Personal Injury Compensation Claims

When making an enquiry about no win no fee personal injury claims people generally have a few simple questions. Firstly, they may want to know if they are eligible to make a compensation claim. Secondly, if so, whether they can do so on a no win no fee basis and thirdly, how much they could claim. In this guide, we address the third of these questions and look at how much people could claim using a comprehensive no win no fee personal injury claims calculator.

Each of the accident claims guides on our site includes a personal injury claims calculator which allows you to see examples of what you could be eligible to claim in different circumstances. With that being said, calculating how much compensation a claimant may be eligible to claim can be a complex process. In many cases, people are not just awarded compensation (or damages as it may also be referred to) for an injury, but also for other factors – such as costs.

This guide sets out to explain how no win no fee calculators work. We will look at different circumstances in which people need to claim compensation. We look at what the difference is between general damages and special damages and how they may be calculated. We also show how your unique circumstances, such as the nature and severity of your injury factor into calculating your settlement.

In this guide, we have also included a comprehensive no win no fee personal injury claims calculator. Before deciding to make a personal injury claim and for a more accurate assessment of your individual case, we recommend discussing your claim with a personal injury solicitor. To find out how our panel of personal injury solicitors could help you, talk to us today.

Contents

A Guide To Personal Injury Claims

If you are reading this guide, you probably wish to learn more about how personal injury claims calculators work and whether online no win no fee calculators can be helpful in learning how much compensation you could claim. As we shall see in this guide, the amount of compensation someone could claim could vary substantially from injury to injury, depending on which are more or less severe.

“Personal injury” and “personal injury claims” are umbrella terms. They are used when discussing a wide variety of different types of accidents and injuries, such as road traffic accidents, injuries at work, or slips and falls. As the circumstances in which these accidents take place and the injuries caused can significantly vary, so may the amount of compensation which could be claimed.

This is people may need to consult a no win no fee calculator to see what their claim could be worth. They are useful in helping people to quickly see what they could be able to claim in compensation by looking at upper and lower settlement bands for different injuries. At the same time, we should note that a personal injury claims calculator is a generic tool and it cannot tell you how much your specific case may be worth. Each claim may be slightly different and therefore the amount awarded for it may similarly be different. We should also note that the calculator does not take account of what may be awarded for special damages.

How much people could be awarded for different types and category of injury are set by the Judicial College guidelines. You can find out more about these by following the link at the bottom of this article.

What Are Personal Injury Claims?

Personal injury claims cover a very wide range of circumstances. In essence, they compensate people if they have suffered a physical or psychological injury or illness which was caused by the negligence of another person. According to the Department of Work and Pensions Compensation Recovery Unit, there are hundreds of thousands of personal injury claims registered each year.

There are numerous different types of personal injury claim which could be made on a no win no fee basis. These may include:

Claims For Injuries At Work

There are lots of different ways in which an accident in the workplace could happen. In some circumstances and injury at work could be caused by an employer. This may be from employers not following health and safety law correctly or may not have issued the right training or personal protective equipment. In other circumstances, an injury could have been caused by a fellow employee not paying due care and attention or because they were not properly trained. Suffering an injury at work could leave you facing serious and lasting consequences.

It is highly important that your employer carries out any necessary health and safety checks or audits and acts on recommendations. You can learn more about health and safety in the workplace here.

Claims For Slips, Trips And Falls

Whether in the workplace, shopping or generally out in the street, most slip, trip and fall accidents are some of the most common types of accident there is. Slip, trip and fall accidents could happen either on public land (where a public liability claim could be made) or on a private property (where they could claim under the Occupiers’ Liability Act).

People may slip on a wet floor in a supermarket or restaurant which has neither been signposted or cleaned up. Trips could happen because of a loose floorboard or a broken stair. Trips may commonly happen because pavements have not been fixed where broken. In order to be able to claim for injuries caused by tripping on a pavement, there is a minimum level of defect in the pavement which must be in place. It is accepted that all pavements may have some level of defect and there should be an uplift of an inch in order to make a claim.

