Personal injuries board+on going injuries???

mary p

Hi
I was involved in an accident,the other party admitted liability.the insurance company offered a small amount after i contacted the injuries board.
My injuries are still on going 20months after the accident,still on a lot of medication+phyiso.There is no sign of my back getting better.

Will the injuries board not access my claim and let it go to the high courts because my injuries are on-going???





Thanks

RGS

talk to your solicitor--you are paying for his advise.
The board will get their own medics involved and make an assessment based on the latest medical report.

kennM

RGS wrote: »

talk to your solicitor--you are paying for his advise.
The board will get their own medics involved and make an assessment based on the latest medical report.

Would agree with rgs, no hard or fast rule to indicate if piab will or wont assess

mary p

Hi
My solicitor said they may or may not access the case.
i was just asking if anyone on his forum had dealt with the pib and had on going injuries when they went to see the doctors for the pib???

kennM

would

mary p wrote: »

Hi
My solicitor said they may or may not access the case.
i was just asking if anyone on his forum had dealt with the pib and had on going injuries when they went to see the doctors for the pib???

Will prob be in the same boat as you in a couple of months so would be interested in hearing how you get on. Ongoing injuries also.

I think if there is uncertanty over long term prognosis then there is a chance it will go to court.

Corruptable

All personal injury cases are required to go through the Injuries Board, even if the plaintiff and/or their solicitor knows that PIAB can't possibly offer a proper assessment of damages that would fit the injury.

PIAB will assess the claim, and may get their own doctors to undertake a report, but in all likelihood you will probably want to go to through to the Courts after PIAB delivers it's assessment, but that's a matter for you and your solicitor when the time comes.

mary p

so if the board can not access a case and it is let go on to court,the whole process begins over.court could take another few years.....
iam sure the boards doctors etc are well able to access most cases !

nuac

If there is uncertainty about the longterm prgnosis e.g if the medical rheports mention reviewing in six months, you are better off going to court.

PIAB may agree if asked, so that time can be saved with the trial preliminaries while waiting the final med report.

micky007

Has anyone got offers from the insurance company before the insurance company agreed or after they agreed to be assessed by the piab??
Do they make 3 offers or is that just pub talk??

kennM

micky007 wrote: »

Has anyone got offers from the insurance company before the insurance company agreed or after they agreed to be assessed by the piab??
Do they make 3 offers or is that just pub talk??

I was chatting to PIAB today myself and the impression I got from the lady on the phone is that on occasion insurance companies will try and negotiate a settlement during the 90 day period there is between PIAB submission and acceptance/rejection of liability.... i.e. giving PIAB the go ahead to assess.

Regarding 3 offers.... never heard of that before. I'd say its pub talk. If you have ongoing injuries you are better off letting PIAB run its course to allow time for injuries to resolve or any long term effects become known rather than rushing into settling..... if injuries work out worse then expected its hard luck at that point.

mary p

I seen on this site where the insurance company offered the injuried party small amounts hoping they would settle early.....

kennM

mary p wrote: »

I seen on this site where the insurance company offered the injuried party small amounts hoping they would settle early.....

Oh absolutely, you can bet your bottom dollar on that one.... its in an insurance companies best interests to settle for as little as possible. They have to look after their shareholders, customers, board of directors, staff, etc.... where do you reckon a claimant falls in that list of priorities! They don't want to give you more than PIAB or than court for that matter.

Corruptable

The insurance company is permitted to make offers to you to settle outside of PIAB before the process starts I believe. I'm not 100% sure on if they are allowed once the process starts. I cannot confirm how many offers they will make, but what I do now is that it's often much lower than the PIAB award, and several times lower than the Court award.

Generally you should contact your solicitor about these offers, before considering accepting them, as often times your solicitor will be unaware of specific offers as the insurance companies often try to bypass him or her, and only send the offers directly to the plaintiff.

RGS

Corruptable wrote: »

The insurance company is permitted to make offers to you to settle outside of PIAB before the process starts I believe. I'm not 100% sure on if they are allowed once the process starts. I cannot confirm how many offers they will make, but what I do now is that it's often much lower than the PIAB award, and several times lower than the Court award.

