What Is Personal Injury Law?
This guide will explore the question, “what is personal injury law?”. This area of law deals with claims made for injuries that have been sustained due to a third party breaching their duty of care. We will provide further guidance on the third parties that can owe a duty of care and the steps you can take if you are injured after they fail to uphold their duty.
What is personal injury law?
Additionally, we will explore the personal injury compensation you could receive following a successful claim.
If you want to know if you can claim, or would like further information about using our panel of personal injury lawyers, please contact us by:
- Calling the number above
- Speaking with an advisor via the live chat feature
- Filling out our ‘claim online‘ form.
Select A Section
- A Guide To Personal Injury Law
- What Is Personal Injury Law and Why Is It Important?
- Compensation For Personal Injury – What Could You Receive?
- Why Is Evidence Important To The Personal Injury Claims Process?
- Why Use A Personal Injury Lawyer On A No Win No Fee Basis?
- Learn More About Personal Injury Law
A Guide To Personal Injury Law
There are several instances in which you may wish to make a personal injury claim. For example:
- Accidents at work: Every employer needs to take reasonable steps to ensure the work environment, facilities and equipment are safe to be used for their intended purpose. This duty of care is established in The Health and Safety at Work Act etc. 1974.
- Accidents in a public place: The person responsible for public spaces has a duty of care to ensure the reasonable safety of members of the public. This can involve performing regular safety checks and remedying any clear issue that could lead to an injury within a reasonable timescale. Their duty of care is illustrated in The Occupiers Liability Act 1957.
- Road traffic accidents: Every road user has a duty of care to ensure that they use the road safely without risking other people’s welfare. This is outlined in the Road Traffic Act 1988. The Highway Code also establishes a set of rules and recommendations that should be followed on the road.
In personal injury law, it is important that each claim meets the relevant eligibility criteria. We have explored this in more detail in the following section.
What Is Personal Injury Law and Why Is It Important?
You may be wondering, “what is personal injury law?”. Proving that third-party negligence caused your injury is crucial when seeking compensation for personal injury. Negligence involves:
- A third party owing a duty of care
- A third party breaching their duty of care
- The breach of duty causing you harm.
You must prove that negligence occurred in order to make a personal injury claim. To learn more, please contact us for free using the details above. Alternatively, please read on to learn how personal injury compensation is calculated.
Compensation For Personal Injury – What Could You Receive?
In personal injury law, there are up to two potential heads of claim when you’re seeking compensation for a personal injury. Compensation can be awarded for the physical or psychological pain and suffering the injury under general damages. Factors that could determine what you receive include:
- The injury’s severity
- Whether any permanent symptoms were caused
- How badly the injury has impacted your quality of life
Below is a table that uses figures taken from the Judicial College Guidelines. These guidelines are often used by solicitors and lawyers to assist them when they are valuing your injuries. Please bear in mind that, as every claim for negligence is different, the amount received can differ from case to case.
| Injury | Description | Compensation Bracket |
|---|---|---|
| Moderately Severe Brain Damage (b) | This injury will lead to a very serious disability. | £219,070 to £282,010 |
| Severe Leg Injury (b) (i) | The most serious types of injuries that fall short of amputation. | £96,250 to £135,920 |
| Severe Knee Injury (a) (i) | A serious knee injury causing several issues such as considerable pain, loss of function and a lengthy treatment. | £69,730 to £96,210 |
| Serious Hand Injury (e) | Injuries that reduce the hand to around half it's capacity. | £29,000 to £61,910 |
| Moderately Severe Anxiety Disorder (b) | The person has a better prognosis than in more severe cases after receiving help from a professional. | £23,150 to £59,860 |
| Chest Injury (c) | Damage to lung(s) and chest causing a disability that is continuous. | £31,310 to £54,830 |
| Injuries affecting sight (e) | Sight is completely lost in one eye. | £49,270 to £54,830 |
| Moderate Back Injuries (b) (ii) | Disturbance of ligaments and muscles that can cause backache and soft tissue injuries that can exacerbate a pre-existing back condition are injuries included in this bracket. | £12,510 to £27,760 |
| Moderate Ankle Injury (c) | Injuries that lead to a less serious disability, such as fractures and tears of the ligaments. | £13,740 to £26,590 |
| Modest Foot Injuries (g) | Injuries such as a simple metatarsal fracture or puncture wounds causing continuing symptoms. | Up to £13,740 |
Special Damages In Personal Injury Compensation
You could also receive compensation for the financial losses caused by the personal injury under special damages. Potential losses can include the cost of adjustments to your home, loss of earnings, travel expenses and healthcare costs.
You would require sufficient evidence, such as receipts, bank statements and invoices to claim these costs back.
How Is Evidence Important To The Personal Injury Claims Process?
Evidence is crucial to the personal injury claim process. In order to claim, you need to be able to prove that negligence occurred. Potential evidence you could collect can include:
- Medical scans of your injuries
- Notes from your doctor highlighting the nature of the injury
- Photographs of your injury and the accident site
- Contact details of any witnesses
- CCTV footage or dash cam footage of the accident.
To learn more about evidence within personal injury law, get in touch.
Why Use A Personal Injury Lawyer On A No Win No Fee Basis?
You may want to know, “what are the benefits of using personal injury lawyers on a No Win No Fee basis?”.
If you use a No Win No Fee lawyer to help you build a personal injury claim, you generally won’t have to pay them an upfront or ongoing fee for their services. They might offer you a Conditional Fee Agreement, which can typically mean:
- You don’t pay for the work they do on your claim if it fails.
- You pay a success fee from your compensation if your claim is successful. This fee is capped by the law.
Contact Us For Free To See If You Can Claim Damages For Personal Injury
Our panel of lawyers all work on a No Win No Fee basis. Contact us today to see if you’re eligible to have a lawyer from our panel represent your claim on this basis.
Our advisors are available 24/7 and can provide free legal advice on your potential claim. To get in touch, you can:
- Call the number above
- Speak with an advisor via the live chat feature
- Fill out our ‘claim online‘ form.
Learn More About Personal Injury Law
Below, we have provided some external resources that you may benefit from:
If you’ve had an accident, you may want to request CCTV footage. This government guide can help.
If you’ve suffered an injury from a hit and run car accident, you may be able to claim using the Motor Insurer’s Bureau (MIB). Learn more about the process via their website.
For any medical advice, visit the NHS website.
You can also check out some of our other guides on working with personal injury lawyers below:
- How Much Do Solicitors Take For Personal Injury?
- Find Personal Injury Lawyers For London
- Learn More About Personal Injury Lawyers
Thank you for reading this guide exploring the question ‘what is personal injury law?’. If you have any other questions, please get in touch using the details provided above.