Road Traffic Accident Solicitors – How To Make A No Win No Fee Claim

Welcome to our guide to road traffic accident solicitors. In it, we explain why searching for road traffic accident solicitors near me might not connect you with the best road traffic accident solicitors for your claim. We also explain how solicitors for road traffic accident claims could take on your claim on a No Win No Fee basis.

If you are injured in a vehicle accident that wasn’t your fault, road traffic accident solicitors could help you to claim compensation for the harm you suffered. Though it’s not necessary to use the services of a solicitor to claim, you may find that they offer you the legal support you need.

This guide aims to help you learn about the process of a personal injury claim following a road traffic accident that wasn’t your fault. It contains all of the basic information we think you need to know.

No Win No Fee Claims With Road Traffic Accident Solicitors

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Road traffic accident solicitors how to make a no-win no-fee claim guide

Of course, this is just a guide and may not be able to answer every question you might have. Because of this, we have our personal injury claims team available on 0800 073 8801. You can call and talk to one of our advisors. They will answer all of your questions and explain how a solicitor can help you.

Alternatively, send a message through our live chat or contact us for a callback.

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A Guide To Claims With Road Traffic Accident Solicitors

This guide aims to aid your understanding of when you may be in a position to make a compensation claim and how a road traffic accident solicitor could help you. We’d like you to feel equipped to make the right choices about your own claim.

We begin by looking at the role of an accident and injury lawyer, then move on to consider some of the road traffic accidents (RTAs) that could result in a claim so long as they weren’t your fault. They include:

  • Accidents involving cars, motorcycles, vans, lorries, motorbikes or bicycles.
  • Incidents that injure the passenger of a vehicle.

We also discuss how it can still be possible to claim if you are in an accident with an uninsured driver.

The final few sections of this guide switch over to looking at certain aspects of the claims process. You will learn about the time limits that could apply to your claim. We have also added an example compensation table to give you an idea of how certain injuries may be valued.

Also, you will find a list of some of the types of financial losses you could claim for. Lastly, we explain how a No Win No Fee claim works, including how the fee structure works, and what the benefits of such a service are.

Do You Need More Help?

We understand that this guide might be a bit much to take in. Some people simply prefer talking to somebody to get free legal advice. Our claims team is always available to provide you with any answers you need. They can also connect you to a personal injury solicitor to handle your road traffic accident claim.

What Are Road Traffic Accident Solicitors?

A road traffic accident lawyer deals with personal injury cases where the claimant was a victim of an accident on the road that they didn’t cause. The claimant could be any type of road user (such as a pedestrian or a motorist).

Solicitors support you through your case. They translate legal jargon and act based on your decisions, all the while offering expert guidance. If a defendant can’t agree to a settlement and the case goes to court, the solicitor is able to represent you and negotiate. Quality solicitors try to get the maximum level of compensation possible and don’t undersettle.

Call and speak to our team if you need to find an expert RTA lawyer to help you.

What Is A Road Traffic Accident?

A road traffic accident would be an accident that takes place on a public or private road. There are a number of road users that could be victim to an RTA such as:

  • Motorists
  • Motorcyclists
  • Passengers in a vehicle
  • Pedestrians and cyclists
  • Horse riders

Road traffic accidents could include:

  • Head-on collisions
  • Rear-end collisions
  • Side-impact collisions

Any road user could be injured in a traffic accident. And if you are involved in such an accident that wasn’t your fault, you might be able to make a compensation claim.

Common Injury Claims Handled By Road Traffic Accident Solicitors

A road traffic accident can result in a full range of injuries from minor whiplash to multiple fatalities. However, there are certain injuries that occur more frequently in RTAs. According to data provided by the Department for Transport covering 2019, 25,945 serious injuries were reported to the police in the previous twelve months and, overall, 153,158 injuries of all severities were reported.

Injuries that could result from road traffic accidents include:

  • Cuts, lacerations and puncture wounds.
  • Soft tissue injuries such as sprains and strains.
  • Fractures and dislocations of all types.
  • Psychological damage such as post-traumatic stress disorder.

Whiplash is a common injury caused by road accidents. The same report from the DfT shows that 51% of respondents to a National Travel Survey (that were involved in a road traffic accident between 2017 and 2019) reported suffering from whiplash.

To prove that the accident caused your injuries, it is recommended that you undergo an independent medical assessment as part of the claims process. The report produced could also act as evidence of the severity of your injuries and a tool for valuing them. This is something that a solicitor could help you with. To find out more, call our advisors for free legal advice with no obligation to proceed with our services.

How has COVID-19 affected the number of casualties?

As the UK was in lockdown for around 4 months of 2020, you might wonder how many casualties were avoided. While there was less traffic on the roads during this period and the number of casualties fell, there were still significant numbers of injuries on UK roads.

Below, you can find a breakdown of the road users injured on UK roads in 2020. It would be prudent of us to mention that during this period, there were a total of 1,460 road deaths. 23,529 people were killed or seriously injured. The total number of casualties of all severities was 115, 584.

