UK Compensation Claim Solicitors – Personal Injury Lawyers
Accident claim solicitors are usually specialist lawyers who work in a narrow legal field which generally involves civil court work. Most accident claim solicitors are highly experienced in taking legal action for damages as a result of negligence – they are usually members of the Solicitors Regulation Authority panel of personal injury experts. Negligence implies that another person owes a duty of care to the victim who has been injured and has failed to act with a reasonable degree of skill and care resulting in psychological damage or physical injury to the potential claimant. In order to succeed in obtaining compensation, the claimant must prove that he has suffered injury directly as a result of another party’s negligence. What do we mean by negligence? In English Law it means a breach of a legal duty of care that one party owes to another and as a consequence damage or injury results. All road users owe each other a duty of care which is easily established however the main issue that accident claim solicitors must deal with relates to the definition negligence itself. The standard of proof in negligence compensation claims is said to be ‘on the balance of probabilities’ which is unlike the criminal standard of proof which is ‘beyond all reasonable doubt’.
Contributory Negligence
If you are able to prove that the other party has been negligent to any degree you may then be able to successfully pursue a claim for compensation. Even if you were partly to blame for the accident you may be able to claim compensation using the doctrine of ‘contributory negligence’ which means that your damages will be reduced by the percentage that you are attributed as contributing to the cause of the accident. The mere fact that you believe you are to blame should not prevent you from seeking legal advice, as it may well be that partial blame can be established against the other person involved thereby entitling you to receive compensation.