county court personal injury claim against me

[KarinaJN]

hi-first post.

in march 2009 i had my MGBGT mot'd. In may 2009 i then had a complete brake failure and crashed 5mph into another car. Insurers sorted the issue between themselves and i thought that was over with...

just today i have received a county court claim against me for personal injury caused against the child passenger(3 years old at the time) who has remembered in these hard times that he has suffered whiplash, bedwetting and psychological trauma.

the car i crashed into was previously involved in another accident in march 2009 in which the child passenger suffered similar casualty.

to me this claim is laughable and obviously after nearly 3 years this person(child(mother of))feels that it is about time she bought a new flat screen.

as part of the claim i would have expected to see some evidence of a medical report or something from her doctor close to the time of the accident though there is only the solicitors expert opinion on what the injuries are and how they were caused even though the child seemed fine at the time.

i am about to have a baby in 8 weeks and do not need this opportunist harassing me and would like to know if anyone can advise me as to where i stand and what i might do?

thanks in advance-karina

[blackknight]

You just need to pass it on to your insurance company to deal with, thats what you pay them for.

[oddjobbob]

Yes refer it to yuor insurers... they've already paid out once on the claim so no no claims to lose, and they will want proof of whiplas etc before they pay out.

 

And they'll delay it all they can too...

 

Just inform th solicitors in writing that you have passed the matter on to your insurers and that all further correspondence should be directed at them.

 

It makes no difference if yuo are no longer with the insurance company in question, they are still liable for the claim and will pay out if necessary or not if not.

[oddjobbob]

BTW... I had the same thing after several years, really pathetic t***s, but nothing you can do except refer it on.

[KarinaJN]

I thought child car seats prevent whiplash?

How is it possible to find any information or details on the accident proceeding the one with me involved?

[Bang!]

Child seats only prevent whiplash at 5mph when there is no potentially milkable insurance policy.

 

I hate to think of the litigation possible with the forces of kids heading footballs and jumping off swings.

[Endymion]

I suspect the claim will be done and dusted pretty much and all the child's solicitors have done is issue proceedings for the Court to approve the settlement agreed between the OP's insurers and solicitors.

 

In any event, you need to pass the insurers. Regarding the previous RTA, any medical expert will have had to review the medical records before coming to a decision and so they will have taken into account the previous RTA (hopefully).

 

This sort of claim is perfectly normal and insurers get hundreds of them a week. They know how to sniff out a fraud claim usually and so just let them get on with it would me my advice.

 

Interesting article I read yesterday about fraud blackspots for anyone who might be interest...

 

http://www.insurancetimes.co.uk/keoghs-index-finds-nine-new-motor-fraud-black-spots/1395249.article

[T.C.]

 

i would have expected to see some evidence of a medical report or something from her doctor close to the time of the accident though there is only the solicitors expert opinion on what the injuries are and how they were caused even though the child seemed fine at the time.

 

That is a key statement which must be contested by your insurers.

 

A Solicitor is not a medical expert, the child will have to be examined by an independent medical expert, and therefore if the solicitor is saying that in his expert and professional opinion that the injuries were caused by X, then immidiately he/she is discredited.

 

Are you sure that it is a solicitor and not a legal exec from a claims management firm?

 

Given your statement, you appear to have grounds to make a complaint to the Law Society against the solicitor (if it is actually a solicitor) for professional negligence.

 

But most certainly as mentioned get it over to your insurance company, but make sure that they also flag up your concerns.

[Endymion]

Are you sure that it is a solicitor and not a legal exec from a claims management firm?

 

.

 

So what you are saying is that a qualified Legal Exec is more likely to make fraudulent or frivilous claims than a solicitor. I am sure ILEX would love to hear such things!!

 

Plus if you want to make a complaint against a solicitor/Legal Exec you must make a complaint to the Legal Ombudsman, not the Law Society.

 

I would also suspect that the lawyer in the proceedings is just setting out on the claim form and within the particulars of claim the alleged injuries sustained and not purporting to be a medical expert.

 

In any event, if proceedings have been issued and served without medical evidence, then they are in breach of the Pre-action protocol Para 2.14 and so service will not have been effected. Plus, the Claimant will not have established causation and a prima facie case without expert evidence and so coupled with the lack of service, an application for strike out can be made.

