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In order to make a successful claim for your accident, there are certain things we have to establish.
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| Am I really injured? |
If you suffer injuries in a road accident, whether as a driver, passenger, cyclist or pedestrian, you may be
entitled to compensation. Sometimes injuries can take time to develop. The important thing is to seek advice as soon as
an injury becomes clear. No two cases are identical so rather than rely on stories from others of what you can claim,
contact BBH so that we can help you assess your chances of success.
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| Whose fault was it? |
In order to make a successful claim for compensation, it has to be proven that someone was to blame for the accident.
It may be another driver or it may be the driver of the vehicle in which you were a passenger.
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| Who pays in the end? |
Many people worry about suing a friend or a relative if they were driving at the time of the accident. The
first thing to be reassured about is that very few cases ever reach court, most are settled before then. Secondly,
although someone will be named as being at fault, it is in fact an insurance company who will pay any compensation.
If a driver is not insured and even in hit-and-run cases, a claim can still be made against the Motor Insurers'
Bureau (MIB).
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| But what if it was partly my fault? |
You may still have a valid claim if we can prove someone else was also partly at fault. In these circumstances,
any compensation awarded will be reduced according to the percentage you are judged to have been to blame. This is
known as "contributory negligence". For example if you are 75% to blame you will actually receive 25p out of every £1
awarded. You could receive less compensation if you failed to wear a seatbelt or if you knew the driver of the vehicle
you were travelling in had been drinking.
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| What can I claim? |
Compensation is awarded for pain, suffering and loss of amenity - that is your inability to do things that you
could do before the accident. This award is based on specialist medical evidence which we will arrange to obtain for you.
Compensation is also paid for the financial losses we can prove you have suffered as a direct result of the accident,
such as loss of earnings. It can also extend to the cost of having to pay someone else to do jobs you may no longer
be able to carry out around the home such as decorating, DIY, gardening or car maintenance.
Travel expenses to and from hospital can be claimed for you and any relatives visiting you as well as medication costs.
If you incur travel expenses because you are unable to drive or your vehicle is damaged we will claim these costs. We can even
claim for the inconvenience due to the "loss of use" of your vehicle when it is off the road for repairs or while you are sorting
out a replacement.
The aim of a losses and expenses claim is to put you back into a position financially as if the accident had never
occurred. You should not be out of pocket.
The key to any expenses claim is receipts. Keep an envelope somewhere in your home and put all relevant receipts in there to give
to us later.
You are expected to keep all these types of claims to a minimum. Ultimately, the court will decide whether your claims
are reasonable.
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| What will BBH do? |
If you instruct us to act for you we will gather evidence and then advise whether court
proceedings should be taken against the driver. The driver's insurers will appoint a solicitor to represent them.
We will prepare the case for trial, although the vast majority of cases are settled before this stage. The other
driver's insurers may try to negotiate a settlement and we will advise you whether this should be accepted or not.
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| What if the other driver is not insured or fails to stop? |
All motor insurers contribute funds to a body known as the Motor Insurers' Bureau (MIB), which deals with claims
for injury compensation when the driver at fault is not insured. The MIB will help if you are injured by a hit-and-run
driver. It will also deal with claims for damage to property and repairs to vehicles. These claims are subject to certain
conditions and excesses and fault still has to be proven.
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