All You Need To Know About Road Traffic Accident Claims

Are you struggling to find information on road traffic accident claims? Are you confused about the legal jargon and don’t know where to turn? This guide can help you. It offers a clear breakdown of the process and provides you with the information you need to proceed.

A guide on making a road traffic accident claim

Our advisors are on hand 24/7 to offer you free legal advice, assistance and answer any questions you may have. You can get in touch by calling the number at the top of the page, contacting us via our website or using the live chat feature.

Choose A Section

Could I Claim Compensation For A Road Traffic Accident?
Examples Of Road Accident Scenarios
How Long After A Road Accident Could I Claim?
Estimating Compensation After A Road Traffic Accident
What Are The Key Aspects Of A No Win No Fee Agreement?
Further Information About Road Traffic Accident Claims

Could I Claim Compensation For A Road Traffic Accident?

If you have been hurt in a road traffic accident, and it was the other road user’s fault, you could make a claim for compensation.

Road traffic accidents can happen to every type of road user. It is important to establish who is at fault for the accident. The Road Traffic Act 1988 relates to driving offences and covers how certain road users should use the roads.

Official RTA Statistics

Road traffic accident statistics are recorded by the Department for Transport. They provide statistics for Great Britain. In the year ending June 2021, for example, there were an estimated 1,390 reported deaths. There were 119,850 casualties in a range of severities. This was a 9% decrease from the previous year ending June 2020.

Examples Of Road Accident Scenarios

The Highway Code is a part of the education of all road users. It sets out the rules and regulations as well as a duty of care regarding the safety of other road users.

The Highway Code isn’t a formal piece of legislation but it is a collection of regulations that all road users should follow. When reading through The Highway Code, you may notice that some parts have the words ‘MUST/MUST NOT’. Any of the rules with these words are a legal requirement and breaking them could result in a fine or points on your licence.

If the rules that are set out in The Highway Code are broken then it could lead to accidents. An example of this is if the driver of a vehicle is distracted by using their phone, making a wrong turn and accidentally colliding with a lamp post. This is known as a single car accident. Other examples are rear-end collisions, head-on collisions and side-impact collisions.

How Long After A Road Accident Could I Claim?

For all road traffic accident claims there is a time limit of generally 3 years. This is set out by the Limitation Act 1980. There are exceptions to this rule.

If you are making a claim on behalf of a child who has been injured, then you would be that child’s litigation friend. This means that you would be responsible for the claim. If the child turns 18 during the claim process, then the responsibility will pass on to them. Alternatively, if nobody claimed on your behalf as a child, then you would have 3 years to start a claim from the date of your 18th birthday.
If the claimant isn’t mentally capable of making a claim for themselves, then there is no time limit. You could make a claim on their behalf as a litigation friend. This changes if the person regains the mental capacity to claim. They’d have 3 years to start a claim from the date of recovery.

If you have suffered an injury in a road traffic accident, then it is vital that you seek out the appropriate medical attention. Once you are able or well enough, you can then begin the claim process.

It is a process that involves working out which party is responsible for the injury, and then gathering evidence. This evidence could reinforce your claim, making it as strong as possible.

The types of evidence you could use include:

Photos of the injuries
Photos of the accident site
Witness statements
Dash Cam footage

It isn’t mandatory, but it could be beneficial to you to get legal advice while you are preparing to claim. This can clear any doubts you may be feeling. Furthermore, it can also help you understand the legal requirements you may have to go through.

For any further advice, don’t hesitate to contact us. Our advisors are available to help 24/7 and can be reached via our live chat feature.

Estimating Compensation After A Road Traffic Accident

When estimating the amount of compensation for a personal injury, the Judicial College publishes a set of guidelines that solicitors could use when valuing a claim. These guidelines illustrate the different types of injuries, their severity and the potential bracket of compensation those injuries could fall under.

