As you might know, if you’re injured during an accident that was caused by somebody else, you could be eligible to claim compensation for your suffering. Having legal representation should make the claims process easier and could improve your chances of winning your case. You shouldn’t be afraid of the cost of using a solicitor to help you claim, though, as many offer a No Win No Fee service. In this guide, we’ll explain what No Win No Fee means, when you’ll need to pay your solicitor and what happens if your claim is lost.

We can check whether you’re eligible to claim on a No Win No Fee basis by reviewing your claim for free. During your initial consultation, the merit of your claim will be assessed to ensure that it is strong enough. If it is, we’ll connect you with one of our personal injury solicitors who’ll assess your chances in more detail.

Please read on to find out more about making a No Win No Fee personal injury claim or give us a call on 0800 6524 881 if you’d like to talk to us directly.

What Is A No Win No Fee Accident Claim?

Our solicitors offer a No Win No Fee service for any accident claim they take on. A No Win No Fee service means that:

• There is no need to pay legal fees upfront meaning there is no financial risk to the claimant.
• If your claim fails, you will not need to pay legal fees.
• You’ll pay a success fee to your solicitor if your claim is won.

In the past, it was possible to get legal aid to fund some personal injury claims. When this changed, Conditional Fee Agreements (CFAs) were introduced so that potential claimants could still get access to justice. Using a CFA allows you to seek personal injury compensation without financial risk.

What Is A Success Fee In A No Win No Fee Accident Claim?

Before 2013, if you won a personal injury claim, your solicitor’s costs would be paid by the defendant. Since the law changed, that’s no longer possible and you must now pay your own success fee. However, to offset some of this burden, compensation levels were increased by 10% when the new legislation went live.

When your solicitor sends you a copy of your CFA, it will explain what success fee you’ll pay if your claim is successful. The success fee is a percentage of any compensation you are paid.

Typical No Win No Fee Percentage

Legally, when a CFA is used, the maximum success fee payable is 25% of your settlement. You should always confirm your success fee before signing your agreement.

The success fee is used to cover the work and effort put in by your solicitor to try and win your claim. Importantly, when making a No Win No Fee claim, you will only pay the success fee when your final compensation figure has been agreed upon. You will not be asked to pay for your solicitor’s work in advance.

What Happens If My Injury Claim Is Lost?

If you lose your injury claim, you may be liable to pay the defendant’s costs. This could include the cost of their solicitor’s work or the cost of obtaining reports. However, our solicitors will always arrange for After The Event (ATE) insurance to be taken out before your claim begins which would cover these costs if your claim was unsuccessful.

Am I Eligible To Make A No Win No Fee Compensation Claim?

As you can see, any solicitor offering a No Win No Fee service will take on most of the financial risk in making a compensation claim. Therefore, they will only offer to take on claims where there is a reasonable possibility of winning your claim. Before agreeing to work for you, they will check that:

• The defendant in your case owed you a legal duty of care; and
• The defendant was negligent; and
• An accident occurred because of that negligence in which you were injured.

A duty of care is something that’s formed by certain laws. For example, a retailer has to try and keep their shop as safe as possible for customers because of the Occupiers Liability Act 1957. Similarly, the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 means your employer should take reasonable steps to keep you safe whilst working.

Before offering a No Win No Fee service, your solicitor will verify which law applies and consider any other evidence that could be used to prove how you were injured.

Common Types Of No Win No Fee Accident Claims

You could potentially make a No Win No Fee accident claim for any type of accident caused by somebody else’s negligence. Some of the most common that are dealt with by our solicitors are:

• Road traffic accident claims. Where drivers, passengers, cyclists, pedestrians and other road users could be compensated for injuries caused by another road user’s negligence.
• Work injury claims. You could be compensated for workplace injuries if an accident occurred because of inadequate training, a lack of proper PPE, faulty machinery or other forms of negligence.
• Public place accident claims. Our personal injury solicitors could help you to claim compensation for accidents in shops, hotels, gyms, train stations or in any other public place if the accident was caused by somebody else’s negligence.
• Medical negligence claims. If you have suffered because a medical professional made a mistake during treatment or when diagnosing your condition, you could be eligible to seek damages on a No Win No Fee basis.

If you believe you’ve been injured as a result of somebody else’s negligence, please call our team to see if we could help you begin a No Win No Fee compensation claim.

What’s The Time Limit For Making A No Win No Fee Accident Claim?

If you decide to pursue a No Win No Fee accident claim, a 3-year time limit will apply. This will commence from the date you were injured or when your injuries were diagnosed by a doctor.

If you wish to work with a personal injury solicitor, we suggest that you begin your claim as soon as possible to allow them plenty of time to collect evidence and medical evidence.

Starting A No Win No Fee Injury Claim

To find out whether one of our No Win No Fee personal injury solicitors could help you to claim compensation, please call us on 0800 6524 881 and explain how you were injured.

Your initial consultation will be free and you’ll receive legal advice about your options whatever happens next.

Please feel free to connect with us via live chat if you have any further questions about No Win No Fee accident claims.