Tuesday, April 10, 2018

Whiplash Injury Back Problems

Whiplash What Is the Meaning?

This is a very interesting question that many people from the medical profession, the legal profession, the insurance industry and people like you and I are asking. Why is this the case? The answer is because it is so difficult to pin it down accurately.

Most dictionaries describe whiplash as “injury caused by a severe jerk to the head, typically in a car accident.” From that dictionary description we can add two more questions which are firstly, if the jerk is to the head why are people talking about “back” injuries and secondly are we talking about all car accidents or just certain car accidents?

Let us examine firstly what is a whiplash injury. As the dictionary says it is a jerk to the head and in a car accident your seat belt will stop your body from being propelled forward but your head is not in a harness, so it stretches the muscles in the neck causing damage to them in many cases. Now the argument comes when some people who have suffered whiplash injuries complain of back pain. Did this back pain come from a neck injury? To the pot you must add the simple fact that most adults suffer, long before any Whiplash injury, from back problems and injuries. So, to what extent has any Whiplash injury contributed to a worsening of the existing back injury or indeed has it contributed at all? Sometimes if the person has been treated by a Medical professional before the Whiplash injury then in some small way it is possible to be a little more accurate, but only a little bit more accurate about quantifying a diagnosis of the Whiplash injury. You can now see that the evaluation of a Whiplash injury is extremely problematic and the Insurance companies for example are very suspicious when it comes to evaluating Whiplash injuries. Indeed, they trot out on a regular basis that increases in car insurance premiums are to a large extent due to the many Whiplash injuries.

Although car accidents are responsible for Whiplash injuries they can occur when there is a sudden shock to the body from behind, such as a push or a very sudden deceleration. This gives you the clue to where car accidents happen to cause Whiplash injuries. They are almost all caused by the car being hit from behind causing as explained above the body to be propelled forward your seat belt will stop your body from being continually propelled forward but your head is not in a harness, so it stretches the muscles in the neck causing damage.

But not all people that are in a car that has been hit from behind suffer Whiplash injuries. I know a couple who were hit from behind by a Volvo estate. They were stationary, and the police estimated the Volvo was doing 80kph. The couple were in a BMW 3 and the seat belt stopped them going through the windscreen and pulled them backwards so that they both demolished the front seats and found themselves horizontal to the ground. One had a Whiplash injury the other did not.

Can you explain that?

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Whiplash Injury Claim Amount

Whiplash claims average pay out in Ireland

This has been an interesting time for the road traffic accident side of Personal Injury claims in Ireland. Everyone seems to have had their say as to why the cost of car insurance is so high in Ireland. The Insurance industry points the finger at Whiplash claims as the major reason. The medical profession say that it is seemingly impossible to judge impartially the state of one’s neck or back for a whiplash claim after a car accident or indeed before the car accident. As a large percentage of people have back problems before a car accident how much more did the Whiplash make it worse? Every December the insurance companies go flat out to cram as many claim settlements through the books before the end of the year as possible so that they cannot be accused of making too much profit! Even doubtful claims are settled. The motorist points the figure at the insurance companies and says that they do not do enough to weed out fake and incorrect claims.

Escalating insurance costs

The Irish Government some time ago set up a commission to examine personal injury compensations awards for victims of road traffic accidents amid concerns about escalating insurance costs. Between 70 and 80 per cent of all car insurance claims are for whiplash-related injuries, with the Insurance Ireland estimating the average pay-out to be about €15,000.

Recently it has been claimed that by curbing the cost of whiplash claims could save the Irish motorist up to €150 on their car insurance policies every year, the head of one of Ireland’s largest car rental companies has said.

Europcar Ireland’s chief executive Colm Menton has said that two of the Ireland’s largest motor insurers have communicated to him in writing that they would be prepared to reduce significantly the cost of car insurance premiums if the compensation awarded for whiplash claims in Ireland was capped.

His recent comments came in a submission to the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Finance as consumer’s battle all the time with the rapidly rising cost of car insurance, a development, surprise surprise that the Insurance companies have blamed the cause to a sharp rise in awards relating to whiplash injuries.

If whiplash claims awards were capped at a maximum of €5,000 the Insurance companies have said that the average premiums would drop from €700 to between €550 and €590 for most insured people, he pointed out in his submission.

One thing is for certain if the Insurance companies have indicated a reduction in car premiums of between €150 and €110 then they will certainly be able to do better than that!

