The Truth About Accidents and Compensation

You may take the view that accidents are just that, and that if you are the victim of one there is nothing you can do about it. Alternatively you might have got the impression from over exposed claims companies that any minor boo-boo is a ticket to riches. Neither is the case.

There are some very good reasons why the institution of compensation for personal injuries as the result of accidents exists. If a person is injured it can prove to be very costly for them. They may not be able to work, or perhaps they are saddled with bills for physiotherapy to get them back on their feet. Equally the existence of compensation payments means that there is an incentive to reduce risk and make the environment a safer place for everybody.

Not every accident will make a suitable case for compensation. This is a cold, heard indisputable fact, and anybody who tells you otherwise most certainly is not to be trusted. If you are thinking about making a compensation claim and there is not at least a modicum of restraint from your would-be legal representative, then they are probably not the sort of people that you want to find yourself dealing with. Anybody resposible taking on compensation claims will demand a high evidenciary standard.

The issue that is at the heart of whether you might succeed getting compensation for an accident is that of culpability. That is to say, whose fault was the accident? You need to be honest with yourself here. Take the common example of a trip or fall. If you hurt yourself falling over after you have gotten yourself blackout drunk, it is unlikely that anybody will consider your mishap to be anything other than your fault.

Where you have the accident is of critical importance. If you are hurt by tripping over a loose paving slab in a badly maintained street, then it is the body that is responsible for maintaining that street that would be liable. In most cases that would be the local council, however there are many privately owned and maintained streets, pedestrianised shopping areas and thoroughfares.

For an accident to be compensation worthy somebody has had to be negligent. Unless it can be shown that your accident could have been avoided by ‘reasonable precautions’ being taken then there is no chance of you getting a payout. Those in charge of places where the public are have what is known as a ‘duty of care’ to protect the people that will be in that area. How far they will be expected to go in keeping people safe will depend on a lot of different factors, so it can be worth consulting an expert if you have any doubts.

It may sound obvious, but for a personal injury claim not to be kicked out of court their needs to be provable injury. This is why it is important to go and see your doctor straight away if you have an accident, whether you think you need it or not, if problems emerge later and you did not take this step it may be hard to prove the cause of the injuries.

There are many instances where compensation can be got for an accident, but many were it cannot. If you are to trust anyone representing you in these matters they must be probing for answers about the exact circumstances.


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