Whiplash case?

caxarok68

So about 2 months ago i was in a left lane at a junction where 2 lanes are going straight and later merge into one at said part i indicated and merged into the right one only to find out 2 traffic lights later that i apparently merged wrongly by a screaming man that has appeared in front of my car taking down my insurance details from the disks . Apparently, he was chasing me until said traffic light as i was escaping from a scene of an accident (no contact happened between the two cars) and claiming that he had to break so hard that now his shoulder hurts . To cut the story short after about 20 min of halting one of the major roads in Galway the guards came down and asked what was the reason for the two of us stopping in the middle of the road. The fella ran started to tell them about his hard breaking and about his shoulder , at that stage they only asked me for my phone and told me that they would be in contact if anything was to arise so i went on my jolly way thinking that that was that only to find out today that after 2 months that the other person rang and is now giving a statement . He said that i don't have to give a statement now but when the other person does i need to appear to give my version of things . Now the question being am I wrong into overthinking that this could go to court in some shape or form or shall i not worry ?

Donal55

caxarok68 wrote: »

So about 2 months ago i was in a left lane at a junction where 2 lanes are going straight and later merge into one at said part i indicated and merged into the right one only to find out 2 traffic lights later that i apparently merged wrongly by a screaming man that has appeared in front of my car taking down my insurance details from the disks . Apparently, he was chasing me until said traffic light as i was escaping from a scene of an accident (no contact happened between the two cars) and claiming that he had to break so hard that now his shoulder hurts . To cut the story short after about 20 min of halting one of the major roads in Galway the guards came down and asked what was the reason for the two of us stopping in the middle of the road. The fella ran started to tell them about his hard breaking and about his shoulder , at that stage they only asked me for my phone and told me that they would be in contact if anything was to arise so i went on my jolly way thinking that that was that only to find out today that after 2 months that the other person rang and is now giving a statement . He said that i don't have to give a statement now but when the other person does i need to appear to give my version of things . Now the question being am I wrong into overthinking that this could go to court in some shape or form or shall i not worry ?

Id guess a claim is on the way.
Deny everything.

caxarok68

What i dont understand even if he tries to claim on what ground since there was no accident ?

Liam McPoyle

caxarok68 wrote: »

What i dont understand even if he tries to claim on what ground since there was no accident ?

He cannot make a claim if there was no collision.

caxarok68

Saul T Nutzz wrote: »

He cannot make a claim if there was no collision.

I know i might sound stupid here but why is he making his statement 2 months later ? Or Is it a legal thing that if guards are present it must be done

Jayop

caxarok68 wrote: »

I know i might sound stupid here but why is he making his statement 2 months later ? Or Is it a legal thing that if guards are present it must be done

Because he's a chancer who probably has had several previous claims and has recruited a no win no fee lawyer so will try to get some money out of you. He's a whopper and I hope that nothing comes of this for your sake.

Interestingly though, had he rear ended you then it would have looked for all intents and purposes like it was his fault regardless.

Liam McPoyle

caxarok68 wrote: »

I know i might sound stupid here but why is he making his statement 2 months later ? Or Is it a legal thing that if guards are present it must be done

Im not too au fait with the legal aspect but I'd say that's what it is.

caxarok68

Jayop wrote: »

Because he's a chancer who probably has had several previous claims and has recruited a no win no fee lawyer so will try to get some money out of you. He's a whopper and I hope that nothing comes of this for your sake.

Interestingly though, had he rear ended you then it would have looked for all intents and purposes like it was his fault regardless.

I really hope so too but we shall see how this escalates if it does at all.

Henry Ford III

Why do people spell "breaking" instead of "braking"?

If I called the tv series "Braking Bad" there'd be chaos.

NUTLEY BOY

A few observations.

Even if there was no physical collision between two cars the other motorist can most certainly make a claim. Physical collision between two vehicles is not a pre-requisite for a valid entitlement to claim.

If a car is driven negligently and that causes a situation whereby another motorist is injured through taking evasive or avoiding action the way is open for a claim. A classical scenario would be where someone pulls out from a side road - negligently - and creates an emergency for the other car during the course of which an injury is sustained.

That said, remember that the onus of proof rests with the claimant. The standard of proof in respect of fault and injuries is the balance of probabilities. I do not fancy the claimants chances unless he had a dash-cam that clearly shows what happened. There is a sporting chance that this may go away.

Be sure that you have reported this to your motor insurers.

Otherwise, I share the whiff of suspicion. Offhand this sounds like a petulant article who perceives himself to be a victim of road rage or some such and who got a fit of the red mist mixed with righteous indignation. There a few of them around

The OP is not obliged to make a statement. I would not be inclined to simply deny everything but rather to indicate verbally to Gardai - only if asked - no knowledge of any event prior to the appearance of "screaming man" in my face. If you make a statement setting out the situation as you have explained it that could be construed as evidence that you did not see the other car at the relevant time. IMHO you should decline to make a statement or to be drawn by Gardai to say something similar in answer to their questions. Stick with your first knowledge being that of the appearance of "screaming man".

BTW you are not required to explain to Gardaí why you are declining to make a statement.

caxarok68

NUTLEY BOY wrote: »

A few observations.

Even if there was no physical collision between two cars the other motorist can most certainly make a claim. Physical collision between two vehicles is not a pre-requisite for a valid entitlement to claim.

If a car is driven negligently and that causes a situation whereby another motorist is injured through taking evasive or avoiding action the way is open for a claim. A classical scenario would be where someone pulls out from a side road - negligently - and creates an emergency for the other car during the course of which an injury is sustained.

That said, remember that the onus of proof rests with the claimant. The standard of proof in respect of fault and injuries is the balance of probabilities. I do not fancy the claimants chances unless he had a dash-cam that clearly shows what happened. There is a sporting chance that this may go away.

Be sure that you have reported this to your motor insurers.

Otherwise, I share the whiff of suspicion. Offhand this sounds like a petulant article who perceives himself to be a victim of road rage or some such and who got a fit of the red mist mixed with righteous indignation. There a few of them around

The OP is not obliged to make a statement. I would not be inclined to simply deny everything but rather to indicate verbally to Gardai - only if asked - no knowledge of any event prior to the appearance of "screaming man" in my face. If you make a statement setting out the situation as you have explained it that could be construed as evidence that you did not see the other car at the relevant time. IMHO you should decline to make a statement or to be drawn by Gardai to say something similar in answer to their questions. Stick with your first knowledge being that of the appearance of "screaming man".

BTW you are not required to explain to Gardaí why you are declining to make a statement.

Since the garda haven't gotten back to me last week as they said they would this might have ended before it began but thanks for the pointers might be useful as it took two months for the other part to consider making a statement might still be in with a chance of a nice Christmas surprise