 

However, I still maintain that this has the feel of proceedings issued for a court approval.

[KarinaJN]

Thank you for the replies so far, I sent letters to the third partie's solicitor to notify them that I forwarded the claim form to my insurance company. I forwarded the claim form to the insurance company with a letter of explanation , all recorded delivery. No response. They haven't even corrected my name. I received a Final Judgement notice a week ago from the court and then today a Notice of Hearing! I am under the impression that the insurance company hasnt established any contact with the third parties solicitor nor the court. Now i am starting to worry as it appears the court expect me attend and take responsibility for the claim. The third parties solicitor is ignoring is emails, phone calls and requests to have him call me(S.Umerji of equitas solicitors, Lancashire) possibly counting on my(his) ignorance to bring about his claim.

Can someone please advise me if this is the normal procedure in a claim like this? All the correspondence is coming to me and not to my old insurance company, but does this mean that the insurance have or have not acknowledged responsibility for the claim against me(them!). To me it looks like i am the one who is held to account and that the insurance companys solicitors have neglected to step in and do their job. Should i not have received some kind of notice from the insurance company or do i need to send them and have them sign a statement that i am not responsible for any court appearances or payments? having sent the claim to the insurance company and then a letter to them and the third parties solicitor saying to both that i have sent the claim to my old insurance company, and having since received this final judgement and then the notice of hearing, what should my next step be? karina

[Ganymede]

Hi,

 

Even though you are insured you are ultimately responsible its just that usually your insurer picks up the bill for your negligence.

 

What exactly does the judgment say please?

[KarinaJN]

have you not read the previous posts that have said the insurance company takes care of it? what you say cant be right otherwise why on earth would an insurance company 'offer' to pay out for someone making a dodgey personal injury claim against me? ...and whenever was i being negligent? ..and of what?

final judgement says-no defence having been filed it is ordered that the defendent(me/my insurance company(which one?))must pay the claimant an amount which the court will decide...and costs.(!)

[Ganymede]

have you not read the previous posts that have said the insurance company takes care of it? what you say cant be right otherwise why on earth would an insurance company 'offer' to pay out for someone making a dodgey personal injury claim against me? ...and whenever was i being negligent? ..and of what?

 

 

Yes your insurer SHOULD be taking care of it on your behalf but something may not be right. That is why I asked what exactly the Judgment you received said.

 

Also I'm sorry but in the eyes of the law you were negligent in causing the accident.

 

You keep referring to the claim as "dodgey" but unless you are a doctor you can't really say that for sure.

[Ganymede]

You need to forward the documents to your insurer bit keep copies just in case. You then need to call and check they have them and have passed them to their nominated solicitor.

 

The Claimant has issued a claim (probably as they couldn't agree the correct level of compensation) and your insurer has ignored it at worst and at best is still sat in a backlog of post to work through.

 

You will not have to attend Court yourself as liability is not in dispute, only quantum.

 

If your insurer continues to fail to deal with this you could ultimately have enforcement proceedings issued against you personally so it is vital that you push you insurer into action.

[KarinaJN]

i am a pharmacist-more qualified than your average G.P-but that is besides the point. i say dodgy because the doctor who has produced reports for the court wasnt even doctor, let alone the claimants(3 year old passanger/5 mph 'bump', psychologically scarred-following similar accident previous to mine!) doctor anywhere near the time of the accident!

I understand what you are saying anyway-bit when should i expect my insurance company(at the time) to take over? am i supposed to push the my old insurer or the claimants solicitor...all the while informing the court that everyone is ignoring me.

[KarinaJN]

ok got that thanks-that is what i was needing to hear! so it is absolutely the insurer who i have to chase.. thanks ganymede

[Ganymede]

ok got that thanks-that is what i was needing to hear! so it is absolutely the insurer who i have to chase.. thanks ganymede

 

 

Yes, your insurer at the time of the accident.

[KarinaJN]

Yes, your insurer at the time of the accident.

Thank you very much for your help! I managed to contact the lawyers and they assured me that they are dealing with the case and going to cover all expenses. Such a relief...