Not always the case--I know of a number of recent cases where the court awarded a claimant less than the PIAB award leaving the claimant to pick up the legal costs of both sides.

Insurance companies delaing with claimants directly are obliged to make fair offers, different when dealing with solicitors.
Offers can be made at any stage in the PIAB process.

The best person to advise you on your particular case is your solicitor who has access to your medical reports. Generally the value of the case is far less the claimant believes the case is worth.

Corruptable

RGS wrote: »

Not always the case--I know of a number of recent cases where the court awarded a claimant less than the PIAB award leaving the claimant to pick up the legal costs of both sides.

Insurance companies delaing with claimants directly are obliged to make fair offers, different when dealing with solicitors.
Offers can be made at any stage in the PIAB process.

The best person to advise you on your particular case is your solicitor who has access to your medical reports. Generally the value of the case is far less the claimant believes the case is worth.

I was going to come to that if the issue of costs was raised, but I trust the OP's solicitor will be able to deal with that if PIAB issues the authorisation to proceed to court.

When I was going through modules on PIAB first it was always portrayed as a waste of time (low awards, incompetent staff, etc.), to be honest, but I'm sure things have changed now that it has settled into the sector as a necessary requirement in dealing with PI cases.

BHD

Hi all

I am going through the same procedure at the moment in regards to an injury. I went today to see an independent consultant(sent by the injuries board) in relation to my injuries. They are ongoing even after 2 surgeries and the consultant told me today that I'm facing a shoulder replacement to rectify the problem. Will this go to court do you think or will be be settled through Injuries board.?
I will keep you all updated as the case progresses.

mary p

hi
Was the doctor you were sent to the by the piab alright??i heard of people going to doctors for the insurance companys and they were very nasty.they would,nt listen to what was wrong with the person......
So if the piab does,nt resolve your case,you have to go back to the start and start court proceedings...that would be a waste of 2years for you.
you would think that all the foot work was done at this stage,medical reports,liability and it should be just a matter of getting a court date

Corruptable

mary p wrote: »

So if the piab does,nt resolve your case,you have to go back to the start and start court proceedings...that would be a waste of 2years for you.

Precisely. If one side doesn't consent to PIAB assessing the claim it goes straight to court, but it would probably look bad for a plaintiff to do that and there's no incentive for the insurance company to object to PIAB handling the case as it keeps the case away and the plaintiff might take the PIAB offer.

Any reports have to be up to date at the time of court proceedings, as it otherwise might not be an accurate assessment of the person's condition (it might have got better or worse). Essentially, the case is frozen from a legal perspective when it's in PIAB, but once it comes back out, it often almost starts all over again for the solicitor that's handling it as time is ticking again on statute of limitations, and to obtain the updated reports, get witnesses/experts on standby, etc.

BHD

Hi all

Mary the Consultant I seen today was very nice and I was surprised how well I was treated. I didn't know what to expect and thought that he would be judging me if you know what I mean.
He listened to me and gave me advice on my injury aswell which I thought was very decent of him after all I was only there for an assessment. He did not judge me in any way or form. He told me not word for word, what he would be writing in the report but assured me that he would include all my injuries, pain etc and the fact that he felt I may need a new shoulder or definitely follow up treatment.
If Piab don't assess then I will be given a letter to proceed to court which could take 18 months and a further follow up assessment/ medical report by my consultant.

mary p

Hi
Thanks for that info.
Id say there was alot of people that have to see the pib,s doctors and they would to be expecting to be grilled by the doctors!

kennM

I went to see a doctor for the other parties insurance company and found them fine. If anything he knew more about the injuries I had then the doctors that were treating me! and gave me some feedback......

Listened to details, asked questions and genuinely listened. Didn't feel uncomfortable at all. I'd say they are very good at rooting out fakes.... if you have nothing to hide then you won't have a problem.

