Person broke red light and wrote my car off, injured, insurance only paying 500?

celticwarrior8

Hi, I was recently in a car crash where a person broke a red light and smashed into me. My car is a write off. I have genuine back pain and twisted ankle and wrist. my doctor said there could be whiplash but genuine whiplash can take weeks to months to appear.
So, now i have no car (my car wasnt worth much) and am in pain.
The other party just came back and said they will pay 500 to cover the loss of my car and will pay for my physio. They said I would have to go to the injuries board and make a claim.

Is that right? I was led to believe there would be a no brainer pay out as I have done nothing wrong here. I'm not inventing anything like you hear about so much, bogus whiplash claims etc etc

I am totally dependant on my car for work, no car means i lose my job.

edit: <moderator removed this content against other user>.

Gaillimh1976

celticwarrior8 wrote: »

Hi, I was recently in a car crash where a person broke a red light and smashed into me.

.

Do they admit this bit is true ?

(Not calling you a liar, but if this is not their version of events it more complicated)


You need to talk to a solicitor, but you definitely have more of a claim than what they are offering

(IF they admit they ran the red light)

peteb2

Your car is your only problem. An insurance company is only going to give you market value for it, so if its only 500 quid that is what you get. There is always the option of taking the salvage and repairing it.

In terms of the Injuries Board the process would be that you write to the third party and give them 10 days to accept liability. If they do, there should be no need to go to the injuries board if it is just physio you are after. If the injury is sorted by the physio what are you chasing compensation for? Where is your financial loss?

Its unclear though, are you actually dealing with the other party or their insurer?

Let me guess though - you went directly to an insurance company because you feel it wasn't worth the 40 odd quid a broker would charge you, and you reckoned you could handle yourself in the event of a claim?

celticwarrior8

Yes 100%, and were interviewed by police plus a witness actually works for aviva and said they will be my witness, she spoke to the person that hit me and they all agreed what happened.

dashoonage

Jesus wept. 500 wouldn't get you an insurance policy these days!

celticwarrior8

peteb2 - i dont like your tone here, what have i done to irritate you? im only asking a question, i know nothing about this stuff. my financial loss? you did read the part about losing my job? anyway, i have read, only last week, that for soft tissue damage, which i have, people are looking at payouts of 5 - 10 - 15k. I didnt ask to have someone ram into me, hurt me, wreck my car. If i am legitimately entitled to compensation, then I shold receive it. If I am not, then fair enough.

peteb2

My tone is that people are happy to go direct to insurers and then sh1t themselves when a claim happens as they don't know how to handle it.

The injuries board wont deal with you losing your job. It only deals with injury. So are you after money because you have some pain that cannot be rectified beyond medical costs? Or a pound of flesh because your car got wrecked.

If you are so dependent on your car, you took out comprehensive cover did you? So they'd give you a car for a certain period after the accident? Are you putting the claim through your own policy?

What are the details of the vehicle? Are you disputing that 500 isn't a reasonable amount for your car?

celticwarrior8

I am disputing that people get comnpensation for faking whiplash or whatever, i am faking NOTHING and am being offered 500. It's a complete joke. the claim is going through the policy of the person that hit me. 500 is what the car is worth, no problem with that.

peteb2

celticwarrior8 wrote: »

I am disputing that people get comnpensation for faking whiplash or whatever, i am faking NOTHING and am being offered 500. It's a complete joke. the claim is going through the policy of the person that hit me. 500 is what the car is worth, no problem with that.

So you aren't arguing the 500 quid. So what is the problem?

They've said they would pay for your physio. You don't know until you get started whether you are going to any damage but yet you are here screaming for compo.

If the physio doesn't work and you have injury that is ongoing then go to the Injuries Board. But you seem to have a problem with the correct process. An insurer is not going to just say "oh ok you have an injury. there is a cheque for 5k in the post".

celticwarrior8

Well you are wrong, they do. A lot of insurers pay out for whiplash regardless of it being confirmed as it takes so long to manifest itself.
Surely this cant be ok? someone breaks a red light, injures me (confirmed by doctors) and i am left without a car and a payout of 500 quid?

celticwarrior8

www. thejournal.ie/insurance-premiums-book-of-quantum-3011925-Oct2016/

I mean, that article says due to the nature of my injuries they should be paying out 30k.

peteb2

But again you've just said you are happy with the 500 quid as that is the value. So take the 500 and go buy a new car. As is the intention of it.

