Joneseys blog

Alongside buying a house or a car, holidays are probably the next most expensive thing families spend on each year – and the thing that most people look forward to.

If you go on holiday in the UK (and why not, it’s a great place to be on holiday) then anything that goes wrong on the holiday is much easier to sort out as any legal action you take will be based on UK law.

But if you go abroad, and an awful lot of us do, then having an accident can be a real pain if you want to make a claim for injuries you might have suffered.

The Package Travel, Package Holidays and Package Tours Regulations 1992 help.

It’s a real mouthful but it states that if you have booked your travel and holiday accommodation with the same tour operator or provider regardless of where the accident happens you can bring the legal claim in this Country – it’s governed by UK law. Both items have to be booked together – a package deal.

That makes dealing with any claim much easier – anything goes wrong and you are using the UK Courts to sort things out.

That’s fine for package deals, but what about the rest of us – in the internet age it’s becoming increasingly popular to book your flight, ferry or other crossing and sort out the accommodation separately.

If you’ve chosen to do that, any claim for compensation that you might have is governed by the ‘Rome Convention’.

This states that any claim has to be dealt with in the Country it happened in.

It doesn’t mean you haven’t got a claim, just that if you need to bring Court proceedings then they need to be in the Country you were in at the time of the incident/accident. We can still help you with such claims.

So what do you do when booking your holiday?

Like the rest of us, go with what’s good for you and what you want to do.

If the worst happens then you still have a claim and we can deal with it for you whether it’s a claim brought in this Country or anywhere else.

There are around 160 deaths caused each year in road accidents involving uninsured drivers and approximately a further 23,000 injured.

Uninsured drivers are more likely to be involved in hit and run incidents than insured drivers, often resulting with the insured driver making a car accident claim on their insurance affecting their no claims discount, even though the uninsured vehicle may have been to blame.

The latest statistics published show that about 900,000 drivers under the age of 30 are currently driving without insurance

But if you’re involved in an accident caused by an uninsured or untraced motorist there are things you can do.

As long ago as 1946 the government set up the Motor Insurers Bureau to assist where claims were being made against Uninsured and Untraced motorists who had caused accidents.

Those schemes have been altered and refined until they now cover just about every single possibility.

So what if you are hit by an Uninsured Motorist?

The same rules apply to other accidents.

Get the other drivers details immediately, including car registration and type and a name and address, and any evidence you can of their poor driving, including any witnesses that saw the accident.

Mobile phones are great because a lot have cameras now. Don’t be afraid of taking photos, as long as it’s safe, and take as many as you can, you can always sift through them later.

If you are injured get yourself checked out at the local Accident and Emergency Department or go and see your GP.

What to do next.

Sometimes people will admit they have no insurance straight away, other times they might tell you to contact them later or give old details that are out of date.

Whether to call the police is up to you. The Police are extremely interested in drivers without insurance and if you suspect that someone hasn’t got insurance or is being difficult about giving details then a call to ask the Police to attend the accident scene when the accident has just happened can usually sort things out quickly.

Once you have had an accident contact your solicitor quickly, especially if you think there are problems with the other driver’s details. The sooner you make contact the quicker we can sort things out for you.

We have the ability to interrogate the national database for the other driver’s insurance details (provided you have been involved in an accident), and can soon find out whether the lack of insurance details was a mistake or is actually a problem.

How do I get my money back if they are Uninsured?

The present scheme allows you to recover both compensation for any injury you suffered and the damage to your car and any pay lost or other out of pocket expenses. Sometimes they will reduce your car damage claim by an excess of £300 but this depends on the case.

So really you are put into the same position as if the other driver was insured, which is great. But get advice quickly to make sure that you are making the claim properly.

What if it was a hit and run accident?

These are more difficult. You must have reported the accident to the Police. Get as much evidence again as you can, including partial or whole registration numbers, make model and colour of vehicle and if you can a description of the driver or any occupants, no matter how poor you think your description of them is.

Get the accident scene recorded as well as you will be the only one telling us what happened and how it happened.

What if I have only damaged my car?

In accident caused by Untraced drivers, you must have:

• reported the accident to the police within 5 days of it happening.