BHD

Mary p
I was too expecting to be grilled.... But was pleasantly surprised. Glad its all over, well that part anyway. The next is waiting to hear whether Piab will assess the case, then seeing what type of an offer they make. I am led to believe that some respondents are known to drag the plaintiff through Piab etc only to reject the offer Piab make in an effort to drag the case out. I don't know how much this is true as I can't see how they would benefit from this as the plaintiff (me) would know how much Piab was offering and thus would definitely not be accepting less compensation from the respondents. I feel in that case that they would be taking a chance going to court then... Any ideas on this?

BHD

Kenn

I totally agree with everything you said. I got great feedback aswell and also felt like he knew more about my injury than my treating doctor too.!!
I would say they are trained to spot the fakers!!
The gentleman I seen was an older man with 40+ years of experience and I asked as many questions as he did!

blueythebear

BHD wrote: »

Mary p
I was too expecting to be grilled.... But was pleasantly surprised. Glad its all over, well that part anyway. The next is waiting to hear whether Piab will assess the case, then seeing what type of an offer they make. I am led to believe that some respondents are known to drag the plaintiff through Piab etc only to reject the offer Piab make in an effort to drag the case out. I don't know how much this is true as I can't see how they would benefit from this as the plaintiff (me) would know how much Piab was offering and thus would definitely not be accepting less compensation from the respondents. I feel in that case that they would be taking a chance going to court then... Any ideas on this?

Insurance companies don't attempt to drag these things out as it is in their interest to settle early and settle low. Court awards are higher than PIAB as a general rule and there are also legal costs which would add to the insurance companies bill so Court is not really attractive to the insurers.

You appear to have a serious ongoing condition and you should if you have not done so already, consult a solicitor. With ongoing injuries that may require an entire shoulder replacement, you should not accept PIAB's assessment unless you have properly informed legal advice. I cannot stress to you enough that a solicitor's advice is vital in your case.

BHD

Bluethebear

Thanks for your response and the valued information. Yes I have consulted a solicitor and from the word go he said that it sounded like it was going to be an ongoing problem due to the severity of the injury. He said that it will probably go to court as Piab won't assess due to ongoing issues with the injury. We are prepared to go to court from the beginning and witnesses etc have been informed that they may have to attend. It would be great if Piab settled with a decent compensation package taking into consideration the injury and the need for a replacement in the near future. Would love to put all this behind me. Has been going on 2 years and 1 month already since the accident.

BHD

Hi all

One thing I would like to add is that there is a Form B that can be downloaded on the injuries board website. It's a form that the consultant is supposed to be guided by and also information for the plaintiff on what questions he/ she is likely to be asked at the indepentent assessment. It's basically a template for the doctors on what information the injuries board requires.
The reason I am posting is that I was NEVER asked any of these questions such as how many times I have seen consultant /physiotherapist. How my mobility is in relation to walking bending sitting etc. obviously the consultant will be able to work out the mobility issues for himself/herself but I don't know about the rest. I just wanted to put it out there that not all consultants stick rigidly to the template.

Milk & Honey

Corruptable wrote: »

Precisely. If one side doesn't consent to PIAB assessing the claim it goes straight to court, but it would probably look bad for a plaintiff to do that and there's no incentive for the insurance company to object to PIAB handling the case as it keeps the case away and the plaintiff might take the PIAB offer.

.

The Plaintiff has no option in allowing PIAB assess the claim. It is only the Respondent who can decline. The Plaintiff only has the option of not accepting the award made and going to court. The Respondent can refuse to allow the award to be assessed or else refuse to accept the award.

BHD

Corruptable

Am I right in saying that Piab can still refuse to make an offer of an award to me due to the fact that I gave ongoing issues? In that case then they issue me with a release letter allowing me to take the case to court?

BHD

Just found this on the website:




An Authorisation to go to court may also be issued in exceptional cases and InjuriesBoard.ie will advise both the Claimant and the Respondent if the claim falls within this category.

