Personal Injury
If you have been injured or had an accident in the last 3 years which was not your fault, you may be entitled to compensation
At Chilcotts Law, we understand that this is likely to be a stressful and upsetting time for you and your family which may also have a long-term devastating impact.
Our Personal Injury Solicitor Ikleen can help you make a claim for compensation and assist you throughout each step of the process. She will provide you with a friendly, sensitive, and compassionate level of care.
She will assess your case without charge or obligation and may be able to offer a No Win No Fee basis which means that if you are successful, we deduct a percentage from your compensation. If you lose, you do not pay our legal fees.
We understand that no two situations are the same, so we will tailor our service to your particular needs. We will deliver advice in plain English. At Chilcotts Law – it’s all about you.
We will ask you a basic questions when you call us to help us assess your claim. This includes:
- The date and location of the accident
- How the accident happened
- Was there anyone else involved.
- Injuries that you have suffered.
- The effect of these injuries on you
- Were there any witnesses to the accident.
We cover the following types of cases:
Road Traffic Accidents compensation claims including:
- Car accident claims
- Motorcycle accident claims
- Passenger
- Pedestrian
- Cycling accidents
- Uninsured/untraced driver
- including children
Slips, trips and falls.
- Injuries and Accidents suffered in the workplace.
- Public liability matters
Serious injuries:
- life changing and include brain injury.
- spinal injury
- amputations
- severe burns
- crushing injuries
- falling injuries and paralysis
Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority claims.
Official Injury Claims process for Road Traffic Accidents
If you were injured in a road traffic accident on or after 31 May 2021, you can make a claim without involving a solicitor.
The following information does not apply to adults without mental capacity, children, and vulnerable road users (cyclists, pedestrians, motorcyclists, horse riders, users of mobility scooters).
Legal costs will not be paid in claims where the injury is valued at less than £5,000 and the overall value of the claim, excluding vehicle related damages such as repair and hire costs, does not exceed £10,000.
Claims can be made by the injured party through the Official Injury Claim (OIC) portal.
You will be asked to provide details about the accident and your injuries. A medical report, which will be arranged through the portal, will be required before the claim can settle.
A typical claim for whiplash injuries a tariff has been introduced which will apply to injuries sustained on or after 31 May 2021. The tariff is as follows:
| Duration of injury | Award | Award including minor psychological injury i.e. travel anxiety |
| Not more than 3 months | £240 | £260 |
| 3 to 6 months | £495 | £520 |
| 6 to 9 months | £840 | £895 |
| 9 to 12 months | £1,320 | £1,390 |
| 12 to 15 months | £2,040 | £2,125 |
| 15 to 18 months | £3,005 | £3,100 |
| 18 to 24 months | £4,215 | £4,345 |
For other injuries such as fractures, the injury will be valued using the Judicial College Guidelines. The OIC claims portal should still be used where the total value of the injuries is less than £5,000 and/or the overall value of the claim does not exceed £10,000.
If you decide that you do not want to make the claim yourself you can instruct a solicitor but you would have to pay your own legal costs from the damages.
A fixed fee or percentage can normally be agreed. If you are injured and suffer from ongoing symptoms for a year or more it may be financially worthwhile to enter such an arrangement. If you have been injured and continued to suffer for a year or more and would like assistance with making your claim please contact us.
IMPORTANT NOTE
When a claim settles the award that you receive will be in full and final settlement. You will not be able to return to the other driver’s insurer for a further award if you do not make a full recovery.
For that reason, we recommend that you wait to see whether you make a full recovery before settling the claim.
It is possible to submit the claim and obtain a medical report and then wait and see how well you recover.
However, please note that you must settle your claim or start court proceedings within 3 years of the accident.
Road Traffic Accidents
If you have been involved in a car accident or other road traffic accident through no fault of your own, our expert personal injury lawyers can make claiming compensation simple.
At Chilcotts Law we can handle everything from straightforward, car accident claims to the most serious, high value and complex claims.
If you were the driver or passenger in a vehicle and sustained whiplash injuries in an accident on or after 31 May 2021 please see our section on the Official Injury Claims process.
In such claims you will be awarded damages on the basis of a tariff system and will not recover any legal costs.
