months. Compensation of up to £196,450 might be awarded for severe back injury cases involving significant spinal cord damage.

Compensation for head injuries can range between £2,690 and £15,580 for minor injuries, up to £493,000 for the most severe cases involving brain damage.

Asbestos–related claims might be settled for between £18,430 – £43,320 at the lower end of the scale, and up to £139,680 for the most serious cases where the claimant has mesothelioma that causes severe pain and affects quality of life.

To find out how much compensation you could receive, use our Compensation Calculator or call us on 0800 182 2187.

What is No Win No Fee?

Many of the solicitors that work with The Compensation Experts offer our clients a Conditional Fee Agreement, which is often referred to as as “No Win No Fee”*.

This arrangement takes away the financial risk of paying a personal injury solicitor before being guaranteed success; if you are not awarded compensation then, assuming the information you give is correct, and that you accept the legal advice your solicitor has provided, you will have no legal fees to pay.

How no win no fee accident compensation agreements work

You should never have to pay for your initial legal advice. The Compensation Experts provides initial free legal advice which comes with no strings attached. You can talk to our friendly, professional advisors without any obligation.

Importantly, while No Win No Fee* agreements mean you will not have to pay your lawyer’s legal costs if your claim is not successful, you may still have to pay your opponent’s. Legal insurance will protect you from this so talk to your solicitor about your options before making any decisions.

*Typically, customers pay 25% including VAT of the compensation amount that is recovered by our third-party law firms, although this is subject to your individual circumstances and the actual fee may be more or less than this.  Termination fees may apply if you do not keep to the terms of the agreement.

Can I Make a Personal Injury Claim for Someone Else?

It is possible to claim compensation on behalf of another person if they are underage or incapable of making a claim for themselves. This usually happens when:

• A parent claims in the name of an injured child
• An adult child claims on behalf of an elderly relative

 A person can also claim on behalf of someone who is mentally incapacitated, either as the result of their injuries or due to a pre-existing condition.

In all of these instances, the money is paid to, or held in trust for, the injured party. It is not paid to the claimant.

Personal injury lawyers working with The Compensation Experts can also claim compensation after accidental or wrongful death. These incidences are understandably delicate, at what can be an already traumatic time for the victim’s family. However, in our experience, claiming accident compensation can be a healing process as there is legal acknowledgement of responsibility by the other party.

Understanding that each personal injury is unique

Every personal injury compensation claim is unique and, just because you may have heard about someone with a similar injury to yours receiving a certain amount of compensation, it doesn’t mean yours will automatically be the same.

There are so many variables in each case, from the circumstances which led to your injury to the ongoing impact it has on your life and the commitment and experience of the lawyer you engage.

While there are statutory limits for making personal injury claims (usually three years, though it can vary), you should never feel rushed or pressured into making a decision. It is your life and your future, so it is important that you work with a legal firm who respects that.

A good legal firm will make sure you are kept informed of the progress of your claim, and who doesn’t bombard you with legal and medical jargon to the point that it seems as if you are speaking in different languages.

What Happens Now?

The first step in making a personal injury claim could be to contact The Compensation Experts. Seeking legal advice at the earliest opportunity means you have more time to make the right choice for you and your family,.

Personal injury law is a wide field so always look for a solicitor who specialises in your type of injury. At The Compensation Experts, we work with some of the UK’s leading personal injury lawyers and will match you with those whose skills and experience best suit your situation, to ensure you have every possible chance of obtaining maximum accident compensation.

Call The Compensation Experts today on 0800 182 2187  and talk to an experienced advisor. Alternatively, fill in our online contact form and we will reply at a time that suits you.

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