Would I fall into the exceptional case? Is that where people with ongoing issues fall?
If so it would be a lot of people heading to the court at that rate.
Please advise me all you wonderful people!!

mary p

Hi BHD
Did the doctor ask about what medication your on and had you to list them out?
Its just iam taking alot different medication for pain and other problems.

You would think the injuries board could give you a fair settlement now instead of you having to start court proceedings.you sound like you have been through enough.
Is that not what PIAB was set up for.........

BHD

mary p wrote: »

Hi BHD
Did the doctor ask about what medication your on and had you to list them out?
Its just iam taking alot different medication for pain and other problems

No he didn't ask about medication. What he did say to me was that he will speak also to my consultant who preformed the surgery.
I too was expecting a whole lot of question etc but it never happened. I think I will write the Piab a letter outlining the things that was never brought up in the assessment to accompany the medical letter if I'm allowed that I feel are relevant.

mary p

Hi
This may sound like a silly question,but on the day of the assessment by the pib doctor,should i take my medication with me, to show what iam taking??

kennM

mary p wrote: »

Hi BHD
Did the doctor ask about what medication your on and had you to list them out?
Its just iam taking alot different medication for pain and other problems.

You would think the injuries board could give you a fair settlement now instead of you having to start court proceedings.you sound like you have been through enough.
Is that not what PIAB was set up for.........

Lets take a step away from compensation at the minute... Fair compensation can only be determined once long term prognosis can be established. In rare/unusual/complicated injuries time will provide clarity to those injuries. If anything it would not be professionnally appropriate for piab to suggest a settlement figure when long term prognosis is not clear.

I would SUSPECT this would be the type of ethos that piab would work to. As they say each case is evaluated on its own and I doubt they have hard and fast rules regarding ongoing injuries.

Tomteaky

Hi all

What does it mean when the respondent does not allow PIAB to access your claim and then PIAB gives you authorisation to take the case to the high court ! Is this the respondent basically saying they don't accept liability or do most insurance companies do this when it is a serious injury.

mary p

kenn
I just mean that after 2+ years a doc should be able to give a prognosis.i know its not all about money.
Does anyone have any info about seeing the piab doctor and been able to bring/tell him/her what medication iam on????????????

daenerysstormborn3

mary p wrote: »

Hi
I was involved in an accident,the other party admitted liability.the insurance company offered a small amount after i contacted the injuries board.
My injuries are still on going 20months after the accident,still on a lot of medication+phyiso.There is no sign of my back getting better.

Will the injuries board not access my claim and let it go to the high courts because my injuries are on-going???

Thanks

When your claim is assessed and award offered you will be contacted by your solicitor to discuss this. Your solicitor may contact counsel who will make a decision on the award based on precedents and the level of your injuries. If you are happy with the assessment but your solicitor/counsel is not then you will have to sign something saying that despite their advice you are going to take the award. If you don't want to accept the assessment then your solicitor will write to the piab telling them that as your injuries are ongoing further investigations are needed and you are not in a position to accept the award and an authorisation will then issue and go to court. Court doesn't necessarily have to take years but in most cases it does.

Not all assessments made are significantly lower than what a court would award.

BHD

mary p wrote: »

kenn
I just mean that after 2+ years a doc should be able to give a prognosis.i know its not all about money.
Does anyone have any info about seeing the piab doctor and been able to bring/tell him/her what medication iam on????????????

Hi Mary p

If I was you I would bring all my medication with me anyway. You have nothing to lose or what you could do would be to get a letter from your GP stating what medication you are on and what dose. You could bring the letter with you on the day? When have you to go?

mary p

Hi
have to go start of month.i never thought of asking doctor for that.its just i dont want to be getting doses and names mixed up,knowing me my mind wud go blank!
thanks

kennM

mary p wrote: »

kenn
I just mean that after 2+ years a doc should be able to give a prognosis.i know its not all about money.
Does anyone have any info about seeing the piab doctor and been able to bring/tell him/her what medication iam on????????????

Would tend to agree with you but with rare/complicated injuries it may be tricky. In my case im on a third opinion regarding hy hip and praying something can be done. Rare injury and most docs dont know what it is never mind a prognosis.