• The vehicle has to be identified – without being able to do that you won’t be able to claim for the damage to your car.

• Made your claim to the Motor Insurers Bureau within 9 months of the accident happening and if you haven’t then they will not pay.

Providing you have managed to do this, and can prove it’s the other driver’s fault, then your claim would be dealt with as an Insured claim would be and you should be paid out, subject to an excess of £300 which will be deducted from any settlement.

What if I or others are injured in the accident?

If you have suffered a personal injury, then the scheme will cover this as well.

Again there are some things that have to be done beforehand, as set out above, but if you have suffered an injury then you have 3 years to bring your claim. Please remember though if you have other losses and haven’t reported the accident within 9 months then you might lose those other losses.

Whatever the situation get in touch with us or a suitable local lawyer. It can be a real minefield and early legal help will make things move faster.

On yer Bike!

Accidents and cyclists – what you need to know

People usually have a very clear idea of what happens if they have a bump in their car – getting insurance details, taking names of any witnesses etc. However if the accident involves a bicycle people are often confused as to what they should and shouldn’t do. This guide sets out to explain how the law affects those involved in accidents with cyclists (whether you’re riding or walking).

On the Jeremy Vine show on BBC Radio 2 this week there was even a discussion about whether cyclists should be allowed to ride on the pavement – if this happened then potentially there could be more accidents between cyclists and pedestrians.

So if you’ve been involved in an accident with a cyclist, or you are a cyclist in an accident, can you make a claim for compensation?

Well the short answer is that yes you can (if it was the other person’s fault), in exactly the same way as car drivers bring claims against each other (although bear in mind if as a pedestrian you collide with another pedestrian you are going to struggle).

The same laws and rules apply to all these collision cases and it’s important to realise this.

What does the law say?

Despite what people might think or say, the law doesn’t favour pedestrians or cyclists over motorists. It never has, and it never will be outwardly biased in that way.
In Spring 2009 there was a move to have the blame automatically shifted in favour of the ‘more exposed’ party in an accident.
That would have meant that if a motorist and cyclist/pedestrian collided, then the cyclist/pedestrian would always win compensation outright, with no deduction.
Similarly if a cyclist and pedestrian had an accident, then it would have meant that the pedestrian would always win.
It’s hard to see how this could work within our present legal structure and so I don’t think this will ever come to pass.
As is the case in all accidents, the courts will always look to see the actual circumstances of the case and see who is to blame. They will treat parties the same and will investigate what happens and who did what to who and why.
However the law does say that a motorist is in charge of a potentially lethal weapon. It’s the protection that the cyclist/pedestrian doesn’t have, which means the motorist has to take more care when driving it around. The Courts consider that’s a reasonable expectation to put on car drivers when they are driving cars where other, more exposed, road users will be encountered.

What should you do if an accident happens?

Just the same as if it was a motoring accident, then get a note of the other parties details. If it’s a cyclist then make sure you get their full name and address, they haven’t got registration plates like cars and their details cannot be traced easily unless you have taken them when the accident happens.

Always have a look around you for any potential witnesses. It’s not easy to keep your wits about you when you have been hurt, and other things come into mind, but try and get at least a name and number you can call them on later.

Mobile phones are great these days as most now take photos and you can get instant snap shots of what happened which help when trying to explain things later.

Get advice from a professional as soon as you can. Most solicitors offer free advice for accident and personal injury claims (we certainly do). Don’t be afraid of approaching them as they will want to help.

Who pays?

In car accidents, the driver that caused the accident pays. But as you must have insurance on your car then actually their insurance company pays (there’s also a government scheme to cover situations where motorists haven’t got insurance in a motor accident).

The difference with cyclists, is that they don’t have to have compulsory insurance cover.

That might seem wrong as clearly if they are negligent they can cause a deal of damage to people and property by their actions or any actual collision.

However they may be insured for their negligent actions through a standard house and contents policy, which covers the insured person for a substantial sum for any act or omission that has caused another person loss or damage.

So there is a good chance that the cyclist will actually be insured (I say ‘chance’ because they may not have a suitable house and contents insurance policy). It’s always worth while seeking advice.

Even if no insurance is found, it may still be worth pursuing a claim depending on the cyclist’s personal situation, however hard it might seem on the cyclist.

