is this a low offer?

sarahg1969

OP, you are unlikely to get a proper diagnosis of depression in less than a month from the accident.

Secondly, in under four weeks, it is almost impossible to diagnose how long a soft tissue injury is going to last.

Have you had a medical exam? If so, in my opinion, it's been done too soon. If you are still suffering from the immediate and severe effects of the accident, it is difficult for a medical examiner to see exactly what problems you will be left with and for how long. You really need to let them "settle down" a bit first.

It is very difficult for someone to give an opinion on injuries over the internet, and you would be well-advised to seek some professional advice, particularly as you have a pre-existing condition, which will affect not only your recovery, but also the value of your claim.

ETA: If you are going into hospital and then will be flatbound, my suggestion would be to contact the insurers and say you are going to take legal advice, and then just leave it until you are ready and able to do so. You have ages to deal with it yet. There is no immediate rush.

Paul_c_7

ok to explain a few things

1) saga instructed me to go to see what they termed as an independant medical professional. these said that if i do NOT agree with what is said they will re assess me
also i am not the one pushing for things to be sorted, i am getting the calls from them

2) my depression has improved from sucidal to a point where i am looking for work and generaly integrating into society, however after said incident i am alot less happy withmyself as i am unable to do things and i feel crippled (related to feelings from existing leg issues which were pretty much overcome)

3) i dont realy ant to use soliciters as i know thats where premiums come from. in the long run. also by the same logic i honestly do not know what i should be expecting, i have 0 experiance of this and i dont know what the hell is right and wrong and as such i am asking people who do not have a vested interst in my making a decision one way or the other

4) my preexisting physical condition is something i have lived with for my entire life. which has been made worse after the accident in itself. also i use my general day to day as a bench mark for comparision nor " normal" people who arnt physdicaly restricted. .

my anxiety which has been insulted is when i am driving or in traffic or around hheavy traffic. i am normaly a comfortable driver who is aware of people on the road. i drive manchester to northhamption and manchester to torquay regularly and the last 2 times i dorve it i was noticable jumpy when anyone got close to me
i took backroads instead of A roads and Mways to avoid traffic and i have hardly dirven att all scince the accident despite driving being one of my relaxation things

i oftern just go for a drive to clear my head but i havnt been able to do it at all as i feel realy worried about whats going on around me

i do feel that things which are important to me like my scuba and ccoking have been totaly ignored from the way the woman Doc who i saw was talking to spoke to me and rushed things over. i dont know if i must be compensated for loss of quality of life but i do feel that for the things which i cited as being very important to me which i have lost should count for something. especialy given the physical nature of the activitie and how it reacts with my body ( masses of weight though my spine and resting on my lower back)

i will be contacting a few no fee places tomorrow but i am also seeing my MHP for a regular assessment and i am going to be talking to him abut how i feel. it should actualy be my discharge assessment but i feel i need some more help after what has happened so i will be discussing it with him tomorrow

slh4283

Hello

I'm not sure whether you have pursued this line of enquiry before, but I'm presuming that SAGA are the third party insurers? If so, have you spoken to your own insurers? You may have legal expenses cover under your policy who will pay for the costs of representation. Although they do like to appoint their general representatives you are entitled to use whoever you want and for their costs to be paid by the LE cover as long as the costs are approved by the insurer. This means if you have a local solicitor you are comfortable with but doesn't operate on a no-win no-fee basis you may be able to use them.

Unfortunately with pre-existing conditions this can affect the settlement, however you really need a decent medical report to be commissioned to assess your current position, then it will be compared with your previous condition. You will have to disclose your medical records for this to be done though.

LadyIndecisive

slh4283's advice is spot on, your own insurers are your first port of call to see if you have legal cover.

If not here are a couple of links which may help you choose a solicitor. I don't have first hand experience but these are the more legitimate organisations in a field which falls prey to many ambulance-chasing cowboys.

http://www.injurylawyers4u.co.uk/Tracker/track.php?ref=google

http://www.apil.org.uk/ to find an injury lawyer in your area

If you wish to use a claims management company these are effectively middlemen and generally push up the total cost of a claim. In my view they are unnecessary in this instance, but if you want to contact one use this site below to check the company is authorised under the Compensation Act.

http://www.claimsregulation.gov.uk/

lisyloo

saga instructed me to go to see what they termed as an independant medical professional

This sounds anything but to me.
This is a professional who is being paid to represent THEIR interests and not yours.

also i am not the one pushing for things to be sorted, i am getting the calls from them

Again this is in their interest and no yours.
They cannot possibly properly asses you at this stage.

i dont realy ant to use soliciters as i know thats where premiums come from

Very noble of you but as you have admintted, you don't know what you are doing, so you do actually need advice.
If you were scamming the I'd be the first the be against it, but if you genuinely need this service then there is nothing morally wrong with you getting it.

as such i am asking people who do not have a vested interst in my making a decision one way or the other

Good idea, but you still need the profesional advice. We can't comment except at a high level on your injuries.

my anxiety which has been insulted

Ignore, don't spend another minute of worrying about this person, who clearly has their own issues.

the way the woman Doc who i saw was talking to spoke to me and rushed things over

Do you reallly think she is independent and acting in your interests.
She simply isn't and everything you have said indicates that they are not assesing you either independently or properly (because it can't be done so soon).

I don't have first hand experience but these are the more legitimate organisations in a field which falls prey to many ambulance-chasing cowboys.

Sorry to confuse things, but my own experience is that the legal cover people are 9-5 and have no incentive to sort out your problems.
The "ambulance-chasing cowboys" are highly motivated and they should no all be tarred with the same brush. Some of them are decent solicitors.
If you can get a recommendation from friends/family/colleagues/relatives then that would be ideal.

geri1965_2

In terms of costs, it really doesn't matter which solicitors you go with as they will all get the same under the recoverable fee scheme, what you really want is someone who will give you a good service, which is why recommendations from friends are good. You can get a good service and a bad service from the same company as it very often depends on who the fee earner is and how good they are at their job.

LadyIndecisive

saga instructed me to go to see what they termed as an independant medical professional This sounds anything but to me.
This is a professional who is being paid to represent THEIR interests and not yours.

Reports are compiled for the Court so should be independent. However, experts vary in how optimistic/pessimistic they are re prognoses and it is possible that Saga chose one accordingly.

Quote:
I don't have first hand experience but these are the more legitimate organisations in a field which falls prey to many ambulance-chasing cowboys.
Sorry to confuse things, but my own experience is that the legal cover people are 9-5 and have no incentive to sort out your problems.
The "ambulance-chasing cowboys" are highly motivated and they should no all be tarred with the same brush. Some of them are decent solicitors.
If you can get a recommendation from friends/family/colleagues/relatives then that would be ideal.

If legal cover is available it should be utilised. The third party insurers will check availability of cover elsewhere before agreeing to be liable for 'after the event' insurance premiums.

Paul_c_7

i dont have legal protection


alos i have had saga on the phone twice today bugging me about whats going on and am i happy with things

geri1965_2

Have you seen the medical report?

Paul_c_7

as yet np i have npt.