Who is right and who is wrong here? For certain it is not just one thing that is causing all the financial grief here for the average motorist. It is a combination of all the various factors mentioned above but I will leave you with one practical idea that everyone that suffers from back pain should be regularly assessed by a medical professional for an accurate assessment to be made after suffering whiplash.

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Whiplash Claims Process

Whiplash claim how long to resolve?

All Personal injury claims, including Whiplash claims must be submitted in Ireland to the Injuries Board (PIAB) for assessment.

The Injuries Board (PIAB) states on its Irish website that once a claim is submitted the assessment on average can take up to seven months to be completed. But wait for as it is easy to confuse this timetable with how long whiplash injury compensation takes to come through as clearly, they are not the same. Experience shows that the Injuries Board (PIAB) can take much longer than that.

You should be aware that the claim assessment is only one step in the claim process, and additional time must be allowed for the case to be prepared, either by yourself or with the help of a Personal injury solicitor and for the negligent third party to both consent to a claim assessment and also to accept or reject any the assessment of the Injuries Board (PIAB) once the assessment has been issued to the two parties. Personal injury claims must be accurately prepared,and a body of evidence collected to establish the negligence of a third party. Documents must be collected as proof of injury and proof of an accident and claims forms must be accurately completed and medical assessments arranged and duly documented.

The time taken for the process to be completed will also be increased if liability for the accident is denied or if the Injuries Board (PIAB) assessment is rejected by both or either party.

When an application is finally received by the Injuries Board (PIAB), the negligent third party against whom the claim is made will be sent a ‘Formal Notice’ that a personal injury claim has been filed. The third party must then notify his or her insurance company, and 90 days must be allowed for consent to be provided to the Injuries Board (PIAB) to proceed with the case assessment.

If and only if the Injuries Board (PIAB) is granted authorisation by the third parties insurance company to proceed with the case assessment, once the amount of compensation is assessed, both parties are then notified. Twenty-one days are allowed for the third party and yourself to agree to the assessment or reject it. If accepted, the Injuries Board (PIAB) issues an order to pay. The total time taken therefore for compensation to be paid in Ireland is therefore unlikely to be less than nine months, and you can realistically expect to have to wait at least year or more to receive a settlement.

If one of the two parties reject the assessment from the Injuries board (PIAB) then your Personal Injury solicitor will attempt to negotiate a settlement directly with the Insurance Company and that could take a number of months to come to a resolution. If there is no resolution, then both parties will end up in Court which again could prolong the affair for a number of months.

For certain there is no quick fix to a Personal injury claim.

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Car Accident Claims Procedures

What to do after a car accident not your fault in Ireland?

The quality of our roads is slowly improving and generally the quality of driving also is slowly getting better, but car accidents still do happen and, in those circumstances we have to ask ourselves the pertinent question “What to do after a car accident not your fault in Ireland?”

Here are some important DON’T’s and DO’s

DON’T’s

Don’t lose it

Keep calm and respectful even when the others at the accident scene ARE losing it. Listen and note everything that is said. It may help you later if there is a dispute over the car accident.

Don’t just take the other party’s word for it

In view of the above there are some situations where the other driver or passengers may admit their liability and tell this to you verbally. But don’t take their word for it. Get them to put it in writing, and get them, if you can to sign it. It’s so easy, afterwards, to deny something they said, but if you have it signed and in writing to back it up, then things become harder to deny.

Don’t force the other driver to give their Insurance details

Although it is normal procedure to exchange insurance details you cannot force someone to do so. If they refuse,try and get a witness to the event and note down these details;

  1. The registration number of the vehicle
  2. The maker of car
  3. Its colour
  4. Any other feature that will enable the Gardaí to track the vehicle

Then inform the Gardaí of the refusal and give them the details in order from them to track down the driver.

Don’t ever admit anything

Don’t ever admit that the car accident is your fault or even partially your fault. And don’t even apologize before you know the true cause of the car accident. Saying “sorry”, unfortunately, is almost an admission of your guilt, and the other driver’s insurance company who want to get as much money from your insurance company will use this to their advantage when liability is settled, and you lose your no claims bonuses.

Here are some DO’s

Never ever leave the scene of the accident unless medically you have to

Don’t leave the scene unless you really need to go to hospital. Otherwise, you may end up in trouble with the Gardaí.

Call the Gardaí

They may or may not come depending on their availability and the seriousness of the car accident but call them you must.

Exchange details;

  1. Name, address, and phone number of the driver
  2. Insurance company, policy number, end date of policy
  3. License plate number
  4. Name and number of the Gardaí attending

You should get photos of the car accident scene from the camera in your mobile phone.

