How Long Does the Road Traffic Accident Compensation Process Take?

For complex cases involving serious injuries, it can take years for the whole process to be completed. This could be due to ongoing treatment, investigations, arguing over liability and damages, or even court delays. If a child is involved, they will need someone to bring their claim on their behalf, known as a Litigation Friend. This can also slow the case down.

What is the process?

If you’ve been injured in a road traffic accident you may be entitled to compensation for your losses. This can include medical expenses, lost income and property damage. In addition, a successful claim can also help compensate for the impact on your quality of life and your emotional well-being.

When you file a claim for damages, you must do so within three years of the accident. Moreover, you must speak to a qualified lawyer as soon as possible. This is to ensure that your case does not run afoul of the state’s statute of limitations.

The first step in the process is gathering evidence to prove that you have a valid claim. This includes contacting any witnesses and taking photos of the scene of the accident. Your lawyer can then use this information to establish the cause of the crash.

It’s also important to get prompt medical treatment for your injuries. This will create medical records that clearly link your injuries to the crash and will help your attorney get you the highest possible settlement amount.

Proving liability

If there are any neutral witnesses, try to speak to them and ask them to write down what they saw. Witness statements can be powerful evidence and often make the difference between winning and losing a car accident case. Insurance adjusters and judges tend to find neutral witnesses more credible than those who are directly involved in the accident.

Your lawyer will need to prove that the other driver owed you a duty of care and they breached this duty in some way. They must then show that this breach caused the accident and that it led to your injuries. They will also need to demonstrate that these injuries have had a serious impact on your life. This will require medical evaluations, expense documentation such as receipts and documents relating to any lost work and non-economic damages.

Once your lawyer has gathered all this evidence, they will submit it to the Defendants along with a demand letter. This will usually take around 4-6 weeks to receive a response. If they are unable to reach an agreement, the lawyers will file a lawsuit and serve it on the Defendants.

Gathering evidence

At the scene of a car accident, it is critical to collect evidence as much as possible. This could include witness contact information, physical injury identifiers (such as bruises, cuts and burns), pictures of the crash scene and any damages you have sustained.

It is also important to report the crash to law enforcement, so they can conduct an initial investigation and file a police report. This is an essential piece of evidence because it contains the officer’s assessment of who caused the crash.

Witnesses are another crucial piece of evidence because they can help support your claim. Get their names and contact information so your lawyer can reach out to them later for statements or depositions. If you are able to, try to talk to eyewitnesses at the scene of the accident before they leave. This will refresh their memories of the incident and may strengthen your case.

Injured people also need to gather medical bills and other records specific to their injuries and treatment. These documents will help your lawyer prove the extent of your damages in a court of law.

Negotiating a settlement

Once they have a full picture of your injuries, an insurance company will issue an initial settlement offer. This may seem tempting but it often represents a low percentage of what you deserve in compensation.

You should never accept an initial settlement offer without first having it looked at by a lawyer. They can often help you to negotiate and get a fair amount of compensation for your injury claims.

Insurance companies are notorious for monitoring victims’ social media accounts and following them around in order to detect signs that they are not really injured. If you go through a solicitor then they will be experienced in dealing with these kinds of tactics.

If you decide to pursue a claim on a No Win No Fee basis then you will only pay your solicitor if they are successful in getting you compensation. This will be set out in a legally binding agreement known as a Conditional Fee Agreement (CFA). This means that you will not have to pay any upfront costs or have any legal fees deducted from your compensation.

Going to court

The vast majority of road traffic accident compensation claims are settled without the need to go to court. However, if the claimant’s injuries are severe or the other driver refuses to accept liability for the crash, a lawsuit may be necessary.

A lawsuit can take between several months and a year to complete, assuming there are no appeals. It will also take time for your attorney to gather and review the evidence in your case. This can include your medical records and treatment, property damage estimates, lost wages, out-of-pocket expenses and more.

Having multiple defendants involved in the claim can slow things down too, especially if they’re denying fault or disputing how much compensation you should receive for your injuries and losses. Additionally, drivers who flee the scene can significantly slow down a lawsuit until their identity is discovered.

As time passes, physical evidence can be washed away or overwritten, witnesses may forget what they saw and other issues can arise that could further delay your settlement. This is why it’s important to get started on your claim right away after the accident occurs.