As a cyclist/pedestrian what should I do?

A lot of this is common sense but it’s worth putting it down – if you’re involved in an accident then it’s this sort of common sense that the court would be expecting you to apply – if you’re running down a motorway blindfolded then the court might decide that you brought the accident on yourself!

So here’s what you should be doing:

If you are a pedestrian:
• Stay on the pavement wherever you can. It’s not always that easy though especially in the countryside where paths don’t exist or if they do, they are quaint narrow sloping village paths that were best suited to pedestrians and carts.
• If you are going to cross a road then pick your best spot – think about being seen – it’s the old adage, if you can’t see them, they can’t see you.

If you’re a cyclist:
• If there is a cycle path then use it, but they aren’t everywhere

• Don’t hug the very edge of the road (and I say this as a car user as well). Ride out from the edge so you miss the rain grates or poor edges of country roads. It helps motorists see you when approaching side roads. That doesn’t mean in the middle of the road but it doesn’t mean you have to ride rubbing against the pavement either.
• Don’t weave in and out of parked cars; always travel in as straight a line as possible past them. Look and signal before you start, turn or stop, this lets drivers know what you are doing.
• Never ignore traffic lights or pedestrian crossings.
• Don’t ride on pavements, but use the road (Jeremy Vine doesn’t make the law yet!)
• Don’t ride down one-way streets in the wrong direction, or in bus lanes unless there are signs saying cyclists can do so.
• Don’t forget at night and in bad weather you should always use a white beam front light, red rear light and have a red rear reflector that are all operating correctly.
• Always wear bright or fluorescent clothing during the day and reflective clothing by night where possible. If you can’t, then wear clothing that makes you stand out from the background you are cycling against.

I know all that, but why should I do it?
Well you don’t have to, you are a free person and are entitled to exercise that freedom, but generally the law will say that if you don’t obey the generally accepted rules and you have an accident then you must accept some or all of the blame, and given the cyclist/pedestrian generally comes off worst in accidents with cars and motorcycles, a bit of self awareness in these circumstances will assist.

As a motorist, what should I do?

Again it’s mainly common sense stuff, but in the dark nights it is especially important.
• Always check for cyclists on your inside when turning left.
• Give consideration to cyclists turning right.
• Check for cyclists before opening your vehicles doors.
• Give cyclists enough room, at the very least a half cars width. This is particularly important in windy conditions or on poor road surfaces.
• Understand why cyclists ride away from the kerb, they do it to be visible whilst approaching side roads, to have room to avoid potholes and drains, to allow for movement caused by strong winds amongst other reasons.
• Don’t approach cyclists with full beam headlights on, dip them as you would with other road vehicles.
So take care out there whichever way you choose to move around and if you are involved in an accident, get legal advice about it as soon as you can.
If you have had an accident then click here to see if you can claim

If your car is damaged in an accident – can you hire car at someone else’s expense?

The short answer is yes – but only if the accident is not your fault and the car is not legally drivable on the road – either as it is, or after temporary speedy repairs.

So as an example if you can make it drivable by replacing a broken indicator lens then you can’t hire a car. If you’ve got a wheel missing then you can hire a car (but only as long as it wasn’t your fault)

It’s this whole question of ‘fault’ that causes a lot of the problems – most people don’t want to admit an accident is their fault or maybe they can’t because they are in hospital or their Insurance company want to investigate something first.

This means that although you’re pretty sure that it was the other person’s fault (so you should be able to hire) if there is a risk that they might be disputing ‘fault’ then there is also a risk that you might end up paying for the hire charges yourself.

In fact a whole hire industry has grown up on the back of this type of car hire – it’s known as the Credit Hire industry. Basically it’s people who will hire you a car but not expect immediate payment for it. They would supply a car on the basis that you didn’t pay for it as the hire went along, and they would then chase the other side for payment of the hire costs.

The cost of credit hire is much larger than hiring a car and paying for it yourself as you go. This is for various reasons which I won’t go into here, but you need to know this, as ultimately you are responsible for the cost of the hire, if it isn’t recovered from the other side.

