If you have been injured in a crash, can I ask a serious question?

Off-topic
1

This is not me touting for business I assure you, but a genuine and serious question.

If you were involved in a non fault crash and were injured as a result, do you feel that the level of compensation was appropriate to the injuries you sustained?

And do you feel that your case was handled properly, or did you feel that you were simply a number on a conveyor belt with the intention of getting you through the system as quickly as possible so that your legal representative could get paid and they could move onto the next case.

I ask, because I am getting more and more people contacting me telling me that they have been offered X amount a few months after their crash, and the amount being offered is disproportionate to their injuries, or it is so that a quick settlement can be made, is there anything that can be done?

As a result, cases are being re-opened with a view to taking out professional negligence cases against some firms, and the level of compensation increased.

So I am interested to find out if this is something that is limited to just a few or if it is wider spread.

2

Encouraging Compensation Culture is like saying that being selfish is OK.

I can remember when calling someone “selfish” was not taken lightly.

3

I got a six figure payout after 3 years. Now not a week goes by without a call to my home telling me I could be entitled to up to £3,600 for my injuries. I politely tell them this but they still call. I now have telephone preference service as a result. Some still call, I report them.

4

I have to say I agree with this sentiment - although twice last year I was hit off my bike by idiot car drivers. In both cases the drivers we (and were found to be) 100% at fault.

The first time I had slight injuries and the lawyers acting for me suggested I see a physio. I did and it became quickly obvious that the physio was suggesting treatments that were just ways to pump up his bill. My aches subsided after a week or two - so I wasn’t keen to have unnecessary treatment. The other side came up with a figure of a £1k or something. and my lawyers “valued” my pain and suffering at more than that and suggested they would go back and argue for more (the driver had by then admitted liability so my lawyers smelled blood in the water). I instructed my lawyers to settle without further hassle and the lawyers actually seemed quite peed off at me.

In the second accident I had no injuries at all. No pain, nothing. However, the cabbie was such an arsecavity that I was happy to go along with whatever the lawyers suggested this time. I ended up doing all the proving in the case (thanks to a fantastic witness statement from another cager), eventually the case was won and again the lawyer smelled the blood for an easy settlement. They got me a couple of grand for my equipment (which was damaged) and my pain and suffering (despite me sitting with a doctor and saying I had no pain whatsoever).

In both cases the insurance companies could have settled with me for peanuts if they had acted fast but in both cases they dragged things out while I rode around on a replacement bike at £120 per day which just added to their costs.

Both times I also accepted a cash payment in lieu of the repairs.

In general the lawyers and insurance companies are just pushing costs skywards through their own greed. Of course the more the lawyers and insurance companies push the costs up, the more the insurance companies will charge us for insurance. They can’t lose - it’s a scam really. I am glad the system exists for those that truly are affected BUT getting paid for pain and suffering that is no worse than stubbing your toe seems wrong to me (although I admit I have enjoyed the small amount of cash it got me).

5

I thought I did alright on mine I go £800 for a bruised knee within 2 days I was back to normal (and was on a weekend) plus good money for the bike.

I will say this though I worked for the solicitors who represented me so I knew I was not going to get shafted. But I know how the game works and have had to fight for other money which eventually came through.

6

Now I’m dredging the memory on this one but I came across something called, I think, The Accident Survivability Index some years ago. (An American thing.)

This started as a simple data collation job but now (assuming it’s still going) sets a good guide to injuries and the long term effects which gives a “sort of” guide to compensation due.

For instance, a broken leg for a 20 Y.O. will heal a lot sooner than a similar injury to a 60 Y.O. and chances of complications are much smaller. Obversely, a disabling injury for the 20 Y.O. is something that will have to be lived with for, say, 60 years while the 60 Y.O. will only have to live with that for, say, 20 years.

Wasn’t perfect, but had a kind of logic and at least bench marked compenstion claims.

7

Can I add this question?

If most insurance appointed lawyers are useless, is it worth paying for legal cover when taking out a policy?