Again if you have an injury beyond what the physio you have to go down the Injuries Board route. There is no automatic entitlement to compensation for any situation. You actually have to substantiate your claim. As I said its not just 5k please.

So what are you saying isn't ok?
You are left without a car? No. You are left with the value of your vehicle , 500 quid.
You are injured? They said they would cover the physio.

The longer this goes on the more you are looking like someone who thinks because they have an injury - that can be dealt with by medical assistance - is entitled to an easy buck!

gitzy16v

Go to a solicitor,they will sort it all out for you.
And you won't be hounded off boards for looking to claim what your entitled too.

peteb2

celticwarrior8 wrote: »

www. thejournal.ie/insurance-premiums-book-of-quantum-3011925-Oct2016/

I mean, that article says due to the nature of my injuries they should be paying out 30k.

I refer you to my last point.

nhunter100

celticwarrior8 wrote:

Hi, I was recently in a car crash where a person broke a red light and smashed into me. My car is a write off. I have genuine back pain and twisted ankle and wrist. my doctor said there could be whiplash but genuine whiplash can take weeks to months to appear. So, now i have no car (my car wasnt worth much) and am in pain. The other party just came back and said they will pay 500 to cover the loss of my car and will pay for my physio. They said I would have to go to the injuries board and make a claim.

OP 500 us all your car is worth, sucks but thems the breaks. Get physio keep all receipts,document earnings loss. Lodge a claim with the PIAB.

peteb2

gitzy16v wrote: »

Go to a solicitor,they will sort it all out for you.
And you won't be hounded off boards for looking to claim what your entitled too.

Ah yes, the old sense of entitlement. :rolleyes:

If you have an injury that isn't fixed by medical assistance of course one can take an action to remedy this. But one still have to substantiate your loss.

Sono

peteb2 wrote: »

My tone is that people are happy to go direct to insurers and then sh1t themselves when a claim happens as they don't know how to handle it.

Some brokers are good at handling the claim on behalf of the insured but in many many cases they don't want to know especially the complex claims they just fob the insured off to the insurance company directly.

NickNickleby

Hi Celtic Warrior,

I am mystified that 'someone' offered you €500, after an accident that apparently wrote off your car and caused you injury. Was this an official offer DIRECTLY from the other person's insurance company? If it is, then I'd be straight on to a solicitor, to see where you stand regarding getting back on the road and also compensation for ongoing pain, perhaps loss of earnings if it can be shown that the car was essential to your livelihood..

Of course, that depends on how severe the pain is. Funny about the whiplash taking weeks to manifest itself. I was in an accident once and suffered very painful whiplash next day. However, I was better in a week, so only claimed for a replacement bumper.


I'm unsure as to what point peteb is making about going through a broker. I always buy my insurance online, and would never have considered that there might be a role for a broker in the event of an accident. Of course that just means I have no real knowledge of the role of a broker!! . If he'd said go through a solicitor to handle your claim, well yes, same as I said above.

Good luck, and hopefully the pain will sort itself out quickly. I don't think money really compensates for long term pain.

NN

Del2005

celticwarrior8 wrote: »

Well you are wrong, they do. A lot of insurers pay out for whiplash regardless of it being confirmed as it takes so long to manifest itself.
Surely this cant be ok? someone breaks a red light, injures me (confirmed by doctors) and i am left without a car and a payout of 500 quid?

Claim for whiplash then. No point coming on here moaning about the correct process offering FA and the scam offering €€€€.

If the other party has admitted liability and you are going through the insurance you are entitled to a hire car or expenses( having to get a bus/taxi due to no car). If your car was worth much then the €500 is most likely the value of it and that's what being offered, never take the first few offers, so now you need to source a new car. The personal injury claim will be settled at a later time.

peteb2

Sono wrote: »

Some brokers are good at handling the claim on behalf of the insured but in many many cases they don't want to know especially the complex claims they just fob the insured off to the insurance company directly.