DO contact your insurance company immediately, even if you were not at fault.

DO take on an experienced and successful Personal Injury Solicitor if you have been injured in the car accident.

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Car Accident Tissue Damage

Soft tissue injury calculator

Soft tissue as we all know relates to muscle, ligament and cartilage damage. The Injuries Board (PIAB) in Ireland publishes what is called the “Book of Quantum” which lists the various possible injuries and a recommendation for compensation for the injury suffered. Included in this list are soft tissue injuries. It is, after all, only a recommendation from the Injuries Board (PIAB) and is not binding on the parties involved and can be rejected by one or all the parties. Of course, the “Book of Quantum” does not, because it cannot evaluate either the seriousness of the Injury or the pain and suffering endured by the person injured. In soft tissue injuries, it is very difficult to evaluate either the seriousness of the Injury or the pain and suffering endured by the person injured.

As we can see with so many possible variables, it is easy to understand why no two soft tissue injury claims for personal injury compensation are the same. It could be possible that the perception of how much a claim for compensation for a soft tissue injury someone should be entitled to is based upon what the Injuries Board (PIAB) has in its “Book of Quantum” but, unless one undergoes a medical evaluation of the soft tissue injury and its consequences under the supervision of an experienced and expert soft tissue injury claims solicitor, it is unlikely that one will ever be certain that any assessment made by the Injuries Board (PIAB) reflects the true and full extent of one’s soft tissue injury or represents adequate soft tissue injury compensation.

However, if one has suffered any form of negative effect on one’s emotional well-being due to how ones work soft tissue injury occurred or during recovery, one may also be able to include this element of one’s accident in a soft tissue injury claim for compensation. Victims of a soft tissue injury can also and often develop Post Traumatic Stress Disorder if the soft tissue injury occurred in a particularly violent accident, or the injured party become anxious and depressed during their recovery from damaged tissues. Furthermore, if these emotional traumas manifested after the medical examination of one’s soft tissue injury had taken place, the trauma of Post-Traumatic                                                                                                                         Stress Disorder could have been omitted from the information communicated to the Injuries Board (PIAB) and left out of the Injuries Board´s assessment of one’s claim for soft tissue injury compensation.

The Injuries Board (PIAB) and their “Book of Quantum” has come into much criticism and rightly so for the low values that they have put on Soft tissue injuries.

As this article is very vague about the significance and the worth of a Soft tissue injury it is only by going to the Injuries Board (PIAB) with an experienced and successful soft tissue solicitor that any idea of how much the soft tissue injury is worth will any handle be got on a Soft tissue injury calculator.

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Whiplash Injuries Claims

Whiplash and other injury claims

Background

Personal Injury and car accident injuries

If you have been injured, hurt, or harmed in a car accident that was not your fault then you may be entitled to claim compensation from the party that caused the accident.

Medical Negligence

Everyone in the Medical profession in Ireland has what is known as a “Duty of Care” to the people that they treat, or they look after. If you are harmed or hurt when a third party fails to treat or look after you according to a “Duty of Care” then you may be entitled to claim compensation for Medical Negligence from the same third party.

Personal Injury Solicitors Dublin

What we do

If you have suffered Personal Injury like whiplash or medical Negligence, then you may need the help of a Personal Injury Solicitor to help you make a personal injury claim for compensation.

This where we come in as there are two distant systems for making the claims for compensation.

For personal Injury claims they must all be sent to the Injuries Board (formerly the PIAB) for assessment and you do not need a Personal Injury Solicitor Dublin to do so. But there are major reasons why it is advisable to have us on board.

  1. Any mistake in the filling in of the assessment forms may invalidate your claim
  2. The recommendation of the Injuries Board is just that a recommendation and is neither binding on you or the third party, so you will need us to either negotiate a settlement or take it further to court. If we were not there from the start, then evidence may not be available as the Injuries Board process can take many months

The Medical Negligence way is to obtain a medical opinion from a qualified third party and to then start proceedings against the party that did not adhere to the “Duty of Care”.

Whether it is Personal Injury such as whiplash or Medical Negligence Personal Injury solicitors is here for you.

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Car Injuries Claims

Car accident solicitors Dublin

 Car accidents are around the rise across the country daily. Tourists, bad winter weather and distracted and reckless drivers can all cause you to be involved in a car accident. Though quite a few accidents are minor, some are serious and require comprehensive health-related remedy. When the car accident was not your fault then off course you have the possibility of making a car accident claim for any injuries that you might have suffered. For those who or someone you know has been injured in a car accident, they need to speak to car accident solicitors for an evaluation of their case to make a Personal Injury claim for compensation.

