

It is important that you should know your rights and what to do when involved in a road traffic accident, regardless of whether any prosecution took place following the accident, or whether you suffer immediate consequences. The level of proof required for pursuing compensation is lower than that for criminal conviction, and some injury symptoms may not appear for some time afterwards.
You should consult a solicitor who is a specialist in road traffic accidents as soon as possible after the accident, while details are still fresh in your mind.
You are entitled to claim for compensation if you are injured in a road traffic accident where someone else was at fault. If the driver of another vehicle was responsible for the crash, or you are a passenger in a vehicle whose driver was to blame, you may claim. Similarly, if you were riding a bicycle responsibly and were hit by a vehicle whose driver caused the accident, you may also claim.
You should consult a solicitor who specialises in personal injury litigation straight away. You can fill in the form on this site to send us details of your claim. It really is that simple.
Your solicitor will first discuss your claim with you in some detail. He will then make a preliminary assessment of the chances of litigation succeeding. If you both decide to proceed, he will then conduct a more detailed investigation. He may take statements from you and others who are involved, obtain medical records and assessments, and seek expert medical opinions on the case. He will also collect evidence to show how the alleged negligence contributed to your injury.
Your solicitor will then assess the claim again and advise you on the strength of your case and how best to proceed. Depending on the cause of the injury, there may be several avenues for litigation. Most commonly, those responsible for the accident will be sued in civil court. The case will be heard by a judge who will decide liability and, if you win, make an award of compensation.
If your litigation is to succeed, you must be able to prove “on the balance of probabilities” that your injury is due to negligence by another party. Note that this is a lesser degree of proof than a criminal case, and does not necessarily mean that you have to be entirely fault-free; you need only demonstrate that the other party is more than 50% responsible for your injury. If you can do this, a personal injury solicitor may well advise you proceed with litigation.
Amounts are determined on a case by case basis. In England and Wales, Judges have issued broad guideline figures for different types and degree of injury, laid down in the Judicial Studies Board Guidelines. This has been built up over the history of personal injury litigation. Information is given on this site under individual types of injury.