Handling your own injury claim

[Andy9934]

I was knocked off my bike in a non-fault accident at the end of last month. I am not looking for a monster settlement and would like to handle my own claim, aware that it will result in a reduced settlement.

I want to do this because it's an indisputable case with clear injuries (fractured clavicle) and potential ~£5k settlement and I don't feel I need to pay £500-£1250 for a solicitor to send all of two letters.

I have prepared a letter for the cost of my gear and have already sorted the cost of the repairs (write-off) but I am not quite sure how to approach the personal injury claim. Should I just put something along the lines of "for the emotional cost of the pain and suffering caused by the incident and the resulting injury, I also request [insurer] pay [amount]. This is in keeping with similar injuries. I ask that any part 36 offer made on this payment is reasonable so that I do not have to hire a legal representative to take my case."

Obviously I'll hire a professional if they come back and offer me a tenner but does this sound reasonable? Anyone done it? Anyone able to share some example legal correspondence (with redactions!).
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Surrey
Honda Varadero XL125

[MC]

Not sure how it works in every case, but normally you need a medical. I guess you could pay to get this done yourself (no idea on the cost), but if you went through a solicitor they would cover this.

When you say indisputable case does that mean the other side have admitted liability? If not I'd be wary, as the part 36 laws are a minefield, with some serious cost consequences if you end up going to court.
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Yamaha MT-03 '08 (crashed)
Honda XR-125L '04

[Andy9934]

I broke my collarbone and have a checkup next month, I was hoping the doctor there could provide a medical report?

The other side have indeed admitted liability.
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Surrey
Honda Varadero XL125

[Rogerborg]

I'd ask them. I'd use plain English. Say that you want to keep their costs down, and what do they need to see?

Do bear in mind that you're unlikely to see a penny until you're fully healed or as healed as you're going to get.
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Biking is 1/20th as dangerous as horse riding.
GONE: HN125-8, LF-250B, GPz 305, GPZ 500S, Burgman 400 // RIDING: F650GS (800 twin), Royal Enfield Bullet Electra 500 AVL, Ninja 250R because racebike

[MC]

Ah OK liability is the main thing.

Honestly I don't know, I'd have thought an NHS doctor wouldn't, but I'm not sure what evidence you need to prove injuries.

Just be careful with regards to part 36 offers. If you turn one down and end up being awarded less in court, you'd be liable for the other sides costs, which can be thousands.

Also they expire after 21 days (I think?) where the other side can claim costs for the late acceptance of an offer.
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Yamaha MT-03 '08 (crashed)
Honda XR-125L '04

[ws4936]

I've actually done this, your number one priority is making sure the insurance company knows that they'll be dealing with you directly. Somehow someway someone will tell you that there is a company acting on your behalf to settle your claim, you will need to talk to this company also to confirm that your flying solo.

Once you've done this, follow the lead of the insurance company your dealing with, this will normally start off with them wanting consent papers signed and sent back for them to gain access to your medical records, as Borg has mentioned, it'll be a lengthy process/progress, the longer it's left the more 'detail' in your medical report to substantiate your large compensation. Apply too soon, and there won't be enough 'detail' in your medical records to warrant such compensation.....think about this when contacting them. Any payout over 3 years from the date of the incident will require a courtroom for setlement, so make sure its under this time if you want to settle out of court. Once you've received, signed and sent back the papers, expect at least a month for their 'medical professional' to peruse your medical documents and notify the insurance company of the extent of damage before they issue an offer.

Do not accept offer.
This is where you earn your money.....pun intended.

Hope this helps.
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If everything seems under control, you're just not going fast enough.

[guile]

It would be nice to cut the parasitic middle men out but how do you know you have an accurate figure on your injuries? Aren't the government guidelines very broad ranging?

So many people coming off recently - I know my next one is coming soon....

[andyscooter]

[monkeybiker]

How much of your time are you going to invest into this? Would you be getting more money this way?

[Andy9934]

Thanks folks, that's really helpful.