8

well, i guess in case one wont survive the accident its useful as the relatives wont have to fork the costs of a lawsuit.

9

No, I have a couple of friends who work on the claims side of insurance, and by their own admittance, the insurers make a lot of money from LEI because it is all kept in house by and large, and LEI appointed law forms are often instructed to settle quickly thereby keeping down their costs.

Thanks for sharing your accounts, I do appreciate it.

I can understand where you are all coming from because I had the same experience. My case was settled for £2,500 despite the fact that it left me with a permanent disability as the figure I should have received should have been nearer £300,000 not £2,500.

I don’t know if you are aware, but despite the fact that for many your cases have been closed, in cases where you were rushed through the system or the level of compensation was disproportionate to the level of injury sustained, or you still have ongoing problems, then you may well have a case for professional negligence against the solicitors that represented you (or should I say failed to represent you).

The good news is that the time frame for such actions (statute of limitations) is 6 years from date of knowledge which for most will be the date that they received their final settlement even though their injuries may have occurred several years before not the normal 3 years from date of injury which applies to the actual injury side of any claim.

So if your claim was settled in the last 6 years, then you may still be able to re-open your case.

And, it will not cost anything to get the case reviewed, and it will cost nothing if it is thought that there is a case to answer.

10

Sorry, double post

11

Email sent

12

yeah i feel my payout was rushed but they told me they was resonable offers so i felt abit pressured to accept.

see post riding days are over

13

I don’t know what sort of injuries were sustained for a 6 figure sum but they must have been pretty horrific and if things are that bad then yes it’s right to claim. But if you just pick up a bit of wear and tear from a fall then it just doesn’t seem right to me that you should get a huge payout.

14

I’ve always gone through a firm called Dunne and Gray who were recommended by a mate. I think the level of compensation they have won on my behalf is really good and I have had really good customer service through them. Once claim took a while but the solicitor was at the end of the phone and replied to emails when I needed him to. If I called he would return the call at his earliest convenience (sometimes it would be a couple of days later but from what people say they never call back unless they need something).

Did I feel like a number? Kind of… Thats only because when calling up to speak to the solicitor I’d have to give the receptionist my claim reference number but other than that no. The solicitor would somehow always have my case on his desk. Whether that was by chance, I don’t know.

15

I remember the days when If you had a crash you were lucky to get anything.

16

I have crashed twice, without the help of anyone else. I tried to sue the pillock who caused it (me). He wouldn’t listen. No one told me i needed stabilisers , do I have a case?

17

I got knocked off back in 2000, a guy with no license, insurance, tax or MOT pulled out in front of me, leaving me no where to go.

I broke my shoulder blade, collar bone, 3 ribs, sternum and punctured my right lung. Various nerve and muscle damage, trauma to the skin from bones coming through, etc, etc

The police spoke to me and said that they would prosecute him for dangerous driving, and based on that alone, that I’d be taken care of. As it subsequently turned out, when asked to produce his documents, he couldn’t (as above, didn’t have any), so the DD case was dropped and he was reported for the other things. All in, he received 6 points and a £180 fine.

I had no real use of my right arm for about 4 months, I was self employed at the time, so couldn’t earn any money, and because I was only tpf&t I pretty much couldn’t claim for anything. I went to a solicitors about it, who took it through the MIB for compensation.

I had 2 operations to plate and pin my shoulder, loads of physio and so on. It probably took a couple of years to bring me back to a position where I felt comfortable in using my right arm again, and I still suffer with pain in the right shoulder, as well as 15% less use of my right arm. As you can imagine, I racked up quite a few bills whilst not earning, including paying for a bike on finance.

It took just over 5 years to settle the claim with the MIB, and by that point, my solicitor just wanted shot of the case, as he knew he wasn’t really going to earn from it. I got a 12.5k payout, and most of that went to pay off the debts I’d worked up in trying to get my life back on track.

A friend of mine had an accident at the same time and broke 2 fingers, but because the women who knocked him off was insured, he got over 30k within 3 months.

:slight_smile: