Advice Please - Car Accident/Instructing Solicitors

MoneySavingMole

Hello,

Firstly, apologies if this is the wrong place to leave this thread.

So, I was involved in a RTC earlier this week and contacted my insurance (Admiral) to process the claim.

I have been contacted by a Personal Injury Solicitor (let's call them PIS) who asked all relevant questions and advised they would send paperwork I need to sign etc.

I was also contacted by my own insurance's Legal team (Admiral Law - let's call them AL) and told they were given instructions from my insurers (Admiral) to start proceedings for Personal Injury.

My predicament is this;

I have received paperwork from PIS today and on the cover letter it says;

'I write further to our telephone conversation and I would like to take this opportunity to thank you for the kind instructions.
As discussed, I will contact the third party insurers and liaise with you once they have responded.
In the meantime, I would be obliged if you could return the CFA and client care letters as soon as possible.'

On another letter, in the same pack, it says;
'Please note we cannot commence work on your matter until we receive signed copies of the enclosed documents. WE have therefore attached a stamped, addressed envelope...'

BUT, AL have told me THEY will be continuing with my case and I need to instruct PIS I do not require their services.

So, I have the following questions, if you'd be so kind...

1. Can/Should I cancel PIS?
2. Am I likely to be charged for this pack/documents they have sent to me?
3. What If PIS have already contacted the third party, before AL did? am I obliged to use PIS?

My main issue is, looking at the paperwork, PIS want 25% of my damages whereas AL don't want a penny, as apparently, I have already paid for their services via my insurance.

The money-saver in me sees AL as the best option, however, I fear I may be charged for the correspondance with PIS!

Mercdriver

BlueMoonMole wrote: »

Hello,

Firstly, apologies if this is the wrong place to leave this thread.

So, I was involved in a RTC earlier this week and contacted my insurance (Admiral) to process the claim.

I have been contacted by a Personal Injury Solicitor (let's call them PIS) who asked all relevant questions and advised they would send paperwork I need to sign etc.

I was also contacted by my own insurance's Legal team (Admiral Law - let's call them AL) and told they were given instructions from my insurers (Admiral) to start proceedings for Personal Injury.

My predicament is this;

I have received paperwork from PIS today and on the cover letter it says;

'I write further to our telephone conversation and I would like to take this opportunity to thank you for the kind instructions.
As discussed, I will contact the third party insurers and liaise with you once they have responded.
In the meantime, I would be obliged if you could return the CFA and client care letters as soon as possible.'

On another letter, in the same pack, it says;
'Please note we cannot commence work on your matter until we receive signed copies of the enclosed documents. WE have therefore attached a stamped, addressed envelope...'

BUT, AL have told me THEY will be continuing with my case and I need to instruct PIS I do not require their services.

So, I have the following questions, if you'd be so kind...

1. Can/Should I cancel PIS?
2. Am I likely to be charged for this pack/documents they have sent to me?
3. What If PIS have already contacted the third party, before AL did? am I obliged to use PIS?

My main issue is, looking at the paperwork, PIS want 25% of my damages whereas AL don't want a penny, as apparently, I have already paid for their services via my insurance.

The money-saver in me sees AL as the best option, however, I fear I may be charged for the correspondance with PIS!

They haven't got your written instruction and are requiring the signatures to commence work. I would contact them by phone or letter and give them thanks but no thanks. They'll find someone else to get their 25% cut from. I don't see how they can charge you anything since they need the signatures in order to commence.

MoneySavingMole

Thanks, Mercdriver.

I suppose I'm just worried, because as I continue to read this pack they've sent out, they charge £250 an hour and I'm concerned they'll be telling me they've already spent 1 or 2 hours working on my case!

It's a horrible situation, I feel as if I am being preyed on from all sides.

Not only has a random PIS been in touch, the third party insurers asked if they could 'buy my claim' from me for 110% of it's value, in order to reduce costs at their end! - how is this even acceptable!?

Mercdriver

BlueMoonMole wrote: »

Thanks, Mercdriver.

I suppose I'm just worried, because as I continue to read this pack they've sent out, they charge £250 an hour and I'm concerned they'll be telling me they've already spent 1 or 2 hours working on my case!

It's a horrible situation, I feel as if I am being preyed on from all sides.

Not only has a random PIS been in touch, the third party insurers asked if they could 'buy my claim' from me for 110% of it's value, in order to reduce costs at their end! - how is this even acceptable!?

Nothing wrong with that provided you get the service you need from them. If they take the claim they can control costs more easily whereas another claims department might be more free and easy with money that isn't theirs.

Aretnap

Agnes Collier must have some really rubbish lawyers in that case.

They shouldn't conclude the claim either until the OP recovers or until his long term prognosis is clear (as until then they can't be certain that any award will reflect its seriousness), but there's no reason why they shouldn't begin working on it immediately.

Car_54

Aretnap wrote: »

Agnes Collier must have some really rubbish lawyers in that case.

They shouldn't conclude the claim either until the OP recovers or until his long term prognosis is clear (as until then they can't be certain that any award will reflect its seriousness), but there's no reason why they shouldn't begin working on it immediately.

Precisely so. Apart from anything else there's a 3 year deadline to start court proceedings, so the sooner they start work the better.

MoneySavingMole

For the record, my vehicle may well be declared a 'total loss' and aside from any personal injury I have incurred, I've had to take time off work to deal with my vehicle - downtime which I will have to claim back, as, like most of the country, I can't afford to just 'have a few days off'.