When it comes to making a personal injury claim, you do not need a lawyer to bring your claim forward. You can do it yourself. If you want to do this, however, you should still seek some legal advice from a lawyer. Initial consultations with lawyers are usually free and you will receive relevant and valuable advice to help you with your claim.
Small Claims Court
The most popular route that people take when bringing a personal injury claim forward by themselves is to go through the Small Claims Court. The court fees with the Small Claims Court are reasonable, and you do not need a lawyer or barrister to issue proceedings.
However, there are two important limitations that need to be considered.
The first of those limitations is that currently, the maximum claim value that the Small Claims Court can process with regards to personal injuries is £1,000.00. Because of this, the Small Claims Court is only suitable for very minor injuries. Generally speaking, any injury that has a recovery period in excess of 4 weeks is too severe for the Small Claims Court.
The second of those limitations is time. It takes time to create a case for compensation in a way that is legally compelling – and especially for people who are not lawyers. Furthermore, it can take over 8 months to get a response from the Small Claims Court. Some claims receive a verdict within 6 months, however the waiting times are not great regardless.
Going with a lawyer
There are several reasons why most people choose to have a lawyer process their claim for the, rather than take it on themselves. The key reason is that hiring a lawyer is an incredibly easy way to ensure that you have the strongest case build for you as is physically possible. A lawyer will work tirelessly to investigate your claim and to bring forward the evidence that is required to build you a compelling case for compensation.
The second reason is that lawyers work on a ‘no win, no fee’ basis. An example of a law firm . Under a no win, no fee agreement, the claimant does not have to pay any legal fees upfront nor during the claims process, and their lawyer only gets paid if their case wins. Lawyer’s fees are simply recovered either from the other side, or the lawyer will take a percentage of the compensation as payment. By law, this cannot be more than 25 per cent of the claim value. So on a £3,000 claim, a lawyer can only take a maximum £750.00 as payment for their legal services and representation.