Personal Injury Claim - Motor Accident - Elderly Mother

[dizco]

Did you not engage a solicitor? There are personal injury specialists because... well... it's a specialist area...

Were you put off by the "don't choose a no win no fee solicitor" comment?

I was a little yes. I'd also imagine the amount currently offered will be absorbed by the fees too and leave us at square one.

[des8]

apil will point you in the direction of a lawyer specialising in personal injury claims.
I only linked to it to give you an idea of the complexity of personal injury compensation.

most, if not all your costs should be met by the insurers, but your solicitor will discuss with you all options.
Conditional fee arrangement (no win no fee) is a standard way of covering costs where the outcome is uncertain.
As the insurers have admitted liability in this case, all that remains is to agree the quantum.
Insurers will want to keep it as low as possible, but your solicitor will help your mother to the best possible result

[Manxman]

I was a little yes. I'd also imagine the amount currently offered will be absorbed by the fees too and leave us at square one.

That is unfortunate. AIUI their fees are capped.

[atticus]

APIL = Association of Personal Injury Lawyers. It is not a law firm. Its members are.

[dizco]

Hello Everybody

I just wanted to provide an update on my mother's claim, and ask for some advice.

We received a written offer of £4K as full and final settlement, or the opportunity for mum to have a psychological assessment to determine how the accident has impacted her mentally.

We chose the assessment, and last week a doctor visited the house and interviewed mum. His conclusion was that she had been significantly impacted mentally by the accident and he's now filing the report to LV. He also felt that mum could benefit from some additional counselling and has said that he would say this in his recommendation to LV.

What I don't want is this dragging the claim out any longer than it needs to be, so I've refused the counselling on the grounds that it has no bearing on mums claim up until this point and we'll arrange any counselling she might need, should she choose to have it.

She's 90 years old now, and after trying to find a solicitor for her, she's decided she just wants an end to it.

I have written to LV and asked them to provide a schedule in terms of when we can expect to receive an offer. The accident was in January 2022, and the whole process has been protracted and draining for mum.

My questions are:
- Without a solicitor, how can we maximise what mum might be due now that she's had an additional psychological assessment, which in my view should have been offered before any settlement figure was provided?
- How can we bring this to a satisfactory conclusion without having to wait much longer?
- Should we involving the ombudsman at this point as it seems such a long time to get things sorted for her?

Any additional advice you are able to provide would be really appreciated. Mum has waited a long time, and has suffered enough and I'd like the best for her. I understand her reasons for not wanting to involve a solicitor. I'm not sure I'd want the additional hassle at that age.

Thanks for reading this, Chris

[Manxman]

It's a pity you were put off by the "Don't choose a no win no fee solicitor" comment from an earlier poster. I think it's important to have legal representation in personal injury cases and the only way most normal people can afford legal representation is via "no win no fee". However, you are where you are...

You could always try going back to LV and say that the psychological assessment indicates your mother would benefit from counselling and that you want a better offer than the £4k - if that's still on the table. Use the need for counselling as leverage. (Although if your mother doesn't want counselling it does to some extent negate that leverage).

But see what others here say. I'm no lawyer and I know nothing about negotiating with insurance companies.

What do you mean by take it to the Ombudsman? So far as I know the FOS will only entertain a complaint against an insurance firm if you are their customer, not from a third party

[echat11]

a) Without a solicitor, how can we maximise what mum might be due now that she's had an additional psychological assessment, which in my view should have been offered before any settlement figure was provided?

I would lodge a written complaint with LV, explain what's happened, that the whole process has caused your mum anxiety and has been stressful for her because she's 90, that she's had the LV assessment she has been required to have which has just compounded her existing health issues.

b) 'No win, no fee' is not a 'win / win', your case could go on for much longer for several reasons, one reason is most of these firms use 'paralegals' for 'No Win, No Fee' claims. Once you contact them, they will bombard you with text's, mail, phone call's etc.

[dizco]

Thank you both for taking the time to respond. It's much appreciated. Mum just doesn't have the capacity to drag this out any further owing to the anxiety and stress it's caused her. I have lodged a formal complaint with LV and asked them to provide a schedule / timeline for a revised offer, based on the Drs report. I called out the recommendation that mum is offered counselling. I also asked them to provide an explanation as to why mum wasn't offered a psychological assessment as a matter of course, before the initial offer was made. Hopefully we can bring this to a conclusion soon. Many thanks

[dizco]

Hi All

Firstly, thanks to everyone who gave me advice regarding this enquiry. We've settled the claim with the insurer and mum received a payout she was happy with.

The reason I'm updating the post today is, she has received a notification and certificate from the CRU (Compensation Recovery Unit) branch of the Gov. They're asking her to forward the certificate to any solicitor or legal aid involved with her claim, for social security purposes. Seems legit looking at the .gov.uk website.

We didn't seek any independent legal advice from anyone regarding this claim, so I'm presuming she can safely ignore this request?

[echat11]

Hi All

Firstly, thanks to everyone who gave me advice regarding this enquiry. We've settled the claim with the insurer and mum received a payout she was happy with.

The reason I'm updating the post today is, she has received a notification and certificate from the CRU (Compensation Recovery Unit) branch of the Gov. They're asking her to forward the certificate to any solicitor or legal aid involved with her claim, for social security purposes. Seems legit looking at the .gov.uk website.

We didn't seek any independent legal advice from anyone regarding this claim, so I'm presuming she can safely ignore this request?

Well done on the outcome, hopefully someone can advise regards your question -

https://www.gov.uk/government/collec...injury%20cases.

[des8]

Assuming your mother (trust she has recovered) received compensation for her injuries from the insurers, this will impact any means tested benefits she claims. This is why CRU are interested.
The compensation should be transferred into a Personal Injury Trust within 52 weeks of receipt to obviate any affect on her claim.
Suggest you contact a local solicitor to set up the trust asap.
You, or other family members including your mother could be the trustees