Any decent motor broker will have a product with some aspect of uninsured loss recovery - which probably refers you to a specialist solicitor.

Special Circumstances

peteb2 wrote: »

Let me guess though - you went directly to an insurance company because you feel it wasn't worth the 40 odd quid a broker would charge you, and you reckoned you could handle yourself in the event of a claim?

What exactly would the broker do to help the OP in this situation????

peteb2 wrote: »

My tone is that people are happy to go direct to insurers and then sh1t themselves when a claim happens as they don't know how to handle it.

Let me guess, you're... a broker? ...jealous of solicitors? Not sure why going direct to an insurer is offending you so much tbh.

peteb2 wrote: »

If you are so dependent on your car, you took out comprehensive cover did you?

I agree with celtic warrior - your tone seems unnecessarily aggressive/condescending. Maybe we're just reading your posts wrong.


Celticwarrior I think you need to speak to a solicitor quickly.

BetsyEllen

gitzy16v wrote: »

Go to a solicitor,they will sort it all out for you.
And you won't be hounded off boards for looking to claim what your entitled too.

But I think Pete is right - insurance is there to cover your asset, which in this instance was a car worth €500. He is getting his €500 back, plus having physio covered.
So this is what he's entitled to.

I do agree that Pete's tone leaves a lot to be desired however.

Sono

The big problem with all these personal injury claims is that there are so many fruadulent ones it's hard to tell the genuine from the frauds ones.

any impact as little as 8km per hour can lead to a whiplash claim, what a joke of a country

gitzy16v

peteb2 wrote: »

Ah yes, the old sense of entitlement. :rolleyes:

If you have an injury that isn't fixed by medical assistance of course one can take an action to remedy this. But one still have to substantiate your loss.

I've no idea why your rolling your eyes at my post...no need to be a smartars.
If he's only entitled to his car and physio that's what he'll get.
If he's entitled to more his solicitor is the best person to advise him not some bloke of the net.

peteb2

Special Circumstances wrote: »

What exactly would the broker do to help the OP in this situation????


Let me guess, you're... a broker? ...jealous of solicitors? Not sure why going direct to an insurer is offending you so much tbh.

I agree with celtic warrior - you're tone seems unneccesarily agressive/condescending. Maybe we're just reading your posts wrong.


Celticwarrior I think you need to speak to a solicitor quickly.

Yes you are right. I am a broker. No secret. A look back through my post history would tell you that. I'm not involved in car insurance though.

Why would I be jealous of solicitors?

It doesn't offend me. As I've said, people think they don't need the service of a broker. But yet they find themselves online asking strangers for advice.

I don't have a tone. its just words on a computer screen.

Auguste Comte

Hey OP. As far as I am aware the €500 will just be to cover your loss on the car. Your personal injury claim will be handled separately. PI claims can take a while due to injuries taking time to heal etc. You should call Injuries Board and talk to them or engage a solicitor to act on your behalf.

Sono

You have 6 years to make a PI claim anyway, you hardly think that you just tell the insurance company you have all these injuries and they'll issue you with a cheque for €30k or so. Every case gets investigated to ascertain if the injuries are genuine or not

Liam McPoyle

celticwarrior8 wrote: »

Hi, I was recently in a car crash where a person broke a red light and smashed into me. My car is a write off. I have genuine back pain and twisted ankle and wrist. my doctor said there could be whiplash but genuine whiplash can take weeks to months to appear.
So, now i have no car (my car wasnt worth much) and am in pain.
The other party just came back and said they will pay 500 to cover the loss of my car and will pay for my physio. They said I would have to go to the injuries board and make a claim.

Is that right? I was led to believe there would be a no brainer pay out as I have done nothing wrong here. I'm not inventing anything like you hear about so much, bogus whiplash claims etc etc

I am totally dependant on my car for work, no car means i lose my job.

When you say the other party offered you €500, I presume you mean the insurer of the person that crashed into you?

Its pretty clear cut.

If the other party drove recklessly, you suffered a genuine injury as a result and they accepted liability then you are entitled to compensation.

The insurer will take care of the car side of it but you will need to register the claim with the injuriesboard.ie.

