1 Family, 40 Claims, Over EUR1m Awarded - How can we stop Ireland's claims culture?

SusieBlue · 17-01-2019 05:53PM

I see sheep wrote: »

You only get trouble if you go looking for it and I'd say you annoy people, you're obviously an arsehole like so I don't blame the travellers.

This is actually laughable. Talk about victim blaming.

James Brown · 17-01-2019 06:01PM

el Fenomeno wrote: »

I was just reading the below article:

https://www.independent.ie/irish-news/just-one-family-behind-40-personal-injury-claims-worth-over-1m-37720550.html

Click for the full piece, but the jist of it is that members of one British family have been behind 40 personal injury claims (brought as a result of 15 separate accidents) in the UK and Ireland since 2007, and have been awarded over €1m from these claims in total.

In particular, they've been travelling to Ireland every year since 2005 and - as bad luck would have it - have been involved in an accident here on every trip.

The Independent are full of these stories - there's a new one every day. Yesterday it was a guy in a Spar who - when moving out of the way for a member of staff who was running - hit his ankle off of a shelf. He left the shop and claimed when he got home he lost consciousness. Thankfully, the judge threw out his claim for €60,000 but did award him €1,500 in any case.

The day before, it was a woman who went rollerskating and tripped over a child's leg and fractured her thumb while also suffering whiplash. She was off work for a week, but no doubt felt better after a judge awarded her €25k.

I'm aware these stories are being reported more and more because they're pretty easy click-generators - fools like me can't help but read them so they can be outraged. But there is a rampant claims culture here. Are these payouts calculated based on precedent, or how are they calculated?

These are ridiculous sums of money. I have genuine sympathy for people who are injured and who's lives are impacted and changed as a result. But when it's so obvious that so many people are exaggerating their claims to get awarded fat payouts, what can be done about it?

You'd feel sick working your arse off to save for a mortgage deposit when some cheat can easily exaggerate some whiplash and be handed theirs by a judge.

This and the Casey Traveler thing make for great distraction. Like all things there are cases and reams of chancers but with children's hospital over run, homeless, housing and health crises becoming par for the course maybe they need a change of story.

m5ex9oqjawdg2i · 17-01-2019 06:16PM

seamus wrote: »

Even look at the family in the OP. €1m over 8 years is €125,000 per year. If we assume 10 people in this family, then it's an average of €12,500 per person per year. Which is not a lot. And that's just what they've claimed, it's not what they've been awards. These people aren't creaming it.

What planet are you living on? Incredibly naive.

randd1 · 17-01-2019 06:38PM

I see sheep wrote: »

You only get trouble if you go looking for it and I'd say you annoy people, you're obviously an arsehole like so I don't blame the travellers.

Wow. What's it like living under a bridge waiting for goats to pass?

enricoh · 17-01-2019 06:56PM

Matt Barrett wrote: »

This and the Casey Traveler thing make for great distraction. Like all things there are cases and reams of chancers but with children's hospital over run, homeless, housing and health crises becoming par for the course maybe they need a change of story.

Maybe the stories are made up?!!
Maybe the fact that my insurance doubled in the last 5 years is down the these scumbags??

Wheres Me Jumper? · 17-01-2019 07:25PM

i dont know who these people are, what their ethnicity or nationality is.
what i do know is this,

the system for insurance compensation in this country is a joke.

the scammers, the legal-eagles and the insurance companies are fleecing the ordinary law-abiding, compliant motorist, who it seems is regarded as little more than a cash-cow to be milked at will.

Plumbthedepths · 17-01-2019 09:26PM

The Times is carrying an article about 5 people all with the last name Joyce who withdrew their claim for damages related to a motor crash. Seems certain judges ain't buying the bs anymore. Sorry I can't link off my phone, but in today's Times paper

endacl · 18-01-2019 12:34AM

Best of luck to Aviva with this one.

backspin. · 18-01-2019 12:41AM

That poor poor family, such bad luck.

RacoonQueen · 18-01-2019 07:43AM

Plumbthedepths wrote: »

The Times is carrying an article about 5 people all with the last name Joyce who withdrew their claim for damages related to a motor crash. Seems certain judges ain't buying the bs anymore. Sorry I can't link off my phone, but in today's Times paper

Indo have same story
https://www.independent.ie/irish-news/courts/family-quit-190000-car-accident-claim-after-barristers-examination-37724102.html

They were chasing a claim from an accident in 2009!

Captain Obvious · 18-01-2019 08:09AM

I saw an insurance company fight one of these claims before. Five family members in a car and drove it into the back of someone. Sued their own driver. The barrister destroyed all four claimants and made a fool of the driver. It was great to watch.

Berserker · 18-01-2019 10:06AM

Aegir wrote: »

I was involved in a car crash a few years back, a driver went through a red light and hit us at around 50Kmh. He denied responsibility so his insurance wouldn't pay out.

Seems pretty cut and dry to me. What did he say happened?

Franz Von Peppercorn · 18-01-2019 10:11AM

Again this shows how our judicial system is broken and not fit for purpose.

Wheres Me Jumper? · 18-01-2019 11:11AM

Captain Obvious wrote: »

I saw an insurance company fight one of these claims before. Five family members in a car and drove it into the back of someone. Sued their own driver. The barrister destroyed all four claimants and made a fool of the driver. It was great to watch.

would like to see more of that, but sadly it's way too easy to urge the claimants & defendants to settle. that way the barristers, solcs. can wrap it up, and meet for a few drinks after, courtesy of the rest of us who will eventually pick up the tab.

Cee-Jay-Cee · 18-01-2019 12:00PM

I see sheep wrote: »

There's already 3!! threads on the first page of this forum abusing travellers, do you go into every thread and try to link it to travellers?

No need to go into the thread as the title generally gives it away. Considering travellers are the source of most crime and criminal behaviour in this country then its easy to guess that they are yet again the subject of these stories.

Hector Savage · 18-01-2019 12:42PM

I see sheep wrote: »

There's already 3!! threads on the first page of this forum abusing travellers, do you go into every thread and try to link it to travellers?

What's your obsession?

Do a traveller girl you fancied shoot you down when you were a young lad and now you spend your life obsessed with them?

Is that even possible ?

18-01-2019 01:03PM

Berserker wrote: »

Seems pretty cut and dry to me. What did he say happened?

The sun was in his eyes, so he couldn't tell.

The Fire Brigade moved on all the cars that were there as well. so i didn't get the name of any witnesses.

1 Family, 40 Claims, Over EUR1m Awarded - How can we stop Ireland's claims culture?

Comments