The new process for Low Value Road Traffic Accident claims

30 04 2010

If you instruct us to act for you in a claim for personal injury arising out of a road traffic accident after the 29th April 2010, please be prepared for a long conversation with us because we are obliged to submit your claim to the insurers of the driver who caused the accident on-line to a secured website operated by the Ministry of Justice.The amount of detail which needs to be provided is extensive.

This only applies to claims where the value of the injury or injury related claims such as earnings loss or private medical treatment is likely to be  less than £10,000.00.

On the same day as we submit the form to the insurers, we must send a hard copy to the other driver and in printed form, the claim will generally be about eight pages long.

The form has several sections and it will be helpful if you can have the following information available when we speak.

Your Personal Details

Your full name Address and postcode

Telephone numbers & e-mail address (for our records only)

Your date of birth

Your National Insurance number

Your occupation

Whether you wre wearing a seat belt

Details about your injury

Full details about your symptoms

The name (and address) of any hospital visited following the accident (and reference number if available)

Whether you have received any treatment such as physiotherapy or if this has been recommended

Whether you have been unable to work and the dates of your absence

Whether you have been involved in any other accident in the last three years (for our records only)

Details about the vehicles involved and of the driver responsible

The make, model (where known) and registration numbers of all vehicles involved

The name and address of the other driver or the owner of the vehicle

The number of people in the vehicle in which you were travelling

If you are the vehicle owner

Whether you are comprehensively insured or Third Party Fire & Theft

Who is repairing the vehicle (if not written off)

The name, address and reference number of any company that has provided a hire/replacement vehicle

The dates of hire

If you were a passenger

The name and address of the driver

Accident Details

Description of the accident circumstances

The date, time and weather conditions

The names of any witnesses

The details of any other driver/vehicles involved

Why you think the other driver is at fault

Other Information

Whether you have any legal expenses insurance (legal protection) sold with your motor policy or house contents policy or even travel insurance

If you were injured on public transport, the name of the bus or coach company, the Route number if any and whether you have proof of ticket purchase for the journey, along with the approximate number of other people on the bus or coach.

If it appears that the other vehicle was uninsured, a description of the driver . 

If you don’t have all the information to hand, we may not be in a position to submit your claim and advance your case until you do! However the person taking the information on our behalf will be able to advise you further about this.

A quick and easy process if there is no dispute

The good news, however, is that once the claim has been submitted to the other driver’s insurers they have only 15 Business Days (three weeks) to concede liability and save themselves considerable legal cost if they accept that their insured was to blame. If they miss this deadline, the claim will leave this streamlined process and be dealt with under the much slower and more costly system which has applied up till now.

On the other hand, undisputed claims will progress very quickly from the early provision of physiotherapy or similar treatment to a brief medico-legal examination by a local GP at an appropriate time. The GP then prepares a report in a standard format and if you agree the contents, we will discuss the likely value of your claim and propose on-line a settlement figure (discussed with you in advance) to the other driver’s insurers and upload the medical report along with any documentation confirming your out-of-pocket expenses.

The insurers then have a further 15 Business Days to accept or reject the offer and enter into negotiations over further 20 Business Days to avoid the matter proceeding to a court hearing.

In less serious cases, claims will be capable of being finalised within three to six months and we will be paid a fixed fee by the insurers of the other driver which will cover your legal costs


Comments : 1 Comment »
Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , ,
Categories : Claim Notification Form, New Process for injury claims, Personal Injury

Reversing accidents

9 02 2010

These generally fall into two categories – those where one of the drivers has moved from a parked position and less frequently where a driver has allegedly selected reverse in an otherwise rear end shunt scenario.

Parking incidents

All too frequently accidents involving reversing manoeuvres occur in car parks.  On the one hand, there is little choice but to reverse and secondly the driver proceeding down the parking lane should be on notice that a vehicle may reverse unexpectedly at any time.

Often both vehicles may be reversing at the same time.

Establishing who is to blame can be very difficult and in the absence in independent witness evidence,  photographs or better CCTV footage, liability is likely to be split.

Allegations in rear end shunt claims

In practice, motorists rarely take it into their heads suddenly to reverse, however this can happen (for example) where :-

a. At the mouth or a roundabout or junction, a motorist has edged out too far and reverses to avoid obstructing traffic

b. On a slope, a vehicle rolls backwards through problems with brakes or snow

It is sometimes used as a (desparate) defence to the allegation of a rear end shunt and again without clear witness evidence, the claim is unlikely to succeed.

If you are not yet a client of Kaslers RTA department but would like initial free advice on any matter relating to a road traffic accident in the UK, whether relating to an injury or vehicle damage, click here for our New Enquiry Form


Comments : Leave a Comment »
Tags: , , , , ,
Categories : Parked car accidents

Tips for Lady Drivers

28 01 2010

I was asked to write a blog on this subject for the excellent Birds On the Blog website,  so with some trepidation, I accepted the challenge.   Much of this article is based on that piece.

In my experience, women seem to have less accidents than men and certainly cause fewer, because they frequently drive slower and take less risks.

The drawback is that as a consequence of that lower involvement, women may have less experience as to what to do when an accident happens.

THERE’S ALWAYS HELP AVAILABLE

 Mobile as a must

Whilst you certainly shouldn’t be using a handheld whist driving, there’s no doubt that a mobile is an absolute essential in a crisis.

Whether you are stranded in a quiet country road and need urgent help or just need to talk to a friendly voice.  If it has a camera, it will enable you to take plenty of photos!

Exchanging information

 Accidents can be very unnerving for anyone and whether you have just rear-ended a trucker the size of a sumo wrestler or he has just ploughed into you, you may want to keep conversation to a minimum! 

