Understanding “no Win No Fee” for Road Traffic Accident Claims

With road traffic accident claims there is always a dispute about who is to blame. To ensure that you win your road traffic accident claim it is very important you can prove that the accident was not your own fault. This can only be calculated on how much evidence the claiming party is able to present. As soon as the accident happens you need to write down the names, addresses of all parties evolved and witnesses. As soon as you can you should write down the description of the accident with a diagram and keep this safe. You will be asked to produce this when you put in a compensation claim for the accident. Trying to remember finer details weeks after the event will be tricky, so you should take notes as soon as possible while the details are fresh in your mind.

Some accident claim cases can be resolved though mediation without the need to go to court, this is true of a case where a lot of evidence is strong enough and the party believes they stand no chance. Only 10% of cases go to court which is why you can use a solicitor from anywhere in the country to work for you. Some cases where the accident is very serious a claim for compensation is far better served going to courts as the award may be larger and you will stand a more of a chance of a better pay out.

It is possible to spend months or years trying to get the responsible party to compensate you. You may also be concerned about how to pay for the fees involved. “Conditional fee agreements” or better known as the “no win no fee” agreements were introduced in 1995 when legal aid was still available for personal injury case. The reason it was introduced was to give the people with incomes above legal aid eligibility limits the chance to fund personal injury litigation. People whose income was just about the limit were still finding it difficult to pay for a solicitor. This “no win no fee” agreement eventually became available to fund most civil cases and the consequence of this was that legal aid was abolished 2000. Contrary to popular belief there has not been a compensation boom, in fact the number of claims has dropped since this time.

With pure no win no fee arrangements; no winning compensation is paid to the winner’s lawyer. The winner leaves the case with their entire award intact. You should however before signing on the dotted line check that there are no ‘hidden fees’.

Claiming compensation for personal injury is not a lottery win. They should only be pursued when an accident occurs which caused pain and suffering. You will not be able to claim for near misses or for personal injuries that doesn’t really affect your life. Also just because you have been injured does not necessarily mean you will definitely get accident compensations no matter how good your injury solicitor might be. For a compensation claim to be successful you will need evidence from an injury specialist such as a doctor for the claim to even begin the process.