How soon will I receive my compensation?

When making a personal injury claim one of our clients’ main concerns is when exactly will they receive their compensation settlement. The main factors that impact how soon your claim will be concluded include the severity of your injuries, your expected recovery time and how soon, and if, the defendant accepts responsibility.

What can I make a personal injury claim for?

You can make a personal injury claim if you have been injured due to the negligent actions of another person or company. Personal injury claims include:

• Road traffic accidents
• Workplace accidents
• Slips, trips and falls
• Industrial disease
• Medical negligence

What happens when I make a personal injury claim?

When making a personal injury claim for a non-fault accident, the process will start with your file handler asking you a series of questions to establish how the accident happened, along with gathering evidence to prove that the third party was responsible for causing the accident.

After the evidence has been gathered and analysed this is built into a case that is presented to the third-party insurer, in order to negotiate liability. Your solicitor will also arrange for you to attend an independent medical assessment, which will help to determine how exactly your injuries were caused, how long it may take for you to recover and what rehabilitation might be necessary to aid your recovery.

The defendant will then be given the opportunity to either agree or disagree to the settlement amount put forward to them. If both parties cannot come to a mutual agreement then court proceedings may commence. The vast majority of personal injury claims are however settled out of court.

What can have an impact on the length of time it will take for my claim to settle?

The main factors that have an influence over the time it will take for your claim to settle include:

The type of accident:  The type of the accident will impact how long it will take for your claim to settle. For example a workplace accident that involved multiple parties will take longer to settle than a straightforward road traffic accident where it is clear who was at fault for causing the accident.

Seriousness of the injuries: If you have suffered serious, life-threatening injuries that may take years for you to make a full recovery from, it will likely take longer for your claim to settle. This is because your solicitor will need to determine what the full impact the accident will have on your life and what long-term care, rehabilitation and home adaptations you may need. Settling a claim before the full extent of your injuries is known could result in accepting a lower settlement offer.

If liability is accepted: If the defendant refuses to accept liability this will add time onto the claims process whilst negotiations are ongoing. If both parties can’t reach a final resolution then the claim may need to be settled in court.

How long will it take to receive my compensation after accepting an offer?

After your claim has settled you should receive your compensation between 14 – 21 days. This depends on if your claim was settled in or out of court.

Out of court settlement: If your personal injury claim was settled out of court, your file handler will aim to receive your compensation from the third party, and pay this into your account within 14 days. This can however take longer if the third party is slow to pay out.

Court settlement: If your claim was settled following a court hearing the judge will determine when the compensation should be paid. This is typically within 21 days of the date of the court order, and if the defendant does not pay within this time, your solicitor can start further court proceedings to enforce the judgement.

Your solicitor will keep you up to date with when you should expect to receive your final settlement in your bank account.