As far as I know it can be done online or you can download a claim form and post it to them. I think there may be a nominal fee payable by you (€12 is coming to mind).

You will need to provide all receipts in terms of medical expenses, trips to the doctors, physio etc. You will require a signed report from a medical practitioner detailing the injuries you have suffered.

Send that off to the injuries board and they will take it from there.

There is no need for a solicitor at this point anyway. Of course thats your right but bear in mind, they will only be looking out for their own interests and involving the legal establishment has a tendency to literally add years to injuries cases. The injuries board are impartial and exist to get a fair settlement for you and not cost the insurer an exorbitant amount.

celticwarrior8

So. I rang citizens information. They said i am entitled to the compensation of the car, 500. Ok. Also to have my physio and medical expenses covered, ok. BUT .... they also said i should be compensated for the act of receiving the injury too. Aha! I knew it, and thats what the article in the press was about. I seriously doubted this due to some of the comments here.

Amanda.ie

celticwarrior8 wrote: »

Hi, I was recently in a car crash where a person broke a red light and smashed into me. My car is a write off. I have genuine back pain and twisted ankle and wrist. my doctor said there could be whiplash but genuine whiplash can take weeks to months to appear.
So, now i have no car (my car wasnt worth much) and am in pain.
The other party just came back and said they will pay 500 to cover the loss of my car and will pay for my physio. They said I would have to go to the injuries board and make a claim.

Is that right? I was led to believe there would be a no brainer pay out as I have done nothing wrong here. I'm not inventing anything like you hear about so much, bogus whiplash claims etc etc

I am totally dependant on my car for work, no car means i lose my job.

Did you report it to the gardai?
Did the other driver not have insurance?

Sono

OP are you injured? If so claim for the injuries, if not get your medical bills and 500 and be done with it. It's quite simple really.

endacl

NickNickleby wrote: »

Hi Celtic Warrior,

I am mystified that 'someone' offered you €500, after an accident that apparently wrote off your car and caused you injury. Was this an official offer DIRECTLY from the other person's insurance company? If it is, then I'd be straight on to a solicitor, to see where you stand regarding getting back on the road and also compensation for ongoing pain, perhaps loss of earnings if it can be shown that the car was essential to your livelihood..

Of course, that depends on how severe the pain is. Funny about the whiplash taking weeks to manifest itself. I was in an accident once and suffered very painful whiplash next day. However, I was better in a week, so only claimed for a replacement bumper.


I'm unsure as to what point peteb is making about going through a broker. I always buy my insurance online, and would never have considered that there might be a role for a broker in the event of an accident. Of course that just means I have no real knowledge of the role of a broker!! . If he'd said go through a solicitor to handle your claim, well yes, same as I said above.

Good luck, and hopefully the pain will sort itself out quickly. I don't think money really compensates for long term pain.

NN

I'll second this. I was in a similar situation a few years ago. First offered to let the young fella pay for the damage out of pocket. €750 was 'too much'. Offered to let him find somebody cheaper. He declined. Went trough insurance. They came back with a lowball €500 for the car (which they would then own), and €200 for 'my trouble'. A lot of people will take that first offer, presuming that that's the way it happens. €700 wasn't going to get me back on the road, so fcuk that. I spotted a car online, same make, same model, same year, for a grand. I suggested this to the insurance company, who told me they don't replace like with like.

Went to a solicitor, and left it in their hands. Net time the insurance company called I told them to deal with the solicitor, who had more patience for BS than me. All tied up a couple of months later with a very satisfactory settlement. My car was replaced, and the (valid) injuries that I wasn't even going to claim for went a long way to paying for this. I replaced an average saloon car with another, albeit slightly newer, average saloon car. This could have all beeen happily sorted for a fraction of what it eventually cost them.

TL;dr Don't deal with the insurance company. They are professional chancers and only have their own interests in mind. They'll try to get you to just go away. Let another professional, with your interests in mind, do the talking for you.

