Man wins his 2 year battle for personal injury compensation

Accident circumstances

Mr G The claimant left his home address at 6am to pick up his friends and burger van before attending Oxford’s Gay Pride Parade. Mr G client was proceeding correctly uphill along the M40. Suddenly Mr G felt an impact to his vehicle from the rear. This caused the vehicle and the burger van to separate and eventually coming to a stop without causing any further accidents. The lorry driver did not appreciate the speed of our Mr G’s vehicle as he was towing a Burger van uphill. His approximate speed was thirty five miles per hour. The third party braked hard but could not slow down enough and he collided with the rear of the burger van.

There were witnesses who saw the road traffic accident and they pulled over to check if our client and his friends were ok. Two of the witnesses were nurses who said that Mr Ahmed’s client was very lucky to escape without serious injuries. The emergency services were called and the claimant was transported to hospital where he was x-rayed and checked over. The claimant suffered injuries to his chest, neck, back and travel discomfort. Mr G decided to pursue a car accident claimand searched for a personal injury solicitor to represent him. He contacted Clearwater Solicitors to represent him.

The Defendant’s position

The Claim appeared straightforward and therefore Mr G’s claim was allocated to Mr Ahmed who works in Clearwater Solicitors Portal Team. Mr Ahmed submitted the claim on the RTA portal but the Defendant’s insurers did not accept liability. Therefore, the file was transferred to the litigation team and Mr Yaqub took over conduct of the file.

The Defendant’s insurers advised they had not heard from their insured and had indemnity issues with him. The indemnity issues could have related to anything such as a failure to declare points on the Defendant’s licence, previous accidents or the current use the vehicle would be used for. Unfortunately, the Defendant were unwilling to share any information with Mr Yaqub. The Defendant’s insurers could not understand how both the trailer and our client’s vehicle sustained damage. In addition, they suspected that Mr G braked hard on purpose to cause an accident. In essence they believed the claim may have been fraudulent.

How we resolved the case

We obtained a police report which clearly supported the claimant’s version of events. We disclosed the same to the Defendant’s insurers and asked them to confirm they would settle our client’s compensation claim and accept liability.

–        Unfortunately, the Defendant’s insurers failed to respond and we therefore recommended to our client proceedings were issued.

–        Once proceedings were issued we obtained judgment which meant the Claimant had won the case but the level of compensation he would receive would be determined by the Court.

–        The Defendant’s insurers instructed a firm of solicitors who reviewed the police report and realised that the Claim was straightforward. However, they dragged their heels in making reasonable offers of settlement.

–        The burger van was recorded as a total loss because of the damage caused by the road traffic accident. The engineer valued the burger van at £7,900. Mr G received the offer and he was pleased to accept but the Defendant did not realise payment.

–        Just before a final hearing the Defendant’s solicitors made an offer to Mr G in the sum of £12,270. This offer included the total loss payment for the burger van of £7,900 and general damages of £3,970.

–        Mr G client was very pleased with this offer and he decided to accept.

Mr Yaqub said that this was a straight forward case which should have been resolved within a few months of the claim beginning. However, the Defendant’s insurers refused to share any information with us and thought our client’s claim was not genuine despite the presence of independent witness and the emergency services. Due to the Defendant’s conduct unnecessary costs were incurred which could have been saved.

How can Clearwater Solicitors help you?

Clearwater Solicitors is experienced in handling car accident claims where there the Defendant’s refuse to share information and claims where fraud is intimated. If you think you have a case or require further information contact Clearwater on 08000 430 430 or fill in the online call back request.