Accident on the street

Valli

ah I thought it was Morrisons the supermarket ***light pings***
presumably there will be a claim against both the company (unsafe barriers) and the council.
Although I have no personal experience with these No win no fee merchants (The loser, if the claim is succesful pays compensation to the victim and legal costs to the solicitors) in actual fact any firm of solicitors can operate this system (basically a claim is put in for compensation plus costs!). You can get a free half hour interview to discuss your case at any solicitors interested in taking your case on. Phone up and ASK about this telling them that's what you want! (if you decide you do)
You do, however, need evidence if at all possible. Witnesses, photographs of the unsafe barriers, weather/traffic conditions (pavement traffic - lots of people around may have made it dificult for you to avoid/spot the barriers) weather - if it was raining and people were rushing/using brollies. Any witnesses? Statement from doctors/hospital. Time of day, streetlighting if applicable.
You can collect some of this data while you sort a solicitors out...
You could even claim compensation without a solicitor if you were very brave - depending on what you are claiming. Your claim must be reasonable/ loss of earnings/ cost of damage to property etc. Whether the injury is permanent or temporary...
reasonable - in this instance - has a specific legal meaning BTW

Tonybaloney_3

Valli wrote: »

ah I thought it was Morrisons the supermarket ***light pings***
presumably there will be a claim against both the company (unsafe barriers) and the council.
Although I have no personal experience with these No win no fee merchants (The loser, if the claim is succesful pays compensation to the victim and legal costs to the solicitors) in actual fact any firm of solicitors can operate this system. You can get a free half hour interview to discuss your case at any solicitors interested in taking your case on. Phone up and ASK about this telling them that's what you want! (if you decide you do)
You do, however need evidence. Witnesses, photographs of the unsafe barriers, weather/traffic conditions (pavement traffic - lots of people around may have made it dificult for you to avoid/spot the barriers) weather - if it was raining and people were rushing/using brollies. Any witnesses? Statement from doctors/hospital.
You can collect some of this data while you sort a solicitors out...
You could even claim compensation without a solicitor if you were very brave - depending on what you are claiming. Your claim must be reasonable/ loss of earnings/ cost of damage to property etc. Whether the injury is permanent or temporary...
reasonable - in this instance - has a specific legal meaning BTW

Wow- thanks very much Valli. I never considered the council liable in any form for this. I didn't take details of witnesses, just too busy trying to get to A&E. Thanks very much for the help. I definitely think I need legal assistance on this & will pursue Horace's suggestion tomorrow.

Thanks again.

Eeyore2009

Good luck:beer:

Tonybaloney_3

Eeyore2009 wrote: »

Good luck:beer:

Thanks Eeyore2009

CouponWoman

Tonybaloney wrote: »

Hi everyone

I had an accident on the street (pavement) due to some Morrisons plastic barriers & now have a ripped calf muscle. Anyone have any experience of these "no win no fee" solicitors & if so, who is the best?

As a self employed married guy with no children, anyone help on what benefits I'm entitled to from the DSS/DWP?

Thanks in advance :money:

Tony

Hi Tony

I hope you are feeling a bit better and starting to recover from your injuries.

It would be best if you checked out your local solicitors to see what they can offer you. Most offer a no win no fee service anyway, but its best to make an appointment to see a solicitor and explain what happened. You really need photographs of the site where the accident occured, so take them with you when you go. You will need details of anyone who saw the accident, time of day etc.

The solicitor will explain the system of no win no fee. Check for hidden clauses. ie, what will happen if you change solicitors as some will charge a fee if you change. Most solicitors will be fair and it is important that you feel you can talk to them, don't be afraid to ask questions, they will respect you for it and deal with your queries.

If you contact a accident management company, like the one mentioned above, all that will happen is that the agency, who do not deal with the accident themselves, will pass the claim to a solicitor of their choice. You will not have a choice and it could be someone a long way away so you would have to deal with the whole claim by telephone, and sometimes people feel disconnected from their solicitor.

The solicitor will check who was responsible for the site, be it local authority, or utilities etc. They will check whether the barriers were a danger, and if so they will at some stage arrange a medical for you prior to sorting out compensation.

No win no fee claims are great if you co-operate with your solicitor, as this is one of the conditions, believe it or not some people do not co-operate with their solicitor so unneccessary costs are incurred.

Good luck with your claim

CouponWoman

Hi Tony

now to your benefit issue.

Unfortunately many self employed people fall foul of the system when they become ill.

You will probably not (depending on past NI contributions) be entieled to employment support allowance, but I would make a claim anyway as even though you might not get any benefit you would get national insurance contributions.

If your wife works she might be able to claim tax credits, this would depend on her income though so again, make a claim and see what happens.

Good luck

CouponWoman

Hi Tony

sorry but I forgot to tell you you should check your home contents insurance policy to check if you have legal expenses cover. If you have your insurers will appoint a solicitor to act on your behalf.

You would need to check whether you have legal expenses cover anyway even if you got your own solicitor.

good luck again

SomeBozo

What losses have you suffered as a result of your injury?

Bozo

soniason

Valli wrote: »

You could even claim compensation without a solicitor if you were very brave - depending on what you are claiming. Your claim must be reasonable/ loss of earnings/ cost of damage to property etc. Whether the injury is permanent or temporary...
reasonable - in this instance - has a specific legal meaning BTW

Does anyone have any advice on how to do this.
Thanks in advance.
Sorry for hijacking you thread Tony.

worbikeman

That's why our council tax and insurance premiums are sky-high, I should watch where you're going in future.