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LEGAL FUTURES ABS acquires conveyancing firm to continue diversification strategy away from PI » LEGAL FUTURES

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Claiming for Personal Injury?

You want to make a Personal Injury claim but do you know how much compensation you can claim for?  Defining how much a claim is worth is not easy, especially when loss of earnings, medical expenses or treatment costs becomes involved.

A Personal Injury Claim and the amount of compensation you’re entitled to claim for can be affected by several factors but it will mainly be based on the type and severity of the injury you have suffered.  Without speaking with an experienced Personal Injury Solicitor, calculating how much your Personal Injury Compensation Claim is worth can prove difficult. Mainly your claim will be based on proven medical or reports or treatment history but what about other factors?

An experienced Solicitor will be able to help you collate all the correct insurance and medical documents required for your claim but if you have suffered a Personal Injury as a result of an accident that was not your fault, you should consider keeping a Personal Injury Diary.

 

As well as noting down the time and place of your accident, along with names and contact details of witnesses if possible – which will help your claim to be processed much easier -   keep a record in your own words of the pain and suffering you are experiencing and how this is effecting you emotionally as well as physically.  Record any loss of earnings or capacity of earning or any wage loss information along with a record of any doctors, hospital or other healthcare visits, detailing dates, advice or prescribed medical treatment.

Your Medical report will show a “prognosis period” which will outline how your injuries are likely to affect you in the future and a time frame for how for long you are going to be affected by the injury you have sustained.  It is unlikely that a Solicitor will advise you to settle a compensation claim until a full recovery is made from your injuries or you have a firm medical diagnosis detailing the prognosis period. Settling a claim before making a full recovery or having a solid prognosis period in place would prevent you from applying for further compensation should your injuries and recovery period persist for longer than expected.  The examination report prepared by a medical expert will be used by your Solicitor to calculate how much your compensation claim may be worth by comparing your injuries to Claimants in previously settled cases who have suffered similar injuries and recovery time to your own which is known as Case Law.

It is worth noting that in most cases there is a standard limit of three years in which to bring a Personal Injury Compensation Claim in the United Kingdom. This three year deadline will start from the date that you were aware your injury was linked to the original accident or exposure and whichever is latest. It is not uncommon for the date of knowledge to be much later than the accident date. If you are in any doubt regarding your chances to make a claim for personal injury you should seek accurate claim advice from an experienced legal advisor who will quickly be able to determine the strength of your claim and offer advice regarding seeking compensation for your injuries.

How can Personal Injury Solicitors at MTA make it simpler to claim compensation?

Here, at MTA our Personal Injury Solicitors are focused on making your claim process as straightforward as possible. Our Solicitors will do most of the paperwork for you and will keep you updated every step of the way. We realise that waiting for a response can be frustrating, but with our unique client focused way of handling claims, we can make the process of claiming compensation as simple and as stress-free as possible.

Chasing for responses, keeping you in the loop and getting you the compensation you deserve. To speak to one of our qualified MTA solicitors contact us on 020 8437 0707

Family Law & Review of Contact Arrangements

The child’s best interest: a current review of contact arrangements

Family Law Solicitor Emma Peart discusses the recent review proposals of the Children Act 1989 regarding contact and residence arrangements for children in the event of a divorce or marriage breakdown.

Ministers are currently reviewing how to aid the Court in ensuring that a child’s best interests are met if it becomes involved in the child’s welfare when the parents cannot agree contact and residence arrangements.

Generally it is felt that a child will benefit greatly from regular contact with both parents. Proposals are being made to try and improve the non-resident parent’s contact with a child in the aftermath of a relationship breakdown to ensure this. Normally the non-resident parent is the father.

Under the Children Act 1989, the court is to focus on meeting the best interests of a child when considering contact and residence arrangements should it become involved in any dispute regarding this. This does of course allow a court to order contact with the non-resident parent. Children’s Minister Edward Timpson has highlighted proposals to take the current law further, hinting that at present the present legislation does not promote stable contact with the non-residential parent enough. It seems that the Minister has listened to various opinions that the Court is not allowing as much contact with both parents as the child could benefit from. He has therefore unveiled proposals that legislation should be amended to make it a presumption that regular contact is granted to the non-resident parent as this would be in the child’s best interest so long as it is safe. The Minister states that this would also be encouraged by tighter penalties on parents that do not conform to any court order for contact. Penalties being considered are the removal of passports or driving licences, or the imposition of curfews on their movements. At present the minister envisages that the proposal could be implemented within a year.