Regarding meds, bring them with you just in case.... No harm in having them

Corruptable

While I appreciate people wish for information, I'm not going to go anymore in depth as this is not a forum for legal advice, just legal discussion.

If a respondent objects to the PIAB assessment, you're done with PIAB and your going to receive the required authorisation to go to Court. If it's in the High Court, I advise getting a solicitor (if you haven't one) as you will need counsel as well who can still only be engaged by a solicitor.

If you are having a problem with the PIAB process, contact PIAB directly or:


Image is (c) Law Society of Ireland

kennM

Smile2012 wrote: »

Hi I'm new to this and was just wanting to know if anyone had the same issue as me. I was in an accident in 2010 were another car went into the back of mine. No visible damage was done to my car due to my tow bar taking the brunt of the force but I sustained whiplash. I attended a lot of physio up till sept 2011. My solicitor submitted an injury claim on my behalf. I went through the whole process of the injuries board doctor etc and they came back to me with an offer which I accepted even though my solicitor told me it was on the lower scale of awards only to find out today that the defendant rejected the award and now it's going to court. Does anyone know what happens now and if it goes to court how long would it take??

Would suggest opening a new thread rather than hijack existing....

Novice in the area but I haven't heard of a case like that before. What will happen now I believe is that PIAB will issue you with an authorization to pursue it through the courts and then its up to you and your solicitor to get that moving. No idea regarding time frame, solicitor would be best to give you ideas on that. Have they tried to negotiate at all?

BHD

Hi all boarders!

Just want to give you all an update. As you know I went for my independent assessment last Friday the 4th of January. I received a letter from solicitor today. Injury board have released me to go to court as I have ongoing problems that won't be resolved in the proper time frame of injuries board and I will also need a joint replacement as per independent assessment and my doctor. I also received a copy of the med report..so it looks like court now for me.. Anybody any input on this on what can happen next.
Thanks in advance to you all.

Corruptable

BHD wrote: »

Hi all boarders!

Just want to give you all an update. As you know I went for my independent assessment last Friday the 4th of January. I received a letter from solicitor today. Injury board have released me to go to court as I have ongoing problems that won't be resolved in the proper time frame of injuries board and I will also need a joint replacement as per independent assessment and my doctor. I also received a copy of the med report..so it looks like court now for me.. Anybody any input on this on what can happen next.
Thanks in advance to you all.

Well, your solicitor has to prepare a brief and to ascertain quantum and liability for the case before the Courts.

Depending on the value of the claim it will be heard in either District Court (max value up to €6,348), Circuit Court (max value up €38,092), High Court (no limit).

That's really all that you need to know, the rest is simply procedural stuff (paper pushing) which your solicitor will be able to look after.

kennM

BHD wrote: »

Hi all boarders!

Just want to give you all an update. As you know I went for my independent assessment last Friday the 4th of January. I received a letter from solicitor today. Injury board have released me to go to court as I have ongoing problems that won't be resolved in the proper time frame of injuries board and I will also need a joint replacement as per independent assessment and my doctor. I also received a copy of the med report..so it looks like court now for me.. Anybody any input on this on what can happen next.
Thanks in advance to you all.

Thanks for the update BHD... I should be hearing in the next couple of weeks whether PIAB will assess or release to court. I've an injury that is also not resolved and may be in the same boat.... heading for 2 years already

micky007

Hello
Keep us informed on how it all goes for you.
best of luck.....!

Ajsmammy

Hi Guys not sure how this site works but anyway hoping someone will see this and shed some light for me. So I had a fall at work 2 years ago injuries from it ( cracked skull, healing but on going care needed, nerve damage hands, constant headaches, hysterectomy and bladder prolapse surgery life changing operations, I can't go into too much details too upsetting, piab hit there 9 months next week I've been to their docs as well as my own reports, so solicitor contacted me today they have given the government ahead for court as my injuries are far too complex for them to put a figure on the injuries are life long like none of them will ever get better, so wondering if this would be better for me going to court