How long will my claim take?
opportunity to settle
a personal injury
claim"
Richard Brett,
Team Leader
We believe that all claims should be settled as quickly as possible, and don't believe there's anything to be gained by dragging a claim out.
However, it's difficult to give an accurate estimate of how long a particular claim will take, because there are so many factors that can have an impact on the way to a claim being settled. Here are some examples of what can prolong a claim and why:
Whether or not responsibility for the accident or the circumstances that caused the injury are disputed
If the defendant accepts responsibility a claim won't take as long to conclude, but where responsibility is disputed, additional investigations are often required, which can take time. For example, for a road traffic accident claim it may we might have to get a police accident report, which are only made available after the all police enquiries have ended, and/or the conclusion of any criminal prosecution. It may also be necessary to interview witnesses, obtain photographs of the accident scene and, where liability remains in dispute after these investigations, it may be necessary to issue court proceedings and take the matter to trial.
The nature and severity of your injury
Thankfully, many clients suffer relatively minor injuries and their claims can often be settled quickly and easily, frequently having obtained only one medical expert's report. But if your claim involves a more serious injury, or simply one which lasts much longer, the claim time can be extended. You only have one opportunity to settle your claim, and to make sure you receive the maximum possible compensation, we'd advise against settling your claim until the full long-term impact of your injuries is known and supported by appropriate medical evidence.
Where multiple injuries have been sustained it may also be necessary to get medical reports from several experts, once again adding to the time it takes to settle the claim.
Whether or not a link between the injuries claimed and the accident or specific circumstances is admitted
Although proving that responsibility for an accident or particular set of circumstances is often the first issue to resolve, even where this is admitted the defendant can still dispute the question of whether the accident or circumstances actually caused the injuries being claimed. For example, in road traffic accident claims a defendant might admit to having caused the accident, but may dispute whether the accident was severe enough to have caused a particular injury. This is known as a 'causation' dispute, and they can often take a long time to resolve because of the need for specific expert evidence and the need to issue court proceedings.
Whether the opponent/their insurer is cooperative and/or 'reasonable'
Acting against a pro-active and co-operative opponent can make a big difference to the speed at which a claim moves forwards. Delays experienced in obtaining responses and offers from the opponent can easily add several months to the overall duration of a claim, and can often reduce the likelihood of Court proceedings becoming necessary. Another significant factor is whether or not the opponent is reasonable in their approach to negotiations. If an opponent makes an offer to settle a claim which we consider to be unreasonable then we would commonly recommend the issue of Court proceedings to try and secure a more appropriate settlement, but this will normally prolong the final settlement. Where the respective figures are not that far apart, we would always look to advise our clients on the merits of proceeding to Court so that they can consider for themselves whether the potential delay is worthwhile.
Whether court proceedings are necessary
There are several reasons why court proceedings may be necessary in a claim. If they are required, the claim becomes subject to the court timetable, and whilst we can influence this, the court has the final say. We'll always look to continue negotiating throughout the court process to try and secure settlement of a claim, but if this is unsuccessful and a final court hearing is necessary it could easily add 4-6 months or more to the duration of a claim.
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