wrong injury statement-after accident

celica00

hi guys,

i was wondering, when an accident happens (minor clipping) and both drivers state (also to the guards) that no physical injury occured, no-one is hurt etc....how does it work then when the the 'victim' turns around after and suddenly claimes for personal injury?

statemants were made from both sides to guards etc that no injury occcured. due the nature of the car damage (almost none and no front/rear damage) it can be definitly excluded that no physical injury could have occured.
is there any protection for the other party too to avoid false claims?

Atlantic Dawn

Insurers have fraud departments to check in to spurious claims, they do have some success but for certain injuries it's hard to prove.

celica00

the main point is that both drivers agreed and stated to the guards that all is fine. i understand the shock can prevent you from feeling any pain etc but due the minor damage and how the damage occured there could not be any injury anyway .so where does the law stand in terms of saying one thing and suddenly another? best to take in a solicitor for protection i wonder?

BigCon

Some injuries don't manifest themselves until the next day.
Minor clipping doesn't mean that someone won't be injured.
In all likelihood the injured party is faking it, however proving this can be difficult.

Arbiter of Good Taste

I had an accident a number of years ago and was clearly in shock for a couple of days. Three days afterwards I started having panic attacks, shaking, feeling nervous etc. Ended up going to the doctor who prescribed sedatives for 5 days. All was fine after that, and even if it wasn't, it wouldn't have been something I would have pursued.

What I'm saying is, that just because someone is fine immediately after an accident doesn't mean that symptoms will not manifest themselves days afterwards.

kennM

Atlantic Dawn wrote: »

Insurers have fraud departments to check in to spurious claims, they do have some success but for certain injuries it's hard to prove.

Unfortunately speaking from experience here... extreme example I know but adrenaline/shock can mask/prevent the pain.

I was riding a motorbike and car took me out of it. Basically hit me from the side (side of motorbike, right foot, car bumper)... foot squashed and knew that was hurt, just numb. When I hit the ground I felt pain like nothing I'd ever felt in my life, after a minute or two it was 95% gone.

Stayed down because I'd a dull pain between shoulder blades, was laughing and joking with fire brigade when they arrived out as they strapped me to back board etc. Turned out I had 3 broken bones in my foot including open wounds, permanent hip damage, 5 broken ribs, collapsing lungs, torn ligament in shoulder and a few other bits and pieces. EVERYTHING had to be proven medically and checked by insurance doctor in advance of any settlement.

I do appreciate the skepticism people have when someone says they're fine and then their hurt but the human body is a fragile thing unfortunately. BTW I was head to toe in the best of protective gear and low speed.

Hope it helps a little...

To Elland Back

celica00 wrote: »

the main point is that both drivers agreed and stated to the guards that all is fine. i understand the shock can prevent you from feeling any pain etc but due the minor damage and how the damage occured there could not be any injury anyway .so where does the law stand in terms of saying one thing and suddenly another? best to take in a solicitor for protection i wonder?

What is said at the scene of an accident is largely inadmissible. A person has up to 2 years to lodge a personal injury claim. Report it to your insurer with all the information you have stated here and leave them to it. No need to engage your own solicitor

NUTLEY BOY

To Elland Back wrote: »

What is said at the scene of an accident is largely inadmissible. SNIP SNIP

Out of interest, what is the basis for this proposition ?

I have seen a good few rows, not to mention a few really good rows, on oath, around this point. They can almost become comical until the judge gets bored !

On a more serious note, this type of problem does illustrate the need to watch what you say at the scene of an accident. Yes, easier said than done....

coylemj

To Elland Back wrote: »

What is said at the scene of an accident is largely inadmissible. ...

NUTLEY BOY wrote: »

Out of interest, what is the basis for this proposition ?

I wouldn't say it's 'inadmissible', it doesn't fall into the same category for example as a confession beaten out of a suspect by rough treatment in a police station but you can certainly withdraw what you said at the scene of a traffic accident. You could have been in shock, you might have felt intimidated by the other driver and his aggressive passengers all telling you you were at fault so you caved in and admittged liability, there are all sorts of reasons why words said at the scene can be legitimately disowned after the event.

OP, if this is about a late claim for whiplash, join the queue.

goz83

OP, it's certainly possible that the other driver was not injured. It's also possible that they were. As said above, the human body is fragile and shock/adrenaline are super pain masks. Sometimes the pain can come in an hour and sometimes it can take a few days, or even a couple of weeks, depending on the injury.

Someone rear ended my car in the spring of 2014 and I felt no pain until maybe an hour after the accident. I had a bit of neck and back pain. The back pain was quite dull and the neck pain gradually got worse over a few hours and into the following day. A couple of weeks later, the back pain really started to get bad and I got MRI scans done, which revealed a pretty serious herniated disc in my lumbar spine. I was getting lots of back and leg pain. I remained in agony pretty much since then and had surgery done a few weeks ago. The leg pain is gone 99% of the time and the jury is still out on the back pain, which is still there, but not as bad as before mostly.

If i had given a statement within an hour of the crash, it would have said I was fine and had no injury.

celica00

thanks for all the input, its good to see it from different point of views!