Back injury as result of car crash - settlement?

Seanymph

Unfortunately you have put yourself into the hands of someone else's 'solicitor' and they are working for the insurance companies.

Go pay for a session with your OWN solicitor and see what their advice would be.

I was in a car crash, and for life changing injuries I think you are settling too low.

I do however think you need a solicitor who is on YOUR side, not anyone else's - and isn't working for no win no fee, but being paid for the work they do.

pinkshoes

My injuries were pretty similar, and my payout was about £2200 I think.

I was given 8 sessions of physio by their insurance, which was great, but still suffered with sciatica and pins and needles frequently. I also ended up out of pocket for days off work, plus I couldn't drive for a while, so had to spend a fortune on public transport.

I actually only wanted my out of pocket expenses of about £800, but they wouldn't cough up, so I had to make a claim against the driver, and thus ended up with £2200.

Daft system huh?!

hieveryone

Bit of an update - he has to go for an MRI scan and they will msake a decision on whether he needs surgery, but physio has said he most likely will need an operation on his spine :-(

timeou

I had a very similar scenario. Fell down steps and damaged the disc in my back causing sciatica. After an mri scan it was obvious the damage was done by the fact there was degenerative discs. The accident did accelerate the damage my consultant said but by 1 - 3 years. Apparently discs start to degenerate after age 25 so it is extremely difficult to say the accident was the cause. I also went on to have spinal surgery to repair the damage but none of that was counted inthe 'pain and suffering' aspect as it would have happened anyway. My solicitor advised me to take the offer of 3k

Clive_Woody

hieveryone wrote: »

Hi everyone,

Just after some advice - the story is a bit long so will cut it down!

- April 2012 partner was crashed into whilst driving in his works car.
- Visited doctor regarding severe pain, prescribed painkillers.
- Awoke one night in severe pain, back was 'twisted', visited A&E, prescribed more painkillers.
- Was awarded physiotherapy sessions x 10 through insurance company.
- Attended specialist medical examination on request of insurance company - consultant estimated 12 month recovery time.
- Physiotherapy finished.
- Diagnosed with 'bulging disc' in lower back, which is pressing on nearby nerves and causing muscles to spasm.
- Two more 'flare ups' since physiotherapy finished - partner now paying for private physiotherapy as insurance company have refused further sessions.
- Visited doctor again as pain very severe - referred for MRI scan.
- Since accident, had periods off from work as work involves long travel and lifting.

Throughout all this, the solicitor assigned to partner through his work have been in contact with updates. The other insurance company have offered £2400 and now £2800 as a settlement figure.

We have refused these offers but feel that the solicitors are pushing for us to settle. Has anyone else had any experience with this sort of claim and what was the outcome? We are not being greedy but feel that for nearly a year of severe pain so far that £2800 is not a reasonable offer.

Post this on the insurance board on here there are folk on there with expert knowledge of this sort of situation. They will be able to advise on whether the proposed payout is reasonable for those injuries, my personal feeling is that it is on the low side.

You should not consider agreeing any settlement until your partner has recovered or the full extent of the injuries are known and a long term prognosis made by suitability qualified expert.

pipkin71

momoyama wrote: »

I would question how you get a lower spine injury from an RTC. Furthermore, I question how you get a prolapsed disc anywhere from an RTC.

These things are nearly always long standing. I think you'll have a very hard proving that it's all related and that you aren't just out for undue compensation (no offence, but that's how I read it.)

I was in a car accident caused by a drunk driver and suffered lower spine injuries. I then had prolapsed discs and needed a lamenectomy.

I was successfully awarded compensation, so it is not necessarily hard to prove, as the problems I had - and continue to have - with my lower spine, are all connected to the car accident.

hieveryone

Thank you all for your replies.

I would just like to clarify that we are not being 'greedy' for the money, but that it would help to go some way to alleviating what we have been through.

Holidays have been ruined, days off work, cannot pursue hobbies i.e golf - not to mention the fact that I've had to do most of the household chores! ;-)

I would have read a thread like this and thought 'oh, they're just after the money' - but after having lived with someone who is in constant chronic pain, I can honestly say that it has changed my tune. It is really not easy, and as much as I am sympathetic to my partners injuries and pain, it gets tiring on myself at times with the frustration of the way he feels.

Thanks again for your replies.

pipkin71

Something else to consider, hieveryone, I had my accident over 20 years ago and I am still struggling to the point where I can hardly walk at the moment due to the damage caused to my spine back then.

You need to think of long term difficulties too

Crazy_Jamie

I've noticed that you've posted this thread in the Insurance forum now. I'm going to respond substantively over there rather than here. You've received some good advice in this thread, but also some advice that is inaccurate to one degree or another, so in the other thread I'm going to be as comprehensive as I can be.

However, there is one post in this thread that I need to respond to first simply because it needs to be rebutted, and that is this one;

Seanymph wrote: »

Unfortunately you have put yourself into the hands of someone else's 'solicitor' and they are working for the insurance companies.

Go pay for a session with your OWN solicitor and see what their advice would be.

I was in a car crash, and for life changing injuries I think you are settling too low.

I do however think you need a solicitor who is on YOUR side, not anyone else's - and isn't working for no win no fee, but being paid for the work they do.

This post is wrong in just about every way.

For a start, it is not clear under what basis the OP's current solicitors have been instructed. As the referral has come through the company's insurers, we don't know whether the solicitors are acting under a Conditional Fee Agreement ('no win no fee') following that referral, or are being funded under some kind of Legal Expenses Insurance policy through the employer. Your assertion that they are working 'for the insurance companies' is misleading; these solicitors will be funded in some way, but to imply some sort of bias on their part is not only nonsensical when you do not know the funding arrangement, but is almost certainly wrong in any event. Even if they are being funded through an insurance policy, the solicitors themselves will almost certainly be independent. The involvement of the insurance company will be largely limited to paying the solicitor's fees from time to time and ensuring that the case has reasonable prospects of success.

In any event, whilst it is true that the OP has a right to choose which solicitor to use in this case, paying privately for a consultation is terrible advice. Conditional Fee Agreements are (at least for the time being) both the most usual and most appropriate way to fund personal injury claims. There is no good reason why the OP or anybody else should pay privately out of their own pocket to fund a personal injury claim. So even if the OP did wish to change solicitor (though I don't see any strong reason this far for doing so), instructing another solicitor on a privately funded basis would not be at all advisable.

By all means if you want to come back at my post I would encourage you to do so. I'll be subscribed to this thread now anyway so chances are I will see your response and be able to respond. But for now I'm going to pop along to the insurance forum and write my main response there.