Alternatively you can hire a car yourself and pay for it yourself – then add the cost of this to your claim against the other party. If there is a problem over liability and you end up paying for the hire yourself, then doing it this way could save you money. Set against that is the convenience of not having to pay it yourself and then claim it back – credit hire makes it nice and easy for you.

So what do you do?
Well first off contact your own Insurance company and solicitor dealing with your claim.

Your own policy may cover you for a hire car whilst things are being sorted with the repair of your car, or it’s replacement if it is damaged beyond economical repair.

If they don’t then don’t despair, as most solicitors now sort this side of things for you. We have arrangements with a number of companies who can assist with hire cars and vans in various circumstances.

For our part, we would assess whether there is any danger to you or paying for the hire costs at all – that’s important for us (and you!) as we don’t want you to have any nasty surprises if things go wrong.

This means checking that the other party has insurance in place which is valid and will cover your claim.

Also that they have either admitted fault, or if they won’t/can’t then we check for witnesses and make an assessment of your claim and then advise you on that assessment.

So we got you your hire car, is there anything else to be aware of?
The answer is yes,

Just a few practical things like having a good look round the car when you pick it up – nearly all companies will ask for your credit card details and if they believe you have damaged their car whilst on hire to you they will charge your credit card direct (sometimes without advising you before doing this).

So when you pick up the car, make sure you walk around the car with the person dealing with the hire and complete an inspection form to your satisfaction, and when its delivered back, make sure you go through this process again to ensure that you have a record of what damage was and wasn’t caused by you.

Take your time doing this. It’s too easy to just accept the car when it’s delivered to your drive, and not spot damage – then when the car’s collected you end up paying for that damage to be repaired. A few minutes at this stage can save a lot of hassle later.

Should you have a hire car if yours is damaged in the accident?
Well you don’t have to, but if you need one and everything above is satisfied then why not? The law says the other driver (when at fault) has to put you back to the situation you were in before the accident.

What if my favourite pink VW Beetle with chrome bars, wheel spinners and fluffy dice is off the road – can I have an exact replacement?
Well the law says yes, to a point, you can have a like for like replacement and there is no worry with this, but just make sure you realise this might cost you in the end.

Remember you are the person taking the risk that a full repayment for hiring a duplicate of your pride and joy will be made – there will always be some fine print in the agreement that says any shortfall can be recovered from you. So whilst it’s fine at the time to have a complete like for like replacement, this can sometimes come back to affect you.

Make sure if you are using credit hire and they are saying that there will be no charge to you if they fail to make a full recovery against the other party, that you have it in writing that a shortfall will not be recovered from you – those fluffy dice might just come back to haunt you.

The same applies with commercial vehicles and whilst these are more difficult to find for hire, we have found with a common sense approach we have companies willing to hire our clients like for like replacements for commercial vehicles with no problems.

Loss of use instead of hire
An alternative to hire could be a claim for loss of use.

If you don’t need your car because it is sat on the drive all year until the annual fluffy dice car display convention, then you could claim for loss of use instead.

This would be a sum of money on a daily or weekly basis which represents you loss of use of the car, and/or to cover part of the cost of any alternative method of transport ( maybe not all as remember those fluffy dice need petrol to move whether it’s your car or a hire car

This might suit your lifestyle better.

How long can I keep it?
Generally until your car is repaired and no longer – why would you want 2 cars anyway?

The difficult one comes if your car is a total write off, but most insurers are sensible about this and give you about 3 to 7 days (it depends on their generosity and good will at the time) from receiving the cheque for the market value of the damaged car, and refusing to pay for further hire. They recognise that you usually cannot go and buy a car instantly with the money they have supplied, but there has to be a cut off somewhere.

Is that everything I need to know about hiring cars?
No – but it’s a good start

What if I’ve been injured in the accident?
If you’ve had a personal injury we can help you get compensation. Click here to let us assess whether or not you have a claim.

If you’ve renewed your car or house insurance recently then no doubt you were asked if you wanted to pay a small extra premium for legal expenses insurance (often called LEI). You may wonder if it’s actually worthwhile, so I thought I’d write this guide to set out what it’s all about but also to point out one or two pitfalls that you may not be aware of.

The basic idea is simple – if you’ve got the insurance and you need a lawyer then they’ll pay the lawyers fees.

