Other Things You Can Claim For

In addition to the personal injury that has been suffered, there may well be other losses that have been incurred as a direct result of the accident. Many of these ‘heads of claim’ can be valued as part of a settlement of your overall claim. The injury settlement part of the claim is referred to as ‘General Damages’ and the other items claimed for are known as ‘Special Damages’ The following list are the most common losses or additional costs incurred:

Loss of Earnings

If you had an accident and were injured you may also have suffered a loss of earnings. Perhaps you are or were self employed (taxi driver, bricklayer, plumber for example) and as a result of the injury, you could not work for a number of weeks. If it can be proved that you lost earnings as a result and it can be proved how much money was lost, this can be claimed back.

Insurance Policy Excess

If you had a motor accident and were insured with a comprehensive insurance policy, chance are, you would tell your insurers and they would arrange to have your car repaired or a payment made if it was written off. You would be obliged to pay the first part of your claim by paying insurance excess. This may be as little as £50.00 or as much as £500.00. If you are a young driver or had a particularly high value vehicle, maybe even more. If the accident was not your fault, the excess payment you have made can be claimed back from the third party insurers as part of your overall claim.

Vehicle Damage / Repair Costs

If the motor accident was not your fault and you where not insured with a Comprehensive policy, you would probably have Third Party Fire and Theft cover. This means that you are insured against claim costs from the third party insurers if an accident is your fault but have no benefits if you are not at fault. In other words, if your car is damaged or written off, your insurer will not pay you anything towards the loss. If you need to get the car back on the road quickly, you will need to pay the cost of repair yourself. Assuming the accident is not your fault, these costs can be recovered from the other driver’s insurance company.

Travel Expenses

If as a result of an injury, your mobility was affected, it may not be possible for you to drive your car or ride your motorcycle, etc. Instead, you may have to take the bus or travel by train or possibly a taxi. Provided you keep receipts or tickets, these can be claimed back from the third party insurers.

Adapted Accomodation

Following a serious accident, you may suffer a permanent disability. This will clearly affect many aspects of your life, not just physically but also financially. Perhaps your home has had to have a handrail added or grab handles in the bath or special, easy-to-use taps. If you are in a wheelchair as a result, more drastic changes such as a stair lift or widened doorways may be required. These can all be very costly. All of these costs can be recovered if they were incurred as a direct result of your accident.

Prescription Charges and Medical Fees

If your injury resulted in you going to hospital, your treatment and medication is obviously covered and you incur no costs. However, if you see a doctor and he gives you a prescription, you may have to pay the prescription costs. If the medication is longer term, the repeat costs could go on for quite some time. Similarly, if you have had to fund treatment such as physiotherapy or osteopathy for example, you may have to have a dozen appointments at £30.00 per session. Such essential expenses can be claimed back if documented.

Costs of Assistance for Household Chores

As a result of your injury, it may be necessary for you to have help while you are incapacitated. If you are a parent of a young child but due to injury you cannot take the child to school or nursery, you may have to pay a childminder. At the more serious end of the injury scale, you may be permanently disabled and require a carer to visit your home daily or even on a permanent live in basis. The costs need to be accurately assessed and submitted as part of your claim for compensation

Out of Pocket Expenses

Following your accident and injury, it is highly likely you will need to do a number of things that you would not ordinarily have to do. These tasks are likely to incur expense of some sort. You may have to travel to the doctors, write letters to the insurers, brokers, third party, make contact with various people by telephone, etc. These are all small items but still have a value that can be assessed and submitted as part of your claim.

Damage to Property

If your accident resulted in injury to you, there is a reasonable chance that it also damaged some of you affects. Examples of this might be clothing that had to be cut, broken glasses, and a smashed bicycle in a road accident, broken household item. These are not always paid for on a ‘new for old’ basis but you should be entitled to a contribution towards the costs of replacing these items.

Therapies

As mentioned before, as a result of your injury, you may undergo a course of treatment such as physiotherapy or osteopathy. You may receive acupuncture, herbal remedies, and many other forms of treatment. Some of these can be very expensive and provided the cost and the benefit of the treatment can be proved, there is a very good chance of recovering these costs.

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