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Road Traffic Accidents Involving Other Vehicles

You may have suffered an injury in a road traffic accident that was caused by a driver or motorcyclist. Your claim could be against:

  • Car, van or lorry drivers
  • Bus, taxi, coach or minibus drivers
  • Motorcyclists or moped riders
  • Tractor drivers

This is not an exhaustive list, but we include it to demonstrate that, no matter the other vehicle kind, if the driver caused your injuries, you could claim. You could also claim if you are partially liable for your injuries, but your compensation might be reduced to reflect this.

An accident can involve any number of vehicles, and also might involve other road users such as pedestrians. For help understanding your circumstances, get in touch for no-obligation, free legal advice. If you have a formidable claim, our advisors can put you in touch with road traffic accident solicitors.

Passenger Road Traffic Accidents

It isn’t just the drivers of vehicles that can make personal injury claims. A passenger that is injured in an RTA can also attempt a claim. For example, you could claim if you were injured in an accident caused by the driver of a:

  • Bus or coach
  • Taxi or minicab
  • Private vehicle
  • Motorcycle

Who you could claim against would depend on who was at fault. For example, if you are riding on a bus that has an accident, if the accident was the bus driver’s fault, you could claim against the bus company.

However, if the bus driver didn’t cause the accident and (consequently) your injuries, but a motorist did, you could claim against the motorist.

You can call our claims team for help finding out who you could make a claim against.

Traffic Accidents Involving Uninsured Drivers

In general, you would make a claim against the insurance firm that provides the vehicle insurance of the driver that caused the accident. But if the driver is uninsured or doesn’t stop after injuring you, this can be difficult. So, what happens if you are injured in an accident caused by an uninsured driver? What if you are injured in a hit-and-run accident, and you were unable to get the driver’s details?

In these cases, you (or your solicitor, if you use one) would apply to the Motor Insurers’ Bureau (MIB) for compensation. The MIB is a government organisation. It was put in place to give claimants, such as yourself, a way to claim compensation if they cannot claim against a motor insurance firm.

A small part of the cost of every vehicle insurance policy goes to the MIB. This fund is then used to compensate the victims of hit-and-run accidents or accidents caused by an uninsured driver. Please talk to one of our personal injury claim advisors to learn more about making an MIB claim.

Road Traffic Accident Claim Time Limits

There is a personal injury claims time limit that you will need to start your claim within. The time limit will depend on the circumstances of your claim. However, generally, you will have three years from the time you were first injured to start a claim.

Sometimes, you might not be aware of your injuries until well after the accident. This could happen with whiplash, for example. In this case, the three-year time limit would trigger from the date you were diagnosed or obtained knowledge that negligence at least contributed to the injury.

If you are under 18, you have three years from your 18th birthday to make a claim, unless a litigation friend makes the claim on your behalf before then.

In some instances, these time limits can differ and our claim advisors can help you with this. They can tell you which time limit will apply based on your own unique situation.

Calculating Compensation Road Traffic Accident Solicitors Could Help You Claim

Every claim, including your own, is based on its own unique circumstances. Factors such as the strength of your evidence, whether you were partially liable and the severity of the injuries you have sustained can affect a road traffic accident claim.

How severe your injuries are, or were, and how long they took to heal will generally drive the level of compensation you receive for your injuries specifically. Compensation for injuries is known as general damages.

The table below demonstrates suggested compensation for injuries. It’s based on figures provided in the guidelines by the Judicial College. (The Judicial College Guidelines is a publication that may be used by solicitors to help them value injuries.)

Edit
Injury Type Level of Severity More Information Potential Damages
Injured Foot Modest Injuries could include lacerations, fractures, and puncture wounds. Up to £12,900
Fractured Jaw Simple (iii) Simple fractures that lead to immobilisation but there is complete recovery. £6,060 to £8,200
Injured Knee Moderate (ii) Less serious fractures and also lacerations, twisting, or bruising injuries. Up to £12,900
Injured Neck Minor (i) Injuries that result in a full recovery within one to two years. £4,080 to £7,410
Injured Back Minor (i) Where the claimant fully recovers or recovers to nothing more than a nuisance level without surgery within two to five years. £7,410 to £11,730
Injured to Pelvis and Hips Severe (i) This might include multiple or compound fractures of the pelvis. £73,580 to £122,860
Amputation of Arms Arm Amputated at the Shoulder Arm amputated at the shoulder At least £128,710
Other Arm Injuries Less Severe Injury Though there will have been significant disabilities, a good deal of recovery will have happened or will be expected to happen. £18,020 to £36,770
Injuries to the Elbow Moderate or Minor Injury Injuries such as simple fractures, tennis elbow and lacerations. Up to £11,820
Wrist Injuries Loss of function (a) Injuries causing complete loss of function. £44,690 to £56,180

You might be able to find an online personal injury claims calculator that can give you a rough estimate of the value of your claim. But, if you want a more accurate estimate than a road traffic accident compensation calculator can give you, call and speak to our claims team. They can value your claim at no charge to you.

