How much is my claim worth?
By Eoin P. Campbell, LL.B., Solicitor
Claim Valuation
This is one of the most common questions asked by clients of their solicitors in relation to personal injury claims.
The short answer is that in the early stage of the preparation of your personal injury litigation case there is absolutely no way of knowing the answer to this question.
It is important to remember that (assuming liability is not in question) the ‘value’ of a personal injury case is assessed by looking at the severity of the injury to the plaintiff and how same will affect their working, family, recreational and personal lives in the short, medium and long terms.
Some injuries may take a number of months or even years to manifest themselves. A scarring injury, for example, may take a considerable amount of time to settle.
It is worth remembering therefore that your solicitor is not a medical professional; he or she is not qualified to, and therefore will not, offer a diagnosis of your injury or a prognosis for the recovery period from same.
The role of your solicitor is to ensure that the settlement figure or award accurately reflects the personal loss, injury and damage that you have sustained as a result of your accident. In order to do so, he or she will take the greatest care to construct the strongest possible case on your behalf.
Your solicitor will rely on medical evidence from your own doctor including medical records (showing any attendances at hospital or with your general practitioner in relation to your accident) and perhaps commissioned reports from specialist consultants.
I would advise those who have sustained a personal injury as the result of the fault of another in a road traffic accident to consider the above very carefully after an accident has occurred. Increasingly, clients are reporting that they have been contacted directly by the third party’s insurance company with offers of settlement in the weeks or even days following the incident.
The temptation to accept an early offer of settlement is strong; the immediate offer of money with minimum hassle and fuss, particularly in the current economic climate, often seems too good to refuse. There is however no way of knowing how much the claim is potentially worth at such an early stage and the risk is that the plaintiff may settle their claim for a figure that falls short of its potential value. It is worth asking yourself the question ‘Why would the insurance company offer to settle the case at such an early stage?’. The response is quite logical; to save costs and, in many cases, to pay less compensation than they might be required to at a later date. The liable party will normally be responsible for not only the compensation payment but also for both sets of legal costs and for the costs of procuring specialist medical reports.
It is important to note that each case is unique. If you feel that you have a potential personal injury claim, you are advised to discuss all of the points raised in the preceding article with a solicitor at the earliest opportunity.
This article is Copyright © 2009 Eoin P. Campbell. All rights reserved. No reproduction permitted.
About the Author
Eoin P. Campbell is an honours law graduate (LL.B) and qualified solicitor whose primary professional experience is in the area of litigation and in particular personal injury claims. Eoin P. Campbell is currently lecturing in law at two universities in Lyon, France.