As usual the activity of Car accident solicitors in Dublin is always changing its profile with two major firms announcing both a new office and the takeover of another.

Gibson and Associates has just announced the takeover of Dublin based Barron Morris Solicitors and Johnson Solicitors have recently announced an increase in staff numbers. A decade ago law firms would specialise in Personal Injury and Medical Negligence cases and then five years ago most firms went to Personal Injury business and a few took the Medical negligence root. Now those who took the Personal Injury business are either specialising in Road traffic claims or Slips falls and trips or Work Injury and accidents. Soon will they be subdividing Road traffic accidents into car accidents, truck accidents motor cycle accidents? Most commentators think that will happen sooner than later. It is already clear that in the Google organic lists and in the Adwords Google groupings that some solicitors are aiming their site at specific targets like Car accident claims and not general keywords like Personal Injury Solicitors.

One of the most significant and critical factors in taking on a Car accident solicitor is that they know the law. An experienced Car accident solicitor for example should know that the statute of limitations may perhaps have an influence on your car accident claim.

As you know all car accident claims in Ireland must be submitted to the Injuries Board (PIAB); however, their recommendation is neither binding on you nor the opposing insurance company so Car accident solicitors have plenty of experience and expertise negotiating with insurance companies following a car accident. Car accident solicitors Dublin can get you significant amounts of compensation as they can by providing you the highest possible settlement for the injuries that you have suffered. A Car accident solicitor Dublin will fight for you to obtain you the compensation you deserve.

Getting a car accident solicitor Dublin can take the anxiety and frustration out of a car accident injury case. Without professional advice going through the legal procedures just after a car accident is certainly not easy at all. A Car accident solicitor Dublin can do the niceties for you, allowing you to focus totally on your recovery.

You know that it makes total sense to hire an experienced and successful Car Accident Solicitor Dublin!

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Road Accident Claims Process

Car accident claims procedure

Now we never plan a car accident in advance, do we? It is just not possible as the possibilities are just too many to accurately plan. However, the statistics show that we are likely to be in at least one and possibly two car accidents in our life time so do we know what to do in those circumstances? Can we have a car accident claims procedure?

Very often after a car accident the shock that you have suffered may make logical thought difficult and what to next and how to go about it may be not easy to think about.

The very first thing is to look after your physical self-first and then anyone else that might be injured at the scene. If necessary, call an ambulance for the serious hurt; but remember to find out where you are and give that to ambulance people!

Then you should ensure that you get not only the person at faults details but also any witness’s details that are at the scene. From the person at fault this should include name, address, vehicle registration, make, model, insurance details (name of the insurance company and policy number) and telephone contact number and email if possible.

Call the Guardia and inform them of the accident and again let them know where the accident is. Depending both on their availability and on the seriousness of the accident they may or may not attend but you must inform them. Make sure that you take down the name and number of the Garda who takes your call as they must take down the details of the accident and this is important in any car accident claim.

Most if not all mobile phones today have a very good digital camera so use the camera in your mobile phone to take pictures not only of the damage to the vehicles but also to their positions in the road. Once again this is important in any car accident claim. Do not let anyone move the vehicles until this is done.

You should always inform your own insurance company of the accident as soon as possible even if you feel it was not your own fault.

Under no circumstances should you admit liability or fault to any one at the scene of the car accident. Often when in shock from an accident we say things that we regret later.

When all the above has been done then you should choose an experienced and successful Personal Injury Solicitor to advise you on any personal injury claim for compensation for your injuries. You need to choose someone with the following characteristics.

They must be;

  1. Likeable
  2. A good communicator
  3. A sense of urgency
  4. Well recommended by family and friends
  5. A Solicitor that specialises in Personal Injury Claims only
  6. A proven track record over a period of time
  7. Flexible payment options

A good team of back up staff is essential

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Tuesday, January 9, 2018

Personal Injury solicitors or is it now a Beauty Personal Injury Solicitor?

With the ever-increasing beauty industry, such as treatments, operations, products, lasers and cosmetic procedures your everyday Personal injury Solicitor will be more than nonplussed and aside from some female Personal Injury Solicitors, would not have the slightest idea what a potential client was talking about. The technicalities seem to get more and more complex as the days go by.