What is also of interest is that the review has taken the opportunity of considering what relationships may be in the child’s best interest outside of the relationship with the mother and father. It is hinted that the review of legislation will ensure that the Court are to consider the child’s contact with grandparents if it is felt this would be in the child’s best interests. This is quite a general guideline to the court with no presumption that grandparent’s will be entitled to contact. However it shows that Ministers feel it is something that now should be considered in more depth by the court without the onus being on a grandparent to raise the issue of contact.
Emma Peart is a Family Law Solicitor at MTA Solicitors LLP and runs drop in clinics at The LawStore, where you can take advantage of their free 30 minuite consultations regarding any legal issue.

Whiplash Injuries and Compensation

Marco Severini, litigation team manager at MTA Solicitors LLP discusses the recent ‘bad press’ for Whiplash Compensation Claims and the cost of insurance premiums.

The press have been attacking victims of whiplash claims stating most are false and inflate the cost of insurance premiums.

Whiplash injuries can for some be very excruciating and unbearable and sometimes long term. The victim has a right to pursue the negligence of another party; however the issues solicitor’s face, which insurers deny, is that they can be their worst enemies and pass the blame for increasing personal injury claims to solicitors who are simply attempting to obtain justice to injured parties of negligence. In actual fact insurance companies vigorously support personal injury claims themselves, despite genuine or not.

Firstly, the majority of insurers will ask their policy holder whether or not they are injured when the matter is reported to them. If they are the insurance company will refer them to one of their panel solicitors to act on their behalf regarding a personal injury claim. The panel solicitors will pay the insurer a referral fee for the introduction of the personal injury claim. Secondly, insurers will sometimes make offers to victims prior to anyone having been notified of the injury or contemplated making a claim (known as pre medical offers). How can the insurance industry have complaints about personal injury claims when the encourage individuals to make a claim and essentially profit     from it.

I do not dispute some people do make fraudulent claims but the Government and the insurance industry must not tarnish each claimant with the same brush. Whiplash is a real injury and should not be played down.

What is Whiplash Injury?

Whiplash is the injury that occurs when the soft tissue in the spine is stretched and strained after the body is thrown in a sudden, forceful jerk, and is most commonly caused by involvement in a car accident involving sudden deceleration or heavy breaking, but can also be caused by other strenuous physical activities or from a blow to the head.

If you have been in a car accident that was not your fault and you think you have suffered a Whiplash injury you should contact a Solicitor who will assess your situation and apply the correct course of action depending on your circumstances. You may be required to have an assessment from a medical professional who will most likely examine the function of the spinal cord in order to determine if any damage is present.

The following areas are likely to be assessed:

• Your physical strength in both arms and legs
• Your ability to sense touch on the skin in different parts of the body
• Your Reflex at the joints of the arms and legs
• The medical examiner will also inspect the head and neck for any external signs of trauma including bruises, cuts, and abrasions
• You may be asked to move your neck in a controlled way to the left, right, up, and down. Tell the doctor if neck pain, numbness, or tingling in any of the arms or legs, or any other abnormal feelings during these movements is felt
• X-rays may be taken of the neck bones to make sure there are no fractures or signs of other serious injury. The doctor will review these x-rays and order further imaging with a CT scan or MRI if needed.

Marco Severini is a litigation manager at MTA Solicitors LLP who have a team of specialist Personal Injury Solicitors, experienced in dealing with compensation claims for injuries that result from car accidents and other long term, repetitive activities that can cause damage to the head and neck.

Experienced Personal Injury Solicitors are on hand to guide you through the right course of action and provide straightforward, clear-cut legal advice and assistance.

MTA Solicitors will work with you and guide you through the right course of action in pursuing your Whiplash Claim.

In all cases the initial advice is completely free and, of course, strictly confidential.

MTA Solicitors can pursue your injury compensation claim on a no win no fee basis, they will assess your situation and apply the correct course of action, tailored to suit your needs.