Sue Pa Key Pa

OP got hit and came on here looking for directions to the payout desk for his €15k
Pete advised him of the process to substantiate his claim via the standard process of the Injuries Board and is getting it in the neck
Everyone else wants insurers to do more to tackle fraud and stop the uncontested payouts
A solicitor WILL get easy money for his client once liability is admitted

Lads, we've all made this mess that we find ourselves in today

nhunter100

Sue Pa Key Pa wrote:

OP got hit and came on here looking for directions to the payout desk for his €15k Pete advised him of the process to substantiate his claim via the standard process of the Injuries Board and is getting it in the neck Everyone else wants insurers to do more to tackle fraud and stop the uncontested payouts A solicitor WILL get easy money for his client once liability is admitted

Lady on the radio during the week give a breakdown of costs paid out by her insurance company for a tip she had. She hit a guy in a car park, the guy got 7500 euro the legal teams shared 21000 .

Sue Pa Key Pa

nhunter100 wrote: »

Lady on the radio during the week give a breakdown of costs paid out by her insurance company for a tip she had. She hit a guy in a car park, the guy got 7500 euro the legal teams shared 21000 .

Legal fees are shocking but that level of costs suggest a long and protracted battle to dispute liability and the amount claimed. Perhaps the insurer spent €21k to defend their client against a spurious claim for €100k. Now I have little respect for the legal profession, but maybe they did a good job achieving a settlement of €7,500

nhunter100

Sue Pa Key Pa wrote:

Legal fees are shocking but that level of costs suggest a long and protracted battle to dispute liability and the amount claimed. Perhaps the insurer spent €21k to defend their client against a spurious claim for €100k. Now I have little respect for the legal profession, but maybe they did a good job achieving a settlement of €7,500

Not protracted, straight forward settled on the steps. Insurance companies legal team got 9k and the lads team got 12k.

Sono

Sue Pa Key Pa wrote: »

Lads, we've all made this mess that we find ourselves in today

It's a shame the public can't see this, there is a claims culture in Ireland that has crept in particularly where PI claims are concerned yet the insurance companies are the ones who are the bad guys.....

Sue Pa Key Pa

nhunter100 wrote: »

Not protracted, straight forward settled on the steps. Insurance companies legal team got 9k and the lads team got 12k.

Settled on the steps is a protracted claim. For it to get that far it would have involved extensive discovery, investigation and negotiation. If you heard it on the radio, you heard one side of the story

Tigger

celticwarrior8 wrote: »

peteb2 - i dont like your tone here, what have i done to irritate you? im only asking a question, i know nothing about this stuff. my financial loss? you did read the part about losing my job? anyway, i have read, only last week, that for soft tissue damage, which i have, people are looking at payouts of 5 - 10 - 15k. I didnt ask to have someone ram into me, hurt me, wreck my car. If i am legitimately entitled to compensation, then I shold receive it. If I am not, then fair enough.

don't mind him

Tigger

Sono wrote: »

You have 6 years to make a PI claim anyway, you hardly think that you just tell the insurance company you have all these injuries and they'll issue you with a cheque for €30k or so. Every case gets investigated to ascertain if the injuries are genuine or not

you do not have 6 years to make a pi claim

Tigger

Saul T Nutzz wrote: »

When you say the other party offered you €500, I presume you mean the insurer of the person that crashed into you?

Its pretty clear cut.

If the other party drove recklessly, you suffered a genuine injury as a result and they accepted liability then you are entitled to compensation.

The insurer will take care of the car side of it but you will need to register the claim with the injuriesboard.ie.

As far as I know it can be done online or you can download a claim form and post it to them. I think there may be a nominal fee payable by you (€12 is coming to mind).

You will need to provide all receipts in terms of medical expenses, trips to the doctors, physio etc. You will require a signed report from a medical practitioner detailing the injuries you have suffered.

Send that off to the injuries board and they will take it from there.

There is no need for a solicitor at this point anyway. Of course thats your right but bear in mind, they will only be looking out for their own interests and involving the legal establishment has a tendency to literally add years to injuries cases. The injuries board are impartial and exist to get a fair settlement for you and not cost the insurer an exorbitant amount.

you will get more with a solicitor
go visit a solicitor and they will help you a friend of mine had a similr claim and was very glad they used a solicitor

Sono

Tigger wrote: »

you do not have 6 years to make a pi claim

Sorry it's 2, 6 years for a property claim.