Well it has just come to pass that we now have a Beauty Personal Injury Solicitor in the UK called Joanne Du Plessis. She has just issued a Press release;

“Joanne Du Plessis, a professional and experienced Personal Injury solicitor offering help and guidance in beauty injuries and other cosmetic injuries, knows all too well how physically and psychologically damaging it can be for someone to suffer from a hair injury or hair damage. As Joanne Du Plessis says, “I receive daily reports of injuries from distressed clients who have been the victim of injuries as a result of hair treatments, cosmetic treatments, laser operations, plastic surgery operations etc. Luckily for many, the effects are short lived but for some the injuries have been devastating and they are left with permanent disfigurement.”

Some of the Personal Injuries come from the negligence of the personnel giving the hair treatments, cosmetic treatments, laser operations, plastic surgery operations etc. Some of the Personal injuries are the result of faulty equipment and tools. Clearly only a Personal Injury Solicitor with specific skills in the area of Beauty and Cosmetics will be able to look into a personal injury claim for compensation for harm or injury will be able to help you.

Could this be the start of polarisation in the Personal Injury and Medical Negligence fields? As we can see from the story of Joanne Du Plessis there is a marrying of someone with legal knowledge of Personal injury and Medical Negligence with specific knowledge of products and services in a defined area.

Certainly, the whole area of Medical Negligence claims could benefit from this kind of polarisation. How many times has a Medical Negligence Solicitor taken on a case for Medical Negligence compensation only to find that when they have paid thousands of Euros for an expert opinion from a Medical professional that there is no case to answer? Already there are Medical Negligence Solicitors who specialise in;

  • A head injury
  • A birth injury
  • A brain injury

In the Personal Injury Solicitors area there are already Personal Injury solicitors that specialise in car accident or road traffic claims. Eventually they may subdivide again into Personal Injury Solicitors Motorbike accidents or Lorry accidents etc. In Dublin, Ireland there is a least one Personal Injury solicitor that specialises in compensation claims for accidents on Dublin Bus.

Certainly, there is some mileage in subdividing the area of Work Injuries and Work accidents as we become more high tech in the work place more knowledge is necessary than has your ordinary Personal Injury solicitor.

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Personal Injury Solicitors and No Win No Fee

How do you make a No Win No Fee Personal Injury claim for compensation for your injuries from an accident that was not your fault? Do Personal Injury Solicitors No Win No Fee grow on trees? And if not where and how do you find them?

Firstly, you need to find an “experienced” personal injury solicitor who has been in practice for some time and who has both a wealth of past experience of pursuing Personal Injury Claims for compensation for injuries and has offered their clients to take them on a No Win No Fee basis.

Naturally enough any Personal Injury Solicitor will have to carry out a risk assessment of your potential personal injury claim before deciding whether the merits of the personal injury claim are sufficiently strong for them to accept it on a No Win No Fee basis. Remember that with No Win No fee agreements that only if you win your claim will you pay your solicitor fees and costs. If you lose you pay nothing. So, any Personal Injury Solicitor is going to do due diligence on your claim before offering you a No Win No Fee agreement. No Win No Fee agreements can represent a significant proportion of any personal injury solicitor’s portfolio, so it is very important to them from a commercial point of view to ensure that the risks are properly assessed. Your choice should be a firm that has an excellent record of success and also that it aims to keep it that way! In some situations they will be able to make an immediate decision for you. In others, they may need to see a report on liability from an expert witness, such as a surveyor or an accountant, doctor, consultant or another kind of expert before they can make a decision.

Once they have agreed to take your personal injury claim on under a No Win No Fee basis you will only be responsible for their fees and costs if you win your case. And because the loser is normally required to contribute towards the winner’s legal fees you can expect to recover a good proportion of those fees and costs from your opponent.

Going the No Win No Fee route can be an excellent way in which to fund a personal injury claim for compensation for your injuries. It is important for you to avoid the common mistake of thinking that it means there will be no cost to you. Win or lose, you will have a liability for part of your overall costs. Therefore, potential claimants should seriously consider whether the claim is commercially viable from the outset.

Clearly what most people forget is that if you unfortunately lose your claim for personal injury then you may well become liable to pay the other side’s fees and costs. However, your Personal Injury Solicitor No Win No Fee should be able to fix you up with an inexpensive insurance policy to cover this eventuality.

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Personal Injury Solicitors in Dublin

There are many Solicitors firms in Dublin and they vary between sole practitioners to firms with partners running into the hundreds. Not all of them practice Personal Injury and or Medical negligence law but a good few of them do. So, what is the profile of a typical good Personal Injury Solicitor Dublin and or Medical Negligence Solicitor Dublin?

