What to Expect in a Personal Injury Claim

Here at Jordans Solicitors, we understand that many people have never made a claim for personal injury before and the process can be daunting if you don’t know what to expect. Below is a brief overview of the steps involved in making a claim.

Claim Notification:

Once you have instructed Jordans Solicitors to act on your behalf and signed the relevant papers, your claim will be notified to the negligent party, also known as the Defendant, by way of either a Claim Notification Form or a Letter of Claim.

Once the claim has been notified to the Defendant, they will have a period of time to respond on liability. How long the Defendant has to respond depends on the type of claim you are making.

Liability:

When the Defendant responds to your claim, they are expected to tell us whether they admit responsibility for your accident or not. This is referred to as ‘liability’.

If liability is admitted, your claim can move on to the next stage.

If liability is not admitted, Jordans will consider the Defendant’s reasons for this and if necessary, make further investigations. This may involve obtaining police reports, CCTV or witness statements.

Once we are satisfied that the claim has reasonable prospects of success or once we have secured an admission of liability, we will move to the next stage of your claim.

Medical Evidence:

At this stage of the claim, we will have already obtained copies of your medical records from your GP and if relevant, your hospital to support that you sustained an injury.

Your medical records will then be sent to an independent medical expert who will be asked to arrange an appointment with you to discuss your injuries in more detail.

The expert will then prepare a report for us detailing your injuries and if appropriate, make further recommendations for treatment or additional investigations in order for them to finalise their opinion.

Medical evidence is important for both Jordans and any Defendant to consider the severity of an injury and determine the claim’s value.

Negotiations/Settlement:

Once all medical evidence is finalised, it can be disclosed to the Defendant and negotiations can take place to reach an agreed settlement sum.

If negotiations are successful, the payments will be made by the Defendant and that will bring an end to the claim.

If you have had an accident and would like to discuss whether you can make a personal injury claim, you can contact Jordans on 01924 387110 for a free consultation or request a call back.