Find out more about this type of claim in our dedicated guide which includes a personal injury claims calculator.

Claims For Road Traffic Accidents

The category of a road traffic accident could encompass any accident on the road. It may involve any private or public vehicle, from cars and taxis to lorries or buses. In general, road traffic accidents involve collisions between more than one vehicle, or a vehicle and pedestrian. In other circumstances, a vehicle may collide with obstacles or hazards in the road, such as debris.

If the road traffic accident was not the fault of the injured party they may be able to claim compensation by using a personal injury lawyer.

Find out more about car accident claims in this guide.

Claims For Whiplash Injuries

Whiplash is a type of injury primarily affecting the neck, but also affecting the shoulders, upper back or even arms. It is often caused by sharp impacts in road traffic accidents but could be caused by any accident which causes the head to sharply jolt forwards and back. This action overstretches and damages the tendons and ligaments in the neck. If the movement is very harsh then the vertebrae in the neck and upper spine could be disrupted and damaged.

At the bottom of this guide, you can find a link to our whiplash claims guide.

Claims For Accidents On Holiday

If you have been involved in an accident or have become sick whilst on a holiday you may be able to claim compensation. Being able to claim for an accident on an overseas holiday may be more complex than doing so in the UK. Depending on who the responsible party is, you may have to make your claim through other countries legal systems.

If you booked your trip as a package holiday which includes flights, hotels, food, airport transfers and excursions or activities, all of these different parts may be covered by the duty of care the package holiday company owes you.

Claims For Medical Negligence

Medical negligence or ‘malpractice’ refers to harmful mistakes which have been made by medical practitioners such as doctors, dentists or nurses, as well as errors by pharmacists or those engaged in secondary care, such as care homes. In fact, the term may be used in a broad way to look at any harmful mistakes made by the health industry causing avoidable harm to patients.

Acts or omissions by healthcare professionals may be termed negligence or malpractice if this means that the standard of care dispensed is below expected standards and if the patients’ health is negatively affected as a result. These negative effects may be physical or even psychological

Claims For Criminal Injuries

If you were harmed by a criminal assault, through abuse or through being the victim of another criminal act, you could be able to make a criminal injury claim. Such claims may be made through the Criminal Injury Compensation Authority, often known as the CICA. This is a board which was set up and funded by the government and provides a route to compensation for victims of criminal injuries. It is funded by the government so that in cases where the perpetrator of the violent act has not been caught or convicted, or where they lack funds to pay compensation, the victim may still be compensated.

The compensation calculator amounts awarded may be different in each individual case of criminal injuries as the Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority sets its own guidelines for amounts of compensation which should be paid out.

How Much You Could Claim? – Calculating General Damages

Whether in cases of medical negligence, for assaults, accidents on holiday or an injury at work, the bulk of compensation awarded will be for general damages. This is the aspect of a settlement which is displayed in our no win no fee personal injury claims calculator.

General damages are awarded for the injury which has been sustained by the victim. They take into account the level of pain and suffering which has been caused to the claimant. Of course, it should be noted that calculating how much suffering or pain you have experienced could be difficult.

There are specific recommendations for each type of injury sustained. Within this, there are also different degrees of compensation for different degrees of severity. Your solicitor and that of the defendant will both use medical evidence obtained early in your claim to determine which category and severity your injury will fall into.

What Else Could You Be Compensated For – Special Damages

In the section above we looked at what general damages are and in the no win no fee claim calculator we also provided examples of how much compensation you could claim for different injuries. Next, we shall look at other types of compensation you could claim.

Special damages refer to compensation which is paid to the victim for additional costs or losses that have been directly caused by the accident and injury suffered. This compensation is not awarded for the claimant to make any kind of profit or gain from it, but it is awarded to (as far as it is possible to do so) place the victim back in the same circumstances as they were prior to the accident and injury taking place.