Tigger

Sono wrote: »

Sorry it's 2, 6 years for a property claim.

is ok but its important as it used to be 6 years so thats why i corrected it

Sue Pa Key Pa

A broker will only ensure you are correctly compensated for a claim under your own policy. He will not pursue a 3rd party on your behalf

Alanstrainor

peteb2, don't post in this thread again.

I've removed all the nonsense posts, I think what remains still makes sense.

Best of luck OP.

hullaballoo

Saul T Nutzz wrote: »

There is no need for a solicitor at this point anyway. Of course thats your right but bear in mind, they will only be looking out for their own interests and involving the legal establishment has a tendency to literally add years to injuries cases. The injuries board are impartial and exist to get a fair settlement for you and not cost the insurer an exorbitant amount.

This bit is completely incorrect.

It is always advisable to get a solicitor to bring your claim to the Personal Injuries Board because they will ensure the forms are filled out correctly, organise a medical report and ensure it covers everything, set out the case clearly from the outset.

But most importantly.

If/when PIAB come back with an assessment, they will be able to tell you in no uncertain terms whether or not to take the amount they suggest. As you have seen, the amounts paid out for personal injuries depend on many factors and the range of payouts for seemingly similar injuries is vast. Your solicitor is in the best position to advise you in relation to the full value of your case.

As for the point about adding years to cases etc. to protect whatever imagined interests are at stake, all lawyers are interested in a quick resolution to every case that they take. Their professional interests lie in getting the best result for the client, which also serves their self-interest as the client will hopefully recommend the lawyer. Their self-interest also lies in getting paid asap - so speedy conclusion please. The reason it takes a long time to progress cases is because of inefficiencies in the way Courts lists work together with there being too few judges.

I'll tell you first hand it would be a far far preferable situation for me if I got paid for cases weeks rather than years after I draft a summons.


Also, solicitors (and barristers) regularly end up having to take steps to rectify an innocently made mistake arising from the PIAB process where people go to PIAB without the help of a solicitor. This can add to the time taken over a case quite significantly.

For the sake of peace of mind and knowing you are getting the best advice and not having to worry about whether or not to do this, take that, keep receipts etc., it's well worth your while getting a decent solicitor's help.

Liam McPoyle

hullaballoo wrote: »

This bit is completely incorrect.

It is always advisable to get a solicitor to bring your claim to the Personal Injuries Board because they will ensure the forms are filled out correctly, organise a medical report and ensure it covers everything, set out the case clearly from the outset.

But most importantly.

If/when PIAB come back with an assessment, they will be able to tell you in no uncertain terms whether or not to take the amount they suggest. As you have seen, the amounts paid out for personal injuries depend on many factors and the range of payouts for seemingly similar injuries is vast. Your solicitor is in the best position to advise you in relation to the full value of your case.

As for the point about adding years to cases etc. to protect whatever imagined interests are at stake, all lawyers are interested in a quick resolution to every case that they take. Their professional interests lie in getting the best result for the client, which also serves their self-interest as the client will hopefully recommend the lawyer. Their self-interest also lies in getting paid asap - so speedy conclusion please. The reason it takes a long time to progress cases is because of inefficiencies in the way Courts lists work together with there being too few judges.

I'll tell you first hand it would be a far far preferable situation for me if I got paid for cases weeks rather than years after I draft a summons.


Also, solicitors (and barristers) regularly end up having to take steps to rectify an innocently made mistake arising from the PIAB process where people go to PIAB without the help of a solicitor. This can add to the time taken over a case quite significantly.

For the sake of peace of mind and knowing you are getting the best advice and not having to worry about whether or not to do this, take that, keep receipts etc., it's well worth your while getting a decent solicitor's help.

You are in the legal profession so its natural you are going to try and defend it however the fact of the matter is that the injuries board was specifically set up to cut out the legal industry from injury claims due to the length of time it was taking to get cases processed and the associated costs with that.

The bigger the settlement for the claimant the bigger the cut for the solicitor so there is clearly a vested interest in keeping things going as long as possible and getting as big a settlement as possible. I find it difficult to align the argument that the legal industry is acting in the best interests of the claimants, there is too much money at stake for that to be believable.

