Frequently asked questions

For most injury claims, three years from the date of the accident. There are important exceptions:

• If you were under 18, the three years usually run from your 18th birthday.
• If the injured person lacks the capacity to manage their own affairs, the time limit may not run at all.
• For illnesses and conditions that develop gradually, and for dental negligence, the three years often run from the date you first realised the problem was connected to what happened.

If you think you may be close to a deadline, telephone us rather than emailing.

It depends almost entirely on your recovery and on whether the other side admits responsibility. A straightforward claim where liability is admitted and the injury has resolved can conclude in a matter of months. A serious injury claim can take a good deal longer, because it should not be settled until the long-term prognosis is clear.

We would rather take longer and value the claim properly than settle early and leave you short. We will give you a realistic estimate once we have seen the medical evidence.

Most claims settle without anyone attending a final hearing. Court proceedings are sometimes issued as a step in the process, often to protect a time limit, and the case still settles afterwards.

If your claim is one of the few that does need a hearing, we will prepare you thoroughly and you will not walk into it unbriefed.

Usually yes. Where an injured person is partly responsible, the claim is not lost. The damages are reduced by a percentage to reflect their share. A finding of contributory negligence is very different from having no claim.

It is also worth saying that insurers assert contributory negligence far more often than the evidence justifies. Do not accept it because it has been put in a letter.

Please speak to someone before you do. Pre-medical offers are made because they are cheap, and they are made before anyone knows how your injury will settle down. Once you accept, the claim is closed, and you cannot go back if the injury turns out to be worse than it looked.

Yes. An independent medical report is what allows a claim to be valued, and no injury claim can be properly settled without one. The appointment is arranged for you, at a convenient location, and the cost is dealt with as part of the claim.

Whatever you already have, but do not delay getting in touch because something is missing. Useful items are: photographs of the scene and of your injuries, the accident book entry or incident reference, the other driver's details, any police reference, your GP or hospital records, and receipts for anything you have had to pay out.

It means you enter a Conditional Fee Agreement with us. You pay us nothing up front, nothing while the claim is running, and nothing in our fees if the claim does not succeed.

If the claim succeeds, most of our costs are paid by the other side. A success fee is then deducted from your compensation. In personal injury claims that deduction is capped by law at 25% of your damages for past losses and for the injury itself. It cannot be taken from damages awarded for your future losses. We will tell you the exact percentage in writing before you sign anything.

In most personal injury claims you are protected by a rule called Qualified One-Way Costs Shifting. It means that if your claim is unsuccessful, you are generally not required to pay the defendant's costs.

That protection can be lost, for example where a claim is found to be fundamentally dishonest. We also arrange insurance where appropriate to cover expenses such as expert fees and court fees. We will explain exactly what is and is not covered before your claim starts.

No. The initial consultation is free and there is no obligation afterwards. If we do not think you have a claim worth running, we will tell you that. It is more useful to you than a polite maybe.

You have a right to cancel the agreement in the first 14 days. After that, whether anything is payable depends on the circumstances, and the position is set out in full in the Conditional Fee Agreement you sign. We will always go through it with you rather than leaving you to read the small print alone.

Never. We act for injured people only. We do not act for insurers, employers, or the party who caused the injury, and we do not take defendant work of any kind. There is no conflict on the other side of your file.

No. We are a firm of solicitors, authorised and regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority. Your case is handled here, by the person whose name is on your file. We do not buy enquiries and we do not sell them on.

No. Our office is in Altrincham and we are glad to see clients there, but we act for people across England and Wales. Most of a claim is run by telephone, email and post, and we can meet by video where that is easier. If your injuries make travelling difficult, we will come to you.

Yes. Between us we speak English, Russian, Polish, Ukrainian, Belarusian and Gujarati, so you can deal with us directly rather than through an interpreter or a family member.

Tell us, and we will take it seriously. We have a formal complaints procedure and we will acknowledge your complaint and investigate it properly. If you are still not satisfied, you have the right to take the matter to the Legal Ombudsman.