If you’ve suffered an injury in the last three years that wasn’t your fault, our expert solicitors can help you obtain justice with a compensation claim.
A personal injury claim is the legal term used for an injury, accident or illness that has been caused or made worse because of someone else’s negligence.
The process involves the recovery of compensation from the responsible party, usually through their insurance company.
Our panel of personal injury solicitors will usually undertake the work based on a no win no fee* agreement, also referred to as a CFA (conditional fee agreement). There may be some circumstances where a no win no fee* agreement is not available or suitable for your needs and our team will be able to offer further guidance.
Typically, you can start an injury claim when you, or a loved one, has been injured in any kind of accident that:
Our expert team have many years of experience and will be able to help guide you through this complex area of law.
We offer free, impartial guidance and our expert panel of solicitors are here to support you through the whole process of making a claim.
If you would like to speak to us, we are available 24/7 on 0808 231 6676
There are many types of personal injury we can help with, including:
In short, yes. You normally have three years from when you first suffered the injury, or when you were diagnosed subject to the individual circumstances of your case.
Regardless of where you are in the three-year time limit, you can call one of our expert team on 08005677866 and get advice specific to your situation.
Some of the exceptions to the three-year limit are:
All circumstances are different, however, if you have suffered or have been injured after an accident or incident which was caused by somebody else's neglect and your claim is within the time frames listed above, then you are likely to have grounds to make a claim.
If you are unsure, or would like to start a claim of your own, you can speak to one of our team on 08005677866.
They will offer guidance based on the details you provide, even if you think that your injuries are not serious, or if you are still receiving treatment for an old injury we may still be able to help. We won't rush you into making a decision and only when you are ready will we proceed with formalising your claim.
Once our team have spoken to you, if we feel you have the grounds for making a claim we will introduce you to one of our specialist personal injury solicitors to take the claim forward.
Take a look at our compensation calculator to see how much your claim could be worth.
The most recent figures published by the Ministry of Justice show that there are over 1 million personal injury claims made every year (pdf), with the majority of these being motor and RTA (road traffic accident) related. While not all of these claims are successful, the majority of claims are proven to be a result of third party negligence and the injured party has a right to compensation.
Making a personal injury claim may seem daunting, but our claims team and panel of specialist personal injury solicitors can help to simplify the process. First4Lawyers offer a free initial consultation over the phone and will be able to tell you if we feel you have a viable claim.
If you want to proceed, we will then pass you on to one of our expert personal injury solicitors who will use their professional knowledge to guide you through the claims process, while keeping your best interests at heart to ensure you get the right and fair result from your claim.
Once First4Lawyers has accepted your claim and passed you on to the right solicitor for your case, they will set out the details of your injury and the circumstances in which it happened and build a case for you. You may be required to speak to an expert to support the claim, however, your solicitor will organise this for you.
In most cases the third party must reply within a fixed period and they must either accept or deny liability for the injury you sustained. If they accept liability, your solicitor will attempt to settle the claim and you will be kept informed of any offers made. If they deny liability then your solicitor will inform you of this and go through the next steps.
While your solicitor is communicating with the defendant, they will talk to you about the amount of compensation they believe the claim is worth, they will guide you through any offers made and whether they recommend making an 'offer to settle' for that amount (known as a 'Part 36 offer').
If you are not able, or do not want to, settle out of court your solicitor will advise you on whether to start legal action and what that would entail. If the defendant has said that they are not liable for paying you compensation, your solicitor may advise going to court to challenge this and seek an award in your favour.
Personal injury solicitors will usually undertake the work based on a no win no fee* agreement, also referred to as a CFA (conditional fee agreement). There may be some circumstances where a no win no fee* agreement is not available or suitable for your needs and our team will be able to offer further guidance.
Sometimes a solicitor is unable to take your case on a no win no fee* basis, but these occasions are rare. Your solicitor will discuss all funding options before proceeding so that everything is clear right from the start.
Our panel of solicitors will help, guide and advise you during the process of making a claim. They will generally take care of all the details that will be needed throughout the process.
Detailed and accurate records will help your solicitor progress your claim when it comes to negotiations with the party responsible for your accident. The specialist solicitor we introduce you to would like to know as much of the following as possible but don’t worry if you don’t have this to hand as they will work with you to get whatever information they might need to pursue:
Everybody recovers from injuries in different ways and at different speeds. Taking photos and recording your symptoms as you recover may help identify the seriousness of your injuries. Good quality close-up images are very helpful – especially if you’ve suffered a facial injury. If the injuries are in a hard to reach place and you feel comfortable, you could ask a trusted friend or a family member to help you out.
It’s also very useful to get statements from witnesses or friends and family after the accident, particularly if they’ve helped you recover or get about while you’ve been injured.
As your compensation claim progresses, it’s likely you’ll be asked for specific dates relating to your accident. If you haven’t jotted down the key dates and times already, it’s a good idea to get them down as soon as you can so they’re ready to hand when your personal injury solicitor needs them.
You might even want to put everything in a folder so that you have all your documentation together in one place. Letters and documents that relate to your accident and injury will almost certainly help add the extra details needed, so please do keep any relevant correspondence somewhere safe.