Special Damages In Road Traffic Accident Claims

If you win your claim, you should receive a compensation settlement. The table above shows that how much pain and suffering you endured could directly affect the amount of compensation you receive for injuries.

Your settlement could comprise of general damages (compensation for pain and suffering) and possibly special damages (compensation for financial loss).

An Overview Of General Damages

General damages compensate you for the physical or psychological injuries you suffered due to the other side’s negligence. How long you suffer for and the severity could indicate the level of compensation you should receive. When calculating general damages, a solicitor may consider:

  • The severity of the injury.
  • Any ongoing pain and suffering caused by the injury.
  • How invasive or traumatic the treatment was.
  • Psychological consequences such as anxiety, new phobias or depression.
  • Long-term or permanent disabilities caused by the injury.

An Overview Of Special Damages

Special damages compensate you for financial losses caused by your injuries. These can be losses that you have already encountered or projected losses in the future. There are many reasons why special damages are paid to a claimant. They include:

  • Care costs. If you hired a nurse because you need medical care at home or a cleaner because you can’t do housework during your recovery, you could recover the costs.
  • Medical costs. If you’ve had to pay for prescriptions or medication during your recovery, you could claim the costs.
  • Lowered future earning potential. If your ability to work has been reduced, you could recover the loss of your future predicted income had the injury not occured.
  • Missed wages or salary. If you had to take unpaid or underpaid time off work while you recovered, you could claim back the loss of earnings.
  • Travel expenses. If you had to travel to and from doctors’ appointments or to a solicitor’s office because of the injuries, you could claim the cost of transport.

In order to claim special damages, you have to prove your losses. This means you should document spending through, for example, invoices, receipts and travel tickets.

What Damages Could You Claim?

The types of damages that you could claim can be driven by the unique circumstances of your case.

No two settlements are the same. You could use the help of a personal injury solicitor to evaluate your case and understand the types of compensation you could seek. Our personal injury claims team could help you with this too. They’re available 24/7 and won’t oblige you to proceed with our services.

No Win No Fee Road Traffic Accident Solicitors

When you use the services of No Win No Fee road traffic accident solicitors, you really don’t pay any lawyer’s fees unless your claim has been won. And, your lawyer won’t expect to be paid their fee to start working on your claim.

Your claim may take some time to process. No matter how long it takes, you will not be asked to pay ongoing solicitor fees. If your claim is not a success, and you don’t receive any compensation, your solicitor will not collect their fee.

If your solicitor does help you win your case, they would deduct a small success fee. The amount of this fee is legally limited and it can be collected out of the compensation payment.

To get a fuller description of how such a fee arrangement works, please call and talk to one of our advisors.

Why Choose Our Road Traffic Accident Solicitors?

We recognise that any search for ‘road traffic accident solicitors near me’ or ‘best road traffic accident solicitors’ would bring up a number of results. There are plenty of law firms and solicitors for road traffic accident claims out there. However, we feel that we are in a good position to be able to assist a great many claimants across the UK. We have years of experience in assisting people with road traffic accident claims. We also have solicitors that work on a no win no fee basis, which negates the need for any upfront payment to start your claim. In addition to this, we would like to point you to our great reviews. We have received some significantly positive feedback from previous claimants. We would love to offer the same great service to you.

When you call our team, you will talk to one of our legal advisors, who will be happy to chat to you about your case, and could check whether you could have a good chance of succeeding with a claim. If we believe that your claim has a favourable chance of success, we will tell you, and we could then connect you to one of our solicitors if you would like us to help you. For free legal advice that comes with no obligation on your part to proceed with a claim, we believe there is no better place to call

Begin A Claim With A Road Traffic Accident Solicitor

Have you been injured by the negligence of another road user? Do you think you have a valid cause to make a compensation claim? You can contact us by:

An expert personal injury claims advisor will talk over your case with you. They will let you know what your potential legal options are and, if you like, will explain how road traffic accident solicitors could help you.

Remember, you’re under no obligation to proceed with these services and any advice given is free of charge. Our phone lines, email and live chat are open 24/7, so we’re ready whenever you are.

Essential References For Those Searching For The Best Road Traffic Accident Solicitors

The guides below may be of use if you’d like to take a further look into making road traffic accident claims:

We also suggest that you look through the below resources.

UK Road Safety Statistics

Advice On Making A Road Traffic Accident Claim

Government Information Related To Vehicle Insurance In The UK

Thank you for reading our guide to road traffic accident solicitors. Hopefully now we’ve explained why searching for road traffic accident solicitors near me might not connect you with the best road traffic accident solicitors for your claim. We’ve also explained how solicitors for road traffic accident claims could take on your claim on a No Win No Fee basis.