The incident in question was the very beginning of last month so I think now would be an appropriate time to make my intentions clear.
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I don't know exactly what my case is worth but as I say I am happy to settle for less than the maximum. I have spoken to a few ambulance chasers in unsolicited calls and they've suggested that it's in the £3-7K region.
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If I assume a 10% rate for a solicitor (optimistic) and a minimum £3000 settlement then best case scenario I will be paying £300 for their services.

Let's pretend I am highly skilled and important and earn £30/hr - that means if I spend ten hours on this then I'm still good.
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Surrey
Honda Varadero XL125

[TheArchitect]

This is interesting. I spoke to a solicitor re compensation for gear damage and injury after my recent off. They quoted me a fee of "up to 25%" of the compensation. When I questioned how they determined the actual fee, as in "up to" implies it could be less, they weren't able to tell me.

Told them I'm willing to use them if they will charge no more than 5% as my case is pretty straight forward and 3rd party insurance won't argue it at all (the whole incident is on video and I have shown them pics of damaged gear). Took them a whole 2 seconds to agree to it!

My point being call up a potential representative and negotiate, they might just agree to lower the fee.
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GSXR 600 K6 - Stolen
GSXR 600 K6 - Stolen
MT09 - Almost stolen

[monkeybiker]

[Andy9934]

I don't expect to get as much from the insurers by going this route.

Wow ok LondonCommuter, that changes things a bit!
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Surrey
Honda Varadero XL125

[MC]

I was gonna say didn't your insurers refer (or try to) refer you to someone. They might have an arrangement not to take some of your settlement.
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Yamaha MT-03 '08 (crashed)
Honda XR-125L '04

[monkeybiker]

[_Iain_]

[kernow24]

[Andy9934]

I did indeed end up representing myself.

For the equipment they offered the purchase cost less 25% for each year of age, but I was confused and told them how long I had owned it, with most of it being second hand. They didn't consider the extent of the damage - they could have not replaced the gloves really. They gave the full price of the helmet.

For the bike they had a guy come and assess it. I don't think they do motorbikes and valued it ('08 YBR 125) around £1500 which I felt was above its value and promptly accepted.

They requested and paid for the medical exam somewhat locally. The doctor was obviously just on contract through an agency ("Capita Medical Reporting"). He was quite sympathetic and I was sure to make very clear the details of all the pains I had had and the issues caused by my injury.

He concluded that the break was bad (2cm shorter shoulder), that it might cause intermittent pain in the future, and that it would cost about £4000 for a private cosmetic adjustment of the slight protrusion. (It can not be extended to its original length)

They have offered £8000 for the settlement of the injury claim. I think I will probably accept it as it seems a sensible chunk of money, despite the fact that 9 months on it's still uncomfortable to carry a decent backpack with 8kg of shopping in it.

I don't know what the precedent is for the injury settlement but a lawyer would have had to get it up to £11,000 for it to be worth their fee - the online estimators suggested I should expect £6-9k.
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Surrey
Honda Varadero XL125

[Robbeh]

Just read all of this. Awesome work going alone.

How many hours of work do you think you put into doing this alone?

[TheArchitect]

bloody good job mate. That's a good result in my opinion
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GSXR 600 K6 - Stolen
GSXR 600 K6 - Stolen
MT09 - Almost stolen

[Ste]

[monkeybiker]

Can you not get the bone re-broken and pinned?

I snapped mine around 3.5-4 years ago and it's not really caused me any problems. Maybe I'm just lucky.

[Robbeh]

[Andy9934]

I spent an hour pricing and listing the equipment.

Probably spent about 2-3 hours chasing them about the valuation of the bike - they lost documents a couple of times.

For the injury claim, I spent very little time on it. I sent this with the equipment valuation

[Ste]

If you were using solicitors then they would arrange their own medical experts to assess you.

If you're going to handle the claim yourself then it would seem sensible to instruct some medical experts of your own to assess you.