Of course, the first qualification that someone who wishes to practice law is to have a legal qualification that enables them to present themselves as a solicitor.

Then you will need someone that has plenty of experience in Personal injury and not just any old experience but the experience of winning more often than not.

You will then need someone who is a good listener and who is capable of empathy with prospective clients. Then you need to commence to ask questions.

First check out what are their qualifications the prospective personal injury solicitors has. Find out both their educational qualification and experience handling cases. Check if the Personal Injury Solicitor Dublin is better positioned to represent injured parties or defendants in general. If the Personal Injury Solicitor specialises in representing injured parties find out whether or not they specialise in particular types of accidents and injuries. All these are qualifications which make it easier in selecting an appropriate Personal Injury solicitor to help with your case for compensation for injuries and suffering.

The next question to ask the personal injury solicitor is in order to find out more about how the exact legal process functions. Even when you have found proper legal representation, you should endeavour to understand the various steps and time frames involved in handling your case. Seek as much information as possible concerning what the varying challenges are in order to anticipate difficulties and problems in your situation. Ask about what the various strategies that your Personal Injury Solicitor has put in place to deal with such matters. It is critical finding out the time frame your claim for compensation for your injuries is likely to take before successfully coming to its completion. All personal injury claims options should be worked out and put in the open right from the start for you to know and have confidence in them.

Another question to ask a personal injury solicitor before engaging their professional legal services is how much they cost. A skilled solicitor begins by evaluating your case and stating clearly what charges and expenses you can expect as the case progresses. Do they offer you possibilities and terms for payment and options like a No Win No Fee agreement? It is your fundamental right to have this information before engaging a given personal injury solicitor.

Some of the very best Personal Injury Solicitors Dublin are the ones that you hear about from friends and families is through word of mouth so ask around and see what your friends and family have to say. What have you got to lose? You might get the best around.

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No Win No Fee Medical Negligence

No Win No Fee Medical negligence refers to injuries and harms in treatment from the Medical profession

Every patient that is treated by a Medical Professional is entitled to receive what is known as a “Duty of Care”. A medical professional can be a Doctor, a Dentist, a Consultant, a Surgeon, a Nurse, a Technician, a Specialist or indeed anyone involved in the health care of patients.

“A Duty of Care” means that the medical professional will do their very best to look after and treat the patient correctly and in other words they will treat them to the best of their ability. When they do not perform a “Duty of Care” then there is a possibility of Medical Negligence occurring.

No Win No Fee Medical Negligence means that the Personal Injury solicitors who have taken on a possible case of a client taking a Medical Negligence claim for compensation have done so on the understanding that they will earn no fees and or costs unless the claim for compensation is won. If the claim for compensation due to Medical Negligence is lost, then the client will not pay their Personal Injury Solicitors their fees and costs. No Win No Fee agreements are sometimes known as No Win No Foal agreements or Contingency agreements.

Whereas No Win No Fee agreements are very common in Personal Injury cases for compensation for injuries suffered due to the negligence of a third party they are few and far between in Medical Negligence claims. Why you might ask is this the case? There are three major reasons for this;

  1. Firstly, Medical Negligence claims for compensation due to a lack of a duty of care can take much longer than a typical Personal Injury Claim for compensation. It is not unknown for Medical Negligence claims to go on for five years or more. Most personal Injury claims are settled within a two-year period.
  2. The costs involved in a No Win No Fee Medical Negligence claim can be considerably higher than a Personal Injury claim for compensation. It is usual in a Medical Negligence claim for the Medical Negligence Solicitors to get an expert medical opinion from a renowned medical expert before commencing the claim. The expert will more than likely be out of the jurisdiction and the cost of such an opinion may be in the £3000 to £5000 bracket. Your Medical Negligence Solicitor would have to be pretty certain of the claim for compensation before agreeing a No Win No Fee claim.
  3. Most of us including your Medical Negligence Solicitor have little or no medical knowledge. Time and time again the medical opinion will come back from the Medical expert saying that there is no case to answer of a lack of “Duty of Care”. To the lay person, the client and to the Medical Negligence solicitor it might have appeared to be a nailed-on claim. Yet the expert has said clearly no it is not. So, your Medical Negligence Solicitor is going to weigh up the facts very carefully before offering a No Win No fee Medical Negligence agreement!

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No Win No Foal meaning in Injury Claims

No Win No Foal is often used in a legal context to denote that the business being transacted will not attract fees or costs until there is a positive outcome. To some No Win No Foal is also known as a Contingency agreement or No Win No Fee agreement.