REFORM TO THE LEGAL AID BILL

Emma Peart from MTA Solicitors LLP discusses the recent  amendments to the Legal Aid Bill

Further to the bill being passed back from the House of Lords there have been some amendments to the Legal Aid Bill.

Firstly, the scope of definition of domestic violence that can be covered by legal aid has now taken that used by the Association of Chief Police Officers

Now victims would not have to show evidence of a criminal prosecution for domestic violence before claiming legal aid. Also, the bill has been amended so that the definition of evidence that can be used to prove domestic violence can now include admission to a refuge, a letter from a GP or social worker, an undertaking made by the perpetrator or a police caution he or she might have received

Welfare benefits on a point of law to upper tribunal, Court of Appeal and Supreme Court will continue to be covered by legal aid. The Justice Secretary has also said that appeals on a point of law to the lower tribunals could also be covered, if Ministry of Justice officials could find a way of ensuring that somebody other than the claimant or their lawyer certified that a point of law was involved.

The time limit to bring a claim for domestic violence has been extended to two years.

While these amendments are welcomed by many, some feel that too many persons suffering domestic violence will not be able to obtain legal aid under still.

Lady Scotland has fought to extend the grounds on which victims of domestic violence can claim legal aid. Lady Scotland says imposing a time limit shows a complete misunderstanding of domestic violence as victims can suffer for some years before finally deciding to take action. She also argued that the criteria for legal aid should include information from police over attendances at the matrimonial home. However, it was argued that while police may be called many times it is often the case that the victim will not press charges and so attendance records should not be used as evidence of domestic violence. At the moment the gateway does not include information from the police that there has been visits to a property due to a concern of domestic violence.

Beating The Debt Recovery Storm

David Green, Managing Partner at MTA Solicitors gives advice to small businesses on cash flow and keeping the debts at bay in these tough economic times:

If you’re a small business whose survival is dependent on regular cash flow, the urgency of recovering overdue bills is critical.

Recovering debt as quickly and as smoothly as possible is one of the key aspects to staying afloat in a difficult market. Taking the right steps from the outset will allow you to maximise the monies which are rightly owed to you without damaging your business relationships.

Many businesses find it hard to chase a customer for debts as there is a risk that attempts to recover them will be seen as aggressive.  

But it is important not to lose sight of the fact that the customer has failed to pay you the money they owe, and you simply can’t afford this issue to jeopardise the financial stability of your own business.

A solution for recovering overdue monies needs to be one that can be put into action swiftly to give you every chance of getting your money back at the lowest cost to you.

The first step towards recouping outstanding debts is to ensure that your terms and conditions are clear regarding payment. If you are going to use an external company to collect overdue payments make your intentions clear to your customer so there can be no misunderstandings.

As the payment terms near their end a ‘friendly’ phone call can often result in payment, and if not you have the option to follow this up in writing to instigate a gentle reminder of the outstanding payment due and, to re-emphasise your payment terms.

What has to be avoided is continual phone calls and letters chasing debt as this wastes your time and stops you from concentrating on new business.

Enlisting the help of a recovery agent or a professional solicitor at the early stages could be beneficial in terms of saving you time and money in the long term. These debt recovery companies or specialist solicitors will act on your behalf to recover the debt and although often effective some of the charging models require such firms to be aggressive, which can damage relationships.

In my view, the most efficient debt recovery model is to use a combination of all the various options but not be afraid to allow those representing you to take the action that is necessary to recover the debt.

It is always advantageous to recover a debt without resorting to litigation as costs are often not recoverable unless the unpaid amounts exceed £5000, and you will be expected to cover such costs.

A law firm with the right experience will know how to manage a case in the long run, saving you money and recovering your debts more efficiently. It is important to choose a firm which has efficient case management systems and an impressive recovery record.

Debt Recovery can become very complicated and expensive and choosing the wrong company to represent you may result in processes that sour relationships, costs you don’t expect and recoveries not meeting your expectations.

David Green is Managing Partner MTA Solicitors LLP

www.mtasolicitors.com

See Positive Collections: http://www.positivecollections.co.uk/ for a cost effective online debt recovery process.