Introduction to personal injury compensation claims Ireland : Determining that an injury has occurred — either physical or psychological — can be proven by the victim´s medical records. However, establishing liability for the injury can often be complicated when negligence is disputed or a counter claim is made that the victim contributed to their injuries by their own lack of care. Most claims for personal injury compensation are resolved without the need for litigation in court, but your solicitor will always prepare the strongest possible personal injury claim on your behalf in case court action is required to obtain a fair settlement.
Often accident victims are unaware of how much compensation can be claimed as special damages, and as a result the personal injury compensation amounts that are recovered could be lower when legal advice has not been sought. A solicitor will ensure that all costs and expenses — including future costs if known — are included on your claim form under special damages. A solicitor will also arrange for your injuries to be thoroughly assessed by specialist doctors. This is important as your claim must be accompanied by a medical assessment form (Claim Form B). If your medical assessment form does not contain details of all aspects of your injuries – including minor injuries such as cuts and bruises — you will not be able to recover your full entitlement to compensation.
Should someone under the age of eighteen want to pursue a claim for personal injury compensation, it is important to recognise that the Stature of Limitations for personal injuries proceeds from child’s eighteenth birthday. Once the injured party reached the age of eighteen, this is considered their date of knowledge, and after this point they have two years to go to court or file with the Injuries Board. Read more info on What to do after a personal injury accident in Ireland.
Another critical exception entails those who have a cognitive or other related disability which prevents them making a claim for compensation. In these situations, the Statute of Limitations is applied from the date on which they are considered able to make a claim, even though the statute may have expired under other circumstances.
If the claimant has admitted to contributory negligence, any negotiations between the plaintiff and the respondent will usually be protracted and claims will take significantly longer to resolve than other, less complex cases. Ordinarily, this is a direct result of the conflict between the parties as to how much negligence will be assigned – the insurers or legal representatives of the accused will want to assign the claimant as high a percentage of the liability as possible. In these instances, it is particularly important that those seeking compensation engage with a solicitor who will negotiate for their best interests. Read extra details at http://www.personal-injury-ireland.com/.
Though there is a lack of clear and relevant statistics concerning work injury compensation claims made in Ireland, annual figures released by the Injuries Board Ireland would suggest that there are approximately one thousand claims made each year. However, it is important to note that there is no way to distinguish between injuries caused by employer negligence and other accidents when looking at many of the statistics provided. Despite the unclear data, one notable trend is the reduced number of fatal accidents at the workplace each year. This could be attributed to the general decline in what would have traditionally been the most dangerous industries – construction, fishing and agriculture – though recent improvements in health and safety practices have also helped the decline. However, in contrast to this positive trend, an increased number of sick days are being claimed by employees. There are many theories as to why this could be the case – employees may be more stressed, leading to stress-induced injuries, or the businesses may have lowered maintenance standards and put the health of their employees at stake.
The first priority is always health and safety: ensuring that anyone injured in the accident receives prompt medical attention is more important than anything else in the immediate aftermath of a car accident. Even if the injuries do not warrant an ambulance, it is still highly advisable to visit an accident and emergency department or other medical center for an examination. This serves a dual purpose: it both mitigates any lasting damage and, as such, helps to prevent chronic illnesses, but it also increases the likelihood of recovering compensation. If there is a large gap between the date of the accident and the date on which you sought medical attention, this could cause a huge decrease in the amount of compensation you can receive. It could be contested that the injuries were caused by an intervening event, or that the damages that occurred would not have come about had immediate medical attention been sought. Read extra details on http://www.personal-injury-ireland.com/hit-and-run-accident-compensation/.