The legal context of No Win No Foal can be mainly analysed into tort cases and more specifically into the Personal Injury and Medical Negligence areas of the law. Typically, a Personal Injury Solicitor will offer to take on your case for personal injury compensation for an injury suffered in an accident when the fault was with a third party for no fee or costs unless the claim is won. If the personal injury claim is lost, then no fees or costs are due to the Personal Injury solicitors.

Some people applaud the idea of No Win No Foal agreements as it is away to put the Law in reach of those that are not capable of affording an expensive Personal Injury Solicitors. How many people suffer accidents and after they have taken care of their physical wellbeing they get stressed out by the thought of having to pay expensive fees and costs to their Personal Injury Solicitor to take out a Personal Injury claim for compensation. Well off or not so well off No Win No Foal agreements put the Personal Injury and Medical Negligence area of the law within reach of all.

However, there are those who believe that by helping people with a No Win No Foal agreement that you are encouraging people to make Personal Injury Claims that they would not normally have made. This No Win No Foal agreement they say encourages also fraudulent and inflated Personal Injury claims and that because of No Win No Foal insurance premiums will rise for everyone.

So, what do we believe in? The Law which is accessible to all regardless of their financial situation or a restricted market which is only for those who can afford it?

All solicitors in Ireland are regulated by the Law Society of Ireland. They are very strict about what Personal Injury Solicitors can put in their advertisements or in their websites. Anything that is considered to be inflammatory or sensationalist is strictly policed by the Law Society and is not allowed. A victim of this policy is No Win No Foal as it is considered by the Law Society as encouraging people who have been injured in an accident to make a personal injury claim for compensation. When you go and see a Personal Injury Solicitor there is nothing stopping them offering you a No Win No Foal deal to help you make a Personal Injury claim for compensation for your injuries or harm.

Many people find this to be wrong as when unfortunately, someone is injured in an accident through no fault of their own adding serious stress to that person about how to pay for a personal injury claim for compensation when No Win No Foal is available but hidden!

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No Win No Fee Solicitors and Airline Compensation Claims

Just recently there has been an interesting development in the UK in the claims by passengers against airlines and airports for compensation for the late departures of flights. Most people know that a No Win No Fee agreement is often used by Personal Injury solicitors and Medical Negligence Solicitors for claiming compensation for injuries and harm caused by a third party. No Win No Fee is often called a No Win No Foal or a Contingency agreement and means that you will not pay any fees or costs if you lose your case. You will only pay if you win and in many cases,those costs and fees are paid by the loser.

Well now No Win No Fee agreements are being offered to prospective clients who have suffered delays in their departing aircraft! One enterprising No Win No Fee solicitor with a national presence has just recently published a guide to UK airports and it can be loosely summarised as follows;

It starts by discussing the plethora of choices of airports that are available in the UK, there are big airports, there are small airports, there are local and there are regional airports. Clearly the bigger airports have a much larger choice of destinations, holiday packages but they are generally more hassle, more stress than the smaller airports. On top of that there are times of the year that are far busier than others and when airports are busy there is a greater chance of delays. So, prepare in advance for delays they say and get your contingency legal plans ready!

The Worst Months

It is not rocket science to realise that the really busy times for an airport when there are more people using it are the holiday months of July and August and the Christmas and Easter times followed closely by the school half terms. The No Win No Fee Personal injury solicitor also says that at Christmas and at the February half term there is a bigger risk of suffering from bad weather and consequently from delays.

Steer Clear of the Capital

Clearly the greatest choice of destinations is London as there are four major airports and several minor ones around the capital. However, the worst airport in the UK for delays is Gatwick with a delay factor of over 30% and in second place is Luton. One of the largest airports in the world Heathrow is down in 9th place for delays in the UK which makes it a good choice.

The Airline Plays a Part

The other major factor that you may have to question, according to the No Win No Fee Solicitors, is that of the airline you are flying with.  Sadly, while the many budget airlines may save you money up front they are notorious for their very poor organisation and strict legal minimum maintenance which can lead to more significant delays. If you are not clear about this talk to your No Win No Fee Personal Injury Solicitor.

Be Clear on Compensation

In order for you to be eligible for any compensation in the form of a cash pay-out the delay must have exceeded 3 hours.  Between 2 and 3 hours the airport should offer you meals and drinks etc.  There are strict guidelines on the amount that is paid out so check what you might be entitled to with your No Win No Fee solicitor.

