Most cyclists who come to us for advice about making a compensation claim after an accident, are nervous about the prospect. We firmly believe that the best way to calm the nerves is to gain some understanding of the claims process in cycling accident cases.
We asked some of our personal injury solicitors to put together five things cyclists should know before starting a personal injury claim.
1. Is There A Time Limit For Making Your Cycling Accident Claim?
A claim for a cycling accident must be made within a certain time period. You might have heard this referred to as the ‘limitation period. Miss the limitation deadline, and you won’t be able to claim. The rule applies even if the other party involved was responsible for your accident, and you suffered serious injuries.
- The standard time limit in cycling injury cases is three years from the date of your accident.
However, you may not become aware your injury was caused by the negligence of the other person in the accident, until sometime later.
If that is the case, the time limit will start running from the date you found out that the injury was suffered due to the accident.
- Special rules apply to cases involving children and people who lack the mental capacity needed to manage their own case.
Instructing a solicitor to pursue your case is not the same as issuing a claim at court. It can take time to prepare a case and get it in the best possible shape to present to the other side. If you only take legal advice shortly before the end of the time limit, you may miss the time limit for starting your claim.
Seeking out legal advice about your cycling accident claim as soon as possible will prevent any issues with limitation. Of course, your first priority should always be to get medical treatment for your injuries. If your injuries are severe, you may need some time to adjust to your new norm. However, as soon as you feel up to it, you should make seeking legal advice a priority. Then your solicitor will ensure your case is ready to be issued, should the settlement negotiations they enter with the other side, break down .
2. Collecting Evidence Is Important, Especially Where Liability Is Disputed
To succeed in a cycling accident claim, you must prove that someone else’s negligence caused your accident. That’s why getting evidence can be so important. The more evidence you have to support your position, the stronger your case will be.
Some evidence will be reports from experts, such as medical or accident reconstruction evidence. If you hire a cycling accident solicitor, you won’t need to worry about that. Your personal injury solicitor’s job is to assess the type of expert evidence you need and then set about getting it.
However, there’s plenty of evidence that can support your claim that you can gather, such as:
- Photographs
These might include photographs of the aftermath of the accident, your bike, and your injuries.
- Witness accounts
If anyone witnessed your accident, their recollections of what happened can significantly bolster your case.
- Your own account
You are a key witness to your own case. Noting down your recollections of what happened shortly after the event ensures that you don’t forget key facts.
- Helmet camera footage
If available, this type of evidence can be invaluable. Helmet cameras provide a contemporary and unbiased account of what happened in the accident. If the evidence is good enough, it makes it impossible for the other party to dispute events.
- Details of your losses
Our compensation will include an amount to cover your financial losses. For example, if your injuries meant that you were unable to work for a while, you can claim for your loss of earnings. You’ll need evidence to prove your financial losses, such as wage slips and medical bills.
3. Your Compensation Claim May Take A While!
If you make a cycling accident claim, you will need to be patient. Getting the right amount of compensation can take time.
Once you’ve accepted a settlement offer, you can’t go back and ask for more, even if it later transpires that your injuries were more extensive than you initially thought.
Therefore, it’s vital that the compensation you receive is for everything you’re entitled to.
To ensure you receive all the compensation you deserve, our solicitors will carefully prepare your case. We’ll speak to witnesses, instruct experts, and gather as much evidence in support of your claim as possible.
How long your case will take to settle depends on the facts, such as
- the complexity of the issues involved
- the severity of your injuries, and,
- whether the other side accepts liability.
While almost half of all straightforward whiplash claims are settled within 3-6 months of being started, more serious injury types can take considerably longer.
Claims involving catastrophic injuries can occasionally take years to be resolved.
Sometimes, our cycling injury clients need money to address their immediate needs following the accident. For instance, you might need to undergo early rehabilitation to give yourself the best chance of making a complete recovery from your injuries.
In these cases, waiting for your compensation can cause financial issues. Fortunately, the court allows personal injury claimants to receive some of their compensation before their case has settled in some circumstances.
These payments are known as interim payments. We’ll advise you on the likelihood of the court approving a request for an interim payment in your case and prepare the relevant application on your behalf.
If liability is not disputed, then the insurers or solicitors of the person who caused the accident, may agree to make an interim payment without having to go to court to get an order.
4. Can You Still Claim If You Were Partly To Blame?
While most cyclists understand the risks surrounding cycling and are incredibly careful on the roads, lapses of concentration and mistakes do happen.
If you are partly to blame for your accident it doesn’t prevent you from claiming compensation; it merely affects the amount you can recover. Playing a part in your own accident is known in law as contributory negligence.
Say, for example, you were involved in a collision with a car while not wearing a helmet.
If your lack of a helmet meant that your injuries were more serious than they might otherwise have been, you’re still entitled to compensation, but the amount would likely be reduced to reflect your own contributory negligence.
It’s up to the other side’s insurers to raise contributory negligence. If they do, your solicitor will explain the next steps. However, don’t think that if you may have been partly to blame, your claim will fail entirely – that’s not the case!
If you’ve been injured in a cycling accident and believe you might be partly to blame, call us on 029 2199 1927.
5. How Much Compensation Will I Get For My Cycling Claim?
One of the first questions most of our clients ask is, “How much compensation will I receive?” After all, you deserve compensation for the pain and suffering you’ve suffered as a result of someone else’s negligence.
Unfortunately, it’s an impossible question to answer at the start of a claim. No two personal injury claims are ever identical.
What we can tell you is that you’ll receive two types of damages (the legal term for ‘compensation’):
- General damages compensate you for your pain, suffering, and loss of amenity. The amount will be based on factors that include the type or types of injury you suffered and how much being injured has affected your everyday life.
- Special damages compensate you for any financial losses caused by being injured in the accident. These might include loss of earnings, care costs, and medical expenses.
Your injury lawyer can’t give you anything but a general idea of how much compensation you can expect to get until medical reports are obtained and there is a final prognosis (opinion) on your injuries.
Our website has an interactive personal injury compensation calculator. It will help you gain a rough idea of the amount of damages you might receive for some of the more common types of injuries people suffer as a result of cycling accident claims. However, it is still merely ‘a guide’ and should be viewed as such.
Your solicitor is the person who will be able to give you a more accurate estimate, but only once they have all the necessary medical and other evidence to hand.
Looking For A Cycling Accident Solicitor?
If so, you are in the right place. Mooneerams cycling accident claims expert is solicitor, Gareth Edwards, who is a keen road cyclist and mountain biker. If you are thinking of bringing a cycling accident claim as a result of an accident that wasn’t your fault.
Call Mooneerams Solicitors now on 029 2199 1927 to speak with Gareth or one of his colleagues. By calling us, you are not committing yourself to anything – you can chat with us freely and without fear. We’ll give you our thoughts on whether we believe you have a reasonable claim.
Gareth Edwards – Solicitor at Mooneerams
We usually handle bicycle accident claims on a No Win No Fee basis, so you can claim the compensation you deserve without worrying about paying our fees up front.
If you want to find out more about cycling accident claims call us on 029 2199 1927 or leave your contact details in the box on the right-hand side and press the Start Your Claim button.
Posted in Road Traffic Accidents