 As you are obliged to exchange some information in any event, a printed form with your name, address and insurance details (to keep in your glovebox) can be helpful to hand to him through a slightly open window.

Registration numbers

It’s always a good idea to take a careful note (or better still a photo) of the other driver’s registration number so that your legal or insurance representative can establish the identity of his insurers immediately through the MID.

The benefit of photos

As you will notice, throughout this article, I am suggesting taking photos (albeit discretely).  Nothing is ever clear cut, so photos of the damage on both /all vehicles, their registration numbers, the location, any nearby buildings, and the foliage (which changes rapidly) are of enormous assistance. 

However, if you get out of your car, to take the photos make sure you don’t expose yourself to being run over by another motorist in the process!

Call the police?

Unless you feel there is risk they might prosecute you, you may want to call the police to be on the safe side (and if they arrive take a photo of their registration number.  It may help, when your legal adviser is asking for a copy of any police report).

Witnesses

Even in the most clear cut of accidents, witnesses are essential!  It is always wise to get the names, addresses and telephone numbers of anyone kind enough to stop.  Your representative may never need to involve them but it is far better to have them available in case.

See also WHO CAN BE A WITNESS?

Out of Pocket Expenses

If you have to spend money to sort out the aftermath of a road accident, a great idea is to keep all the receipts in one place and if possible, maintain a spreadsheet of all the costs on your PC which can be updated whenever needed.

Your legal adviser will thank you for it!

DRIVING TIPS

Roundabouts

Lorries and buses need to be given a wide birth as they need more room.  If you don’t and have an accident as a result, you probably won’t win your claim in full.

See also – 50/50 & SPLIT SETTLEMENT CASES

Car parks

Normal rules don’t apply but if there’s an arrow on the lane, best not to go in the opposite direction.! 

Be very wary of vehicles reversing out of a parking space into your path.

..and as my wife always advises me, don’t park next to 4x4s whose large door will dent your pride and joy of a car without leaving a note!

 See also – PARKED CAR ACCIDENTS

IF THE ACCIDENT IS NOT YOUR FAULT

Car Hire

If your vehicle is undriveable after the accident or during the repair period, you should be entitled to another vehicle of the same size as yours, either provided through the other driver’s insurers or through a reputable credit hire company.  Your legal adviser should be able to arrange this.

So if you have five kids and a dog to take to school in the morning, you don’t need to shoehorn everyone into a mini!

Injury

 The key to a complete recovery (where possible) is early medical treatment.  Your legal adviser should discuss this with you in any event and can probably advise how it can be funded at no cost to you – often paid for by the insurers of the other driver.

GET SOME LEGAL HELP

Dealing with the aftermath of an accident, can be a pain in the neck (all too often, literally).  Coping with insurers, repairers, medical advisers can be time frustrating, time consuming and in most non-fault cases, you can let an experienced professional do the job for you.

If you would like to ask a question about a road accident or need legal representation just go to our On-line Enquiry Form.


Comments : Leave a Comment »
Tags: , , , , , , , , , , ,
Categories : Car Hire, Driving tips, General accident matters, Parked car accidents, Personal Injury, Rear end shunts, Witnesses

Who can be a witness?

18 10 2009

Effectively anyone who saw the accident or was involved can give witness evidence.

Consequently, if you are the driver but not the owner of the vehicle damaged in an accident you will be the Claimant’s (or Defendant’s) main witness.

Independent Witnesses

The best witness is someone completely independent of either driver and preferably not a passenger in any of the vehicle involved.  However, a fare paying passenger in a taxi or bus may be regarded as independent if he or she did not know the driver before the journey was commenced.

Other motorists whose vehicle were not involved are good independent witnesses if they actually saw the accident rather than just the aftermath of it.

Where there has been a three (or more) car shunt – see Rear End Shunts – the driver of Car One may eitness how many impacts were felt.

Non-independent witnesses

Passengers in a vehicle can give evidence at trial as they are “competent and compellable” but their evidence will carry less weight than a witness who is fully independent.

If however, the passenger is injured and liability is disputed, then the driver of their vehicle is potentially a party in any action they may bring.  Consequently, they cannot give witness evidence until their claim has been settled or an agreement reached as who pays their claim (nor can they be represented by the same solicitor as the driver).

Witnesses who did not actually see the accident

Sometimes, a witnesses may arrive upon the scene seconds after the accident or have heard the impact rather than seen it or can comment on the reckless driving or speed of the negligent driver immediately before the accident took place.

Their evidence may be of more limited value but nevertheless they can give evidence if desired.

Whose witness?

Whilst a witness may be called by any driver involved, “there is no property in a witness” which means that he or she  can contacted and compelled to give evidence by either party – and this can apply to passengers in the opponent’s vehicle.

Police reports

In more serious accidents, the Police may have taken statements from witnesses and there may be statements from the officers attending.  However, one should be wary of reying on any comments attributed in the police report to either party or any independent witness unless part of a Witness Statement actually signed by that person.

Expert witnesses

An expert witness is a person who did not witness the accident but has been asked in a professional capacity to give evidence.

Thus an independent GP or consultant may be the medical expert or a consulting engineer may be called upon to provide evidence of the value of the vehicle.

Whilst they may have been instructed by one of the parties, they owe a duty to the Court not to the person responsible for paying their fees.

If you are not yet a client of Kaslers RTA department but would like initial free advice on any matter relating to a road traffic accident in the UK, whether relating to an injury or vehicle damage, click here for our New Enquiry Form


Comments : 1 Comment »
Tags: , , , , , ,
Categories : Witnesses


Follow

Get every new post delivered to your Inbox.