Injuries from road traffic accidents	How much?	Description
Back Injuries: Severe (ii)	£69,600 to £82,980	For cases in this bracket, there needs to be special features such as nerve root damage, impaired mobility, unsightly scarring or impaired bladder and bowel function.
Back Injuries: Moderate (i)	£11,730 to £26,050	For cases in this bracket, a disturbance of ligaments and muscles giving rise to backache, soft tissue injuries resulting in the prolonged acceleration of a pre-existing back condition.
Back Injuries: Minor (ii)	£2,300 to £7,410	For cases in this bracket, a full recovery takes place without any surgery between three months and two years.
Neck Injuries: Severe (ii)	£61,710 to £122,860	For cases in this bracket, injuries usually involve serious fractures or damage to discs in the cervical spine that give rise to disabilities.
Neck Injuries: Minor (i)	£4,080 to £7,410	For cases in this bracket, a full recovery takes place within a period of approximately one to two years. It also applies to short-term exacerbation injuries.
Shoulder Injuries: Moderate	£7,410 to £11,980	Cases in this bracket consist of a frozen shoulder with limited movement, discomfort with symptoms continuing for approximately two years.
Shoulder Injuries: Serious	£11,980 to £18,020	For cases in this bracket, there needs to be a dislocation of the shoulder and damage to the lower part of the network of nerves that connect the spinal cord to arms and hands, known as the brachial plexus.
Shoulder Injuries: Severe	£18,020 to £45,070	For cases in this bracket, there needs to be damage to the brachial plexus resulting in a significant disability.
Neck Injuries: Severe (iii)	£42,680 to £52,540	For cases in this bracket, injuries include dislocations, severe fractures, damage to soft tissue or ruptured tendons that lead to chronic conditions. The precise award depends on the length of time during which the most serious symptoms are improved.
Neck Injuries: Moderate (i)	£23,460 to £36,120	For cases in this bracket, injuries such as fractures or dislocation which cause severe immediate symptoms. Symptoms include chronic conditions, impaired function and limitation of activities.

General damages is the term used for compensation paid out for any pain, suffering and loss of amenity arising out of the injuries that were sustained in an accident caused by someone else’s negligence. This may be physical and psychological.

In order to fully understand the severity of your injuries, you may be invited to attend a medical assessment as a part of the process. This is where an independent medical professional would assess your injuries and then make a report of their findings.

Special damages is the term used to refer to any financial losses that have been incurred as a direct result of the accident. However, these damages are conditional and you would need evidence to prove that you have in fact incurred the losses. This evidence could be in the form of payslips, invoices and receipts, for example.

Special damages can cover losses including the following:

Childcare costs
Loss of earnings
Travel expenses
Prescriptions/aids

If you would like to ask our advisors to value your claim for free, please get in touch.

What Are The Key Aspects Of A No Win No Fee Agreement?

A No Win No Fee agreement is an agreement between you and your solicitor. It allows you to access the services of a solicitor with reduced financial risk, and without paying any upfront fees. You only pay their fee if your No Win No Fee claim is successful. What’s more, the percentage of the fee is capped by law. Your solicitor will discuss this with you so that there aren’t any surprises.

If your case is unsuccessful, you won’t pay any solicitor fees.

Our advisors can put you in touch with our panel of personal injury solicitors. This service is available 24/7 so feel free to contact us about your questions.

Get In Touch Regarding A Road Traffic Accident Claim

If you have any questions about road traffic accident claims, they could be answered by our advisors.

Feel free to contact us by:

Using our live chat feature
Contacting us through our website
Calling us on the number at the top of the page

Further Information About Road Traffic Accident Claims

Here are some articles that might interest you:

The NHS website has a wealth of information on what to do if you have whiplash caused by a road traffic accident or another incident.

The NHS also has advice on finding NHS services near you.

You can also read the Government’s road accidents and safety statistics.

We also have a bunch of guides on personal injury claims which you can read below:

Find Out If You Can Claim?