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Personal Injury Solicitors in Dublin For Car Accidents

Personal injury solicitors in Dublin need to be highly skilled and experienced in dealing with all types of road traffic claims for compensation from an accident caused by a third party. What you need after suffering a personal injury from such an accident is a Car Accident Solicitor who has many years of successful experience in acting for people injured in motor vehicle accidents which include motorcycle accidents, car and lorry accidents, and bicycle and bus accidents.

You will need to choose a team of accredited specialists can ensure your car accident claim is prepared properly the first time by a professional firm of solicitors to ensure the best possible outcome for you.

Your personal injury solicitor will be able to explain to you what is a no win, no fee agreement which if applicable to you means that you only have to pay their legal fees if they win the case. Clearly you need to choose a firm that are successful over 90% of the time to maximise your accident claim.

A motor vehicle accident case does however have very strict time limits in relation to lodging and processing the claim. If you fail to comply with those time limits, then it could cause you some serious difficulty. If you have suffered an injury in a motor car vehicle accident, then you should after taking care of your physical injuries contact a car accident solicitor immediately to ensure you get the right advice which will protect your rights to a car accident claim.

When you suffer injury as a result of someone else’s negligence on our roads, it can be a devastating and financially crippling time in your life. Difficult insurance companies can make your life harder, not to mention the complex legal maze involved in looking after your own personal injury claim.

A Personal Injury Solicitor who prides themselves on ensuring this difficult time in your life is sorted quickly and with as minimal stress as possible to ensure both you can get back on with life and to put you back in financial control.

When you are injured in a car accident you need to know about your rights. You need peace of mind, so you can recover from your injuries. You need a Personal injury solicitor who specialises in car accident claims to give you affordable assistance.

They must be able to offer their clients total peace of mind on the way to a successful personal injury claim for compensation for the injury that you suffered.

Their policy should be to settle your claim as quickly and as advantageously as possible without the necessity of litigation. In a great majority of cases settlement is achieved by way of informal negotiations.

Sometimes it is simply impossible to avoid legal proceedings. If you have chosen well you will be represented by an experienced Car accident solicitor Dublin who will explain to you in a simple, easy to understand language your legal position and all your options.

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No Win No Fee and Costs with Personal Injury Claims

No Win No Fee and Costs with Personal Injury Claims

In a recent article in the UK Times Dr Anthony Barton discussed the growing need for a more equitable and fair system of compensation for Medical Negligence claims on the NHS which he claims are currently costing £1.6 billion and are mainly fuelled by the No Win No Fee deals.

He states that;

“The total NHS spends for clinical negligence last year was £1.6 billion, and the figure is forecast to double by 2021. This is serious and unsustainable. These costs are driven partly by the success of no win, no fee agreements. Privatised access to justice is available to all, at no cost to the taxpayer, free at the point of need, according to the merits of the case. Claimants benefit also from one-way costs shifting — they do not risk paying health service costs if they lose. Change is inevitable: the government will act.”

The current figure quoted is enormous and he is right to say that the UK government will act, but what will they do? It is a question that will also be asked by many governments in the Western world. The costs of Medical negligence claims are spiralling out of control all over the world.

On the one hand the Medical profession needs to have a viable self-checking system to control both its excesses and its errors. Clearly the whole system of both how health care is organised in the hospitals, clinics, the GP surgeries etc and how the practitioners perform their interventions, operations, treatments etc. It is fair to say that there are problems as the Medical Negligence cases are dramatically on the increase. Is it the fault of the way those practitioners are educated and trained? Is it the fault of the way the various organisations are run? Is it the overworking of staff to the point that fatigue becomes a factor? Or is it a combination of all of those factors?

So, to what extent do No Win No Fee agreements play in the very high figure of costs of £1.6 billion in claims? There are some who say that access to the Law should be available to everyone regardless of how deep their pockets are. They think that No Win No Fee agreements are the way to go as they take the financial barrier out of Medical Negligence claims. There are others that say that No Win No Fee agreements just add fuel to the fire of Medical Negligence claims and that they should be taken out of the equation completely.

Is there another way to go in solving the ongoing problem of the rising cost of Medical negligence claims?

  1. A set free procedure to be available to all. This would do away with No Win No Fee agreements.
  2. A type of claims adjuster who investigates the medical negligence claim for its validity
  3. Set fees to be paid to the Medical Negligence solicitors from both sides. An No success fee/s allowed
  4. Set levels of compensation with caps on the amounts awarded

Something it is clear has to be done but is it only to No Win No Fee agreements.

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