Of course there’s no such thing as a free lunch so there are normally exclusions – it will only cover certain types of problems and they will be set out on the policy itself – each one is different but typically it would be employment disputes, injury claims, complaints about products bought or maybe boundary disputes.. They will also want to make sure that you’ve got a reasonable chance of winning – they aren’t interested in paying for you to spend all your time suing people

So what are the pitfalls?

Pitfall number 1:-
It’s worthwhile checking the policy covers what you’re likely to need it for. If it’s being thrown in for free then you might just want to leave it – it’s something for nothing after all. But if you’re paying for it then there’s probably not much point in paying for it if it only covers you for stuff you don’t need. The only problem with this is, at the time you’re taking on the policy, chances are you’re speaking to someone in a call centre who doesn’t have the policy in front of them and is more likely to tell you it covers everything. When the policy comes through though it’s worth checking yourself though.

Pitfall number 2 (and this is the biggie):-
Which solicitor you can use. The beauty of these policies is that you can use your own solicitor and the policy will cover you. The problem is that sometimes insurance companies backing the policy have been known to put pressure on people to use their ‘pet’ solicitors. Allegedly. And if you’ve just had an accident and are looking into claiming on the policy then those awfully nice people from the insurance company can be very persuasive.

Whenever we start acting for a client on an accident claim, one of the first things we have to do is to check whether they have legal expenses insurance.

It works well because you can get a deal where we act for you and it costs you nothing – but to make that work you have to take out insurance to pay the other side’s legal costs just in case your case goes wrong.

It’s a great idea as if you win, this insurance and all the other costs are paid for by the other side, and if you lose, the insurance is designed to pay for itself and your expenses in bringing the claim.

But every single time we make these checks with the Insurance provider, the Legal Expenses Insurance provider contacts our clients and tells them that they MUST use the Insurance company’s ‘pet’ solicitors and not their own Solicitor.

Just to put the record straight – THIS IS RUBBISH

You can use whoever you like when you like and how you like.

It’s called freedom of choice.

We don’t know why the Insurance Companies want the work to go through their own solicitors – it could be that they supply them with so much work they are able to put pressure on them to control how they work (but remember they’re meant to be working for you), or it could be they are earning money from each referral – as we are not involved in that process we don’t know.

This pressure being put on clients has been happening for some time now, but now it is getting worse.

Today I had a call from a client who has used us loads of times before. She is very local to us and really happy with what we have done for her before.

Sadly she and her son had an accident and as normal we checked out the LEI.

Within the next few days she had numerous calls to say that she couldn’t use Fidler and Pepper and had to use whoever they told her under the LEI policy – and that was someone a long long way from where she lives.

Then, when she told them where to go, they started to text her son who is quite young (16 years old!) and telling him he couldn’t use the solicitor that his Mother had organised

5 times these people contacted our client and her teenage son begging them to use them after they had instructed us and she had told them very clearly where to go.

It makes you wonder how much benefit they are actually getting out of sending the case to their own solicitors.

If you have had a Personal Injury and want to see if you can claim using your Legal Expenses Insurance fill in the contact form on our site or just phone me or my staff to talk it through.

OK first of all – Don’t panic

The wife phoned distraught – she had just been in a bad car crash with the kids – thank God I’m boring and bought a Volvo estate.

Anyway everything’s fine now but I just thought I would share the process.

Step 1

I had to organise quick child care for my son who appeared to be fine but Mum and Daughter were off to the Hospital in an ambulance and it didn’t sound great. Never thought about that one. It’s a good idea to have some sort of disaster plan for that – so make sure all those school friends and neighbours contacts are in the phone or organiser.

Step 2

Make sure that someone starts organising things at the accident site.

Every single air bag had gone off in the car and the wife was trapped in the car until the door was forced open. So it wasn’t something at the top of her thoughts.

That meant I had to rely on people who I didn’t know. All at the same time as trying to speak with the wife and make sure everyone was OK.

Things like – where does my car go when it’s damaged?

If the police are not there and your car is drivable then it’s not a problem, but make sure you do a good job of taking the other drivers details down and car registration.