Special damages can take a variety of different costs, expenses or losses into account. They may account both for payments already made and projected future costs. These may include:

  • Medical care and expenses. This bracket may include the costs of medical treatment, medication and aftercare – such as any necessary care in the home or rehabilitation.
  • Adaptations to your home or your vehicle. If you have been left with a disability and require modifications to be made to your home, the costs of this may be reclaimed in a settlement.
  • Loss of earnings. If your income or ability to work has been affected and you have lost money, you may receive compensation for this as well

You may have had to meet other costs as a direct result of your injury or accidents. Please make sure that you tell your personal injury lawyer about any expenses related to your claim.

How Are Injury Claims Calculated?

When either solicitors or the courts come to look at your case and value your claim, they will seek to award you a compensatory settlement that is proportional to the type and level of injury which you have suffered. In general, this means that the more severe your injury and the greater the amount of financial difficulty you face, the greater the amount you may be awarded in damages.

Your personal injury lawyer or solicitor will look at two factors in estimating how much you will be eligible to claim. These are:

a) How severe the impact of the injury was for you and

b) What effect it has had on your life.

For personal injury calculator free advice, please get in touch with our team.

No Win No Fee Personal Injury Claim Time Limits

If you have been injured in an accident which was not your fault and intend to make a compensation claim, you should be aware that there is a personal injury claims time limit which will apply to your claim. Put simply, what this means is that you must make your claim within this personal injury claims time limit before your claim is time-barred (meaning you are unable to start a claim).

If you intend to make a personal injury claim through a no win no fee agreement (or without such an agreement) you generally have three years in which to claim compensation. This three year period may begin either at the time that the accident took place if your injury was immediate or from the date you became aware of the illness or injury.

Exceptions To The Personal Injury Claims Time Limit

There are various exceptions to the personal injury claims time limit. For example, if your accident has left you with serious brain damage and you are unable to make a claim on your own behalf, a claim may be made either by you if you recover or another person at any point in your life.

If a child is injured they have from the date of the accident taking place (or becoming aware of the injury) until their eighteenth birthday in which a suitable adult could claim compensation on their behalf. If no claim has been made at this point, the victim then has three years in which to claim.

How Do I Start A No Win No Fee Personal Injury Claim?

Starting a personal injury claim may be easier than you think. Your first step is to choose a solicitor to help advise you of your eligibility to claim compensation and how to do so. You could be connected to an experienced solicitor by getting in contact with No Win No Fee Expert.

When you first contact a solicitor they may ask you a variety of questions about what happened to you, how your accident happened and what injury or illness you sustained. You may also be asked about who you think is responsible for your accident and injuries. They may ask you to undergo a medical examination and ask what treatment you have already undergone.

Getting In Touch With No Win No Fee Expert

If after reading this guide to using a no win no fee personal injury claims calculator you feel you would like to find out more about how to make a claim or are ready to begin your case, you can contact No Win No Fee Expert.

When you call us on 0800 073 8802, our team will be on hand to listen to what happened to you and to discuss your options to make a claim with a no win no fee solicitor. We can work with you to help you make a successful personal injury claim.

Get in contact with No Win No Fee Expert by dialling the number above or making an enquiry online. Don’t delay, find out exactly how much you could claim through our personal injury calculator and free advice from our experts.

No Win No Fee Claims Guides

This guide has provided information relevant to how compensation settlements are calculated in the case of no win no fee personal injury claims. Below, we have also included further resources located on our site and at trusted third-party sites.

No Win No Fee Solicitors
Now you know more about how claims are calculated, you can also learn more about how no win no fee solicitors could help you.

Whiplash Injury Claims
Whiplash is one of the most common types of injury sustained in road traffic accidents and a common reason for making a personal injury claim. Find out when and how to claim in this guide.

Medical Negligence Claims
Medical negligence or malpractice could have devastating consequences for victims. Find out how to make a no win no fee personal injury claim in this guide.

The following external resources both provide information on the Judicial College, the body determining how much compensation may be awarded for different types of injury.

Judiciary UK – Judicial College

UK Government Judicial Office