ACCIDENT COMPENSATION SOLICITOR
The calculation of financial losses and pain and suffering
is often not an easy task. For the sake of convenience an accident compensation solicitor will separate damages claims
into different categories and once these sums have been
calculated the amounts due may be increased by an interest
calculation which differs dependent on the category into
which the damages fall. The main categories are as follows
:-
General Damages.
Represents compensation for items that cannot be calculated accurately by an accident compensation solicitor and often involves a degree of assessment. The category includes pain and suffering for injury, loss of amenity and loss of congenial employment. There are other items which may fall into this category where an accurate calculation of value is difficult if not impossible. Assessment of these losses is usually assisted by the use of expert opinions including specialist medical reports.
Special Damages.
Represents compensation for losses that can be calculated accurately. This category includes loss of salary and the value of damaged or lost personal property. There are numerous other items in this category and all losses should be discussed with a solicitor. These items are proved by documentary evidence including wage slips, invoices and estimates.
Provisional Damages
In certain circumstances a court will award Accident
Compensation that is provisional and will allow a
claimant to have the right to return to court for re-assessment
if the illness or condition deteriorates in the future.
The court will only re-consider the award on one occasion
only and great care should be taken with the timing of
such an application.
The amount awarded in a claim for pain and suffering is based on a number of
factors including the extent of the injury, the recovery
time and whether or not there are any long term consequences.
An accident compensation solicitor will doubtless put his
views on valuation to the judge however the actual assessment
of this figure by a judge is no easy task. Judges are guided
by previously decided cases and by guidelines put forward
by the ‘Judicial Studies Board’ which constantly reconsiders
the awards made in the courts and attempts to give guidance
on the amounts that should be awarded. The Judicial Studies
Board publishes ‘Guidelines for the Assessment of General
Damages in personal injury cases’ which is available at most public libraries.
The most important previously decided cases can be found
in the numerous court reports and are outlined in ‘Kemp
and Kemp’ which is a practitioners book used to assist in
the calculation of personal injury compensation that can
be found in most public libraries.
Our solicitors are all members of the Law Society panel
of personal injury experts and are specialists in the field
of damages claims. Claims are dealt with on a No
Win No Fee basis and compensation is paid in full with
no deductions whatsoever. There is no necessity to finance
your claim in any respect and you will not be asked to take
out any loan or pay for any insurance. Our claims are guaranteed
to be completely risk free.
HELPLINE 0845 643 3113
In the case of CICA claims terms will vary and in the case of MIB claims terms may vary.