This process does not apply to other road users including cyclists, pedestrians, motorcyclists and horse riders who continue to recover their legal costs and to whom the tariff does not apply.
We offer a free initial no obligation consultation where we will be able to assess whether your claim justifies further investigation. Please contact Ikleen Gulati initially via email at Ikleen@chilcottslaw.com, or by telephoning us on 01822 612535.
Our road traffic accident compensation claims
We can help you get the best available settlement while keeping the claims process straightforward and as stress-free as possible.
Our personal injury expert Ikleen Gulati can secure damages in relation to a wide range of road traffic accident claims, including:
- Car accident claims
- Cycling accident claims
- Motorcycle accident claims
- Hit and run claims
- Uninsured driver claims
- Car accidents abroad
How road traffic accident claims work
The exact process for making a claim will depend on the circumstances and we will always base our approach on your priorities and concerns to make sure we can handle your claim the right way for you.
The following covers some of the key issues you will typically need to be aware of when considering a road traffic accident claim, including what information you will need to give us.
Contacting our personal injury claim expert
When you first contact us, we will take a few basic details to help us assess your claim.
This includes:
- The date and location of the accident
- How the accident happened
- Who else was involved
- The injuries you suffered
- How your injuries have affected you
- Whether there were any witnesses to the accident
Once we have this information, we can provide a realistic evaluation of whether we believe your claim is likely to succeed. You can then make an informed decision about whether you wish to pursue a claim with our help.
No win, no fee road traffic accident claims
We represent most of our road traffic accident claims clients on a no win, no fee basis, which is more properly known as a ‘conditional fee agreement’.
The advantage of this is that it means there is no upfront cost for you to start a claim.
You will only be required to contribute towards our legal fees after we have secured compensation for you, so if your claim does not succeed, you will not owe us anything. Any deduction from your damages is capped at 25 per cent and based on the circumstances of your case, this may be less. We will provide you with full details about the funding of your claim before you enter into an agreement with us.
With a no win, no fee road traffic accident claim, you can therefore pursue compensation without taking a financial risk.
Legal expenses insurance
If you have legal expenses insurance we can often act on the same basis as the solicitor that your insurer would refer you to.
Out-of-court settlements for road traffic accidents
In the majority of cases, we are able to secure compensation without the need for court action by negotiating a settlement with the other party.
If your claim is valued between £1,000 and £25,000, we can normally deal with it through the Pre-Action Protocol for Low Value Personal Injury Claims in Road Traffic Accidents. This is a government-approved procedure for streamlining the claims process, which typically allows straightforward claims to be resolved without the need for court proceedings.
However, even with the more complex and high-value road traffic claims, we are still usually able to agree a settlement out-of-court by relying on our skills in negotiation and alternative dispute resolution.
Court proceedings for road traffic accident claims
While it is actually quite rare for a road traffic accident claim to go to court, it does sometimes happen. Our Personal Injury expert Ikleen is experienced in pursuing claims through the courts, so where court proceedings are required, we can ensure you have the best possible support and representation every step of the way.
As well as our own experience, we also have strong links with barristers specialising in personal injury claims, as well as various independent medical experts and other advisers whose knowledge and skills we can rely on.
Please be assured that, no matter how your claim proceeds, we can offer the clear, confident representation you need to secure the best available outcome.
Hit and run claims
If you were involved in a hit and run accident where the other driver has not been traced, we can make a claim for you through the Motor Insurers’ Bureau (MIB) using their Untraced Drivers Agreement.
This means that, even if the motorist responsible for your accident is never found, you can still secure fair compensation for any injuries you sustained.
Road traffic accident claims abroad
If you were involved in a car accident anywhere in the EU or EEA (European Economic Area) and the other driver or drivers involved were from the EU or EEA, it is usually relatively straightforward to claim compensation.
EU insurers are required to appoint a representative in the UK to deal with claims brought by people living in the UK, so the claims process is usually no more complicated or time-consuming for you than claiming for an accident that occurred in the UK.
Time limits for claiming road traffic accident compensation
You will generally have 3 years from the date of the accident to make a claim. However, there are circumstances under which the time limit may be different, or where we may be able to apply to have the deadline extended.