Most phones have cameras on them now – take some photos of the accident site and your car damage and the other car. I know it’s not something you think about at the time but it might help in any later disputes.

If the road is busy make sure you look after yourself and don’t wander around the road! You don’t want to survive a car crash and then get knocked down walking around the road.

If the police have been called, they will make sure it’s towed out of the way, as they have contacts with local repair yard and storage companies. They’re great, they understand the pressure you are under and are very efficient at what they do.

It’s fine if it is a local accident but if it’s miles from home it could be a real problem. You need the car near to where you are if it’s not badly damaged or if it is, you need to make sure you can get your personal stuff out. Make sure that you get a contact number for the police (they will be giving it to you but because you are worried about your family you might miss it ) or of the towing company.

In my case the car sounded like a total loss straight away (it was) so the Police said they would get it towed to a local compound and organised everything.

Remember all of this is against a background of worry for your family/friends in the accident. You don’t really focus on the car but you do need some basic contact details to sort things later.

Step 3

Contact your own insurance company.

I did this whilst I was waiting outside A and E for my wife and daughter to arrive in the ambulance.

I was making calls to my Insurers to sort out the mess.

I also phoned my own office to help me sort out the car and especially a hire car.

Remember your own solicitors, they are a good contact to have. They want to help you and if they can’t they have experience of sign posting you to people who can.

So I phoned up the office and they started sorting the hire car and everything else about the accident. That was great and I know it’s something they do for every client we have.

Your local solicitor will do this for you or your local broker will.

If you have bought your insurance over the internet or telephone, then you will have an emergency contact number.

They are very organised will assist you in these things.

They are likely to put you in touch with a local hire car company if that is available and hopefully a local repair garage – remember you can specific which car repair people you want to use – sometimes they have contacts with people a long way away which is not always a good idea. There are plenty of local firms who can help you. You have a choice who you want to use.

Step 4

The relief when they both walked out the ambulance was fantastic which was then shattered by my 7 year old daughter and Wife bursting out into tears. Great the last time the Wife did that was at the Altar and look what that led to.

The Hospital were fantastic, they treated everyone with so much respect and really did look after my Daughter so well. So well in fact that I lost the Wife who was in the adult section of A and E.

Remember to look after yourself or family at this time – I know you will but you are in shock – I was.

Make sure that you sit back and tell the A and E staff what happened as accurately as you can. Tell them how you feel including if you are confused or just don’t know where you are.

Again these people are great, they care about their job and you, but you need to help them do this.

My daughter was fussed over tremendously and it helped a lot to take her mind off what had just happened.

Anyway 4 hours later (yes it was but these Hospitals are busy you know) we are on our way back home with some sore but walking wounded.

Step 5

Contact everyone again.

Last time you did it you were in shock and worried and didn’t know what was going on.

Make sure you have police details if they were called out. If they were not check through the other drivers details you have and contact your usual solicitor to report the case – they will help you whether it is a slight accident or a serious one.

People will be making calls to you, maybe the hire car company or your own insurer. Most hire car companies don’t want to hire a car out until they are definitely sure the accident is not your fault, unless you have a no fault hire clause on your own car policy. That way they can chase the other side for the hire costs.

Either way make sure you are not responsible for any of the costs, as the last thing you want to do it run up a bill whilst you are recovering at home. Again your solicitor can help with this.

You may be wondering can I claim for anything.

It’s about this time that your insurance company will say that they have solicitors who can help you. They will and they have arrangements with solicitors.

If you want to make a claim for any personal injury you have suffered then contact your solicitor.

Unless you are very lucky, these lawyers will be miles from you and it’s very unlikely that you will have used them before.

There’s nothing wrong with that of course, but just be aware that later in the claim you may want to go and see them personally to discuss things with them face to face, and if they are based 200 miles away it’s not easy. The first dealings might be fine but later on, when you get medical reports on your recovery or things like that you might want to meet with them personally to explain how you feel or go through things in detail. It’s not always easy over the phone or by letter.

You are entitled to use your own solicitors, no matter what your insurance company says, and if the accident is not your fault it won’t cost you anything at all to do this.

If in doubt ring your own solicitors and ask them to help – they will be happy to do this for you, or if they don’t they will know someone locally who specialises in this type of thing.