RTA - Need some advice

Captaincodpiece

Quentin wrote: »

The police will not comment on liability (as its a civil matter).


There doesn't have to be a criminal conviction to make a successful civil claim!

Ok, I'll accept you know best if there's no negligence on behalf of the driver his insurance will pay out?

Quentin

Captaincodpiece wrote: »

...... if there's no negligence on behalf of the driver his insurance will pay out?

No .

spursman124

Hi Really? The information I have (from some reliable sources) is that it cannot be possible for the driver of a car that hits a pedestrian not to have 0% negligence!

Also, back to my question....is it better to go for a local firm or a big high flying central london firm?

InsideInsurance

spursman124 wrote: »

Hi Really? The information I have (from some reliable sources) is that it cannot be possible for the driver of a car that hits a pedestrian not to have 0% negligence!

Too many negatives in there I think.

It is possible for a driver to be found to have no negligence in an accident with a pedestrian but they are highly unusual situations.

http://www.bonnaraccidentlaw.com/blog/legal/2014/01/08/walking-on-the-wild-side-liability-for-pedestrian-road-traffic-accidents/ gives a list of the more unusual cases and very few have the pedestrian losing.

Yorkie1

OP, with injuries like you describe I would at least ensure that you are getting a solicitor which has experience in personal injury claims.

There are 2 ways of filtering firms:

1. Law Society accreditation

2. Association of Personal Injury Lawyers membership

Other firms may well have similar levels of experience and quality but it just hasn't been measured.

spursman124

Hi ok, I wasnt aware of the association of personal injury lawyers.

Interestingly enough, there is only one law firm/solictor that comes up in my area on the association of personal injury lawyers website. Hmmm.

This may sound like a really stupid question....can I just ring this firm, explain my circumstances, provide the details of accident and injuries etc. and get information on their fees etc and if i choose not to go with them, I can just say "thanks ill get back to you".

Or can you just be honest and say im still researching/ringing around before I decide who to instruct?

The reason I ask is I have the large central london firm phoning me up requesting for them to represent me, and I've called one local firm so far who I did feel comfortable with.

Should I be phoning a few more before I make a decision? These firms will phone me back at some point asking for them to work on the case...what do I say?

Surely, two firms is not enough? How many firms should I be ringing etc. PS...ive not had any recommendations from family or friends.

InsideInsurance

You can be fairly honest, they are a business after all.

You can speak to them, say you've been run over and looking to make a personal injury claim against the driver in question and came across them via the association and you just want to have a discussion about it because your not sure if to go with a big national firm or themselves as a local firm.

Depending on their size they will most likely arrange for one of their solicitors to call you back to discuss it and answer your basic queries. Ultimately its a bit of a sales pitch from them and not just free legal advice but they will answer questions about fees, benefits of using them -v- Irwin Mitchell or one of the other massive firms etc

OnanTheBarbarian

Where in the country are you located?

Any no win no fee outfit will not charge you if the claim gets nowhere (unless it is established you have been dishonest or exaggerated your claim). Many firms will offer an initial consultation free.

Another membership body is MASS who will have solicitors specialising in road accident cases

http://www.mass.org.uk/

comeandgo

If you go with a no win no fee company ask what they mean by fee. Does this cover all their costs and expert witness costs if any needed.

InsideInsurance

comeandgo wrote: »

If you go with a no win no fee company ask what they mean by fee. Does this cover all their costs and expert witness costs if any needed.

Thats not the question to ask, the key is in the name of no win, no fee. As long as you havent been fraudulant in your claim then no win is no fee. The ATE insurance the solicitor buys covers off all their costs, expert fees and even the ATE premium.

What no win , no fee doesnt cover off is what happens if you do win? These days for PI cases they can keep up to 25% of your settlement.

The OP did already cover this off earlier in the thread though.