Its unfortunate that the insurance industry and the legal industry are somewhat at odds when it comes to claims, there is vast expertise on both sides however for insurers they want to keep settlements as low as possible but solicitors want bigger settlements.

In an ideal world they would work in tandem to get a fair result for all parties and more so, to weed out the chancers, spoofers and fraudulent claimants but at the end of the day, there is literally millions of euro at stake every year and money is after all the root of all evil. I don't see any kind of partnership ever happening.

Just as an aside, I'd like if you contributed more to the threads in here, it would be good to get a legal perspective / point of view on some of the topics that come up.

nhunter100

hullaballoo wrote:

It is always advisable to get a solicitor to bring your claim to the Personal Injuries Board because they will ensure the forms are filled out correctly, organise a medical report and ensure it covers everything, set out the case clearly from the outset.

Actually I had an accident several years ago. Hit from behind, got the other drivers details insurance etc. Contacted their insurance company and started a claim. They provided me with a courtesy car whilst mine was being repaired. Contacted PIAB downloaded the forms filled them out. Keep all receipts from physio, hospital and all other out pocket expenses. Documented loss of earnings. Received all that was due to me and compensated to what I felt my injuries warranted. All done by myself no need for a legal team.

Special Circumstances

nhunter100 wrote: »

Actually I had an accident several years ago. Hit from behind, got the other drivers details insurance etc. Contacted their insurance company and started a claim. They provided me with a courtesy car whilst mine was being repaired. Contacted PIAB downloaded the forms filled them out. Keep all receipts from physio, hospital and all other out pocket expenses. Documented loss of earnings. Received all that was due to me and compensated to what I felt my injuries warranted. All done by myself no need for a legal team.

Similar initial circumstances. .. rang the other drivers insurance, I think I got onto peteb2 or similar character having an especially especially bad day.

Like endacl I have little tolerance for that attitude and the subsequent messing, solicitor cut through all their lowballing, conveniently not noticing certain damage to car and other shenanigans. To be fair the person who contacted me with the insultingly low ball value for the car damage was lovely but the damage had been done and the wheels were in motion at that stage.

A professional first point of contact for potential claimants might actually keep their bills down. I'm all about less stress in my life, I would have just dealt with them direct if they had offered genuine assistance and fair treatment up front... and kept the "even legitimate claimants are SSSCCCCUUUUUUMMMMM" rage to themselves. Instead they are turning people towards solicitors from the first phonecall.

Sue Pa Key Pa

SC, the other party's insurance company had a duty to their client to defend his position, verify your claim and minimise the outlay. Reverse the situation and you would not be too pleased if your insurer paid a 3rd party against you with the speed of light and for whatever they asked for.

Proviso; Everybody is entitled to be dealt with in a civil manner, no matter what their issue is. However, my experience is that many people take 'bad news' as a personal attack, even when it is handled professionally.

ED E

Saul T Nutzz wrote: »

You are in the legal profession so its natural you are going to try and defend it however the fact of the matter is that the injuries board was specifically set up to cut out the legal industry from injury claims due to the length of time it was taking to get cases processed and the associated costs with that.

The bigger the settlement for the claimant the bigger the cut for the solicitor so there is clearly a vested interest in keeping things going as long as possible and getting as big a settlement as possible. I find it difficult to align the argument that the legal industry is acting in the best interests of the claimants, there is too much money at stake for that to be believable.

Its unfortunate that the insurance industry and the legal industry are somewhat at odds when it comes to claims, there is vast expertise on both sides however for insurers they want to keep settlements as low as possible but solicitors want bigger settlements.

In an ideal world they would work in tandem to get a fair result for all parties and more so, to weed out the chancers, spoofers and fraudulent claimants but at the end of the day, there is literally millions of euro at stake every year and money is after all the root of all evil. I don't see any kind of partnership ever happening.

Just as an aside, I'd like if you contributed more to the threads in here, it would be good to get a legal perspective / point of view on some of the topics that come up.

+1 Its a layman friendly process. Lawyers are bitter about losing their cut.