As our father suffered a serious injury in an accident last month we want to know if he can claim spinal injury compensation. His accident happened when his car collided with another car that was speeding.
Eoin P. Campbell, LL.B., Solicitor
Editor in Chief
If it can be proven that the accident that caused your father’s injury was due to another party’s full or even partial negligence, he should be able to claim spinal injury compensation. As you will understand from your father’s injury, spinal damage is very serious and it is recommended that to proceed with a case such as this, you engage with the assistance of an experienced solicitor.
Your father will need to have completed a number of procedures in order to pursue a spinal injury compensation claim. Given the serious nature of such an injury, a solicitor would be able to complete such procedures on his behalf. They could include gathering witness information and reviewing the report filed to the Gardai in their Accident Report Book. Assuming that your father was taken to hospital by ambulance immediately following the accident, his injuries will already have been recorded in his medical history – which would be a vital source of evidence.
Because of the high value potential of a spinal injury compensation claim, the negligent party’s insurers may approach your father with an unsolicited offer of compensation. Offers of this kind are notorious for falling below the true value of a victim’s compensation, as they are generally offered as a cost-cutting practice, with little recognition given to how the injury has affected the victim’s quality of life.
An experienced solicitor would be able to give a preliminary estimate of how much spinal injury compensation your father is genuinely entitled to by encompassing issues such as loss of amenity – the impact the injury has had on his quality of life – and psychological trauma – for example, if he has become depressed as a result of his injury. Financial expenses, such as medical bills or even the cost of renovating your father’s home can also be recovered.
No amount of spinal injury compensation can be a substitute for a life-long injury, but an expert solicitor would ensure that your father receives the maximum amount possible.