Beware of companies offering their help
When you are involved in a road traffic accident you might find that you are contacted by lots of different organisations offering to help you.
This is because, sadly, many insurance companies and people involved in this field sell your personal information to claims management companies and solicitors.
Many claims management companies do very little to progress matters and simply sell on your claim to the firm of solicitors willing to pay the most for it. Whilst they add nothing to your claim they might pass your case to a solicitor in another part of the country who is not familiar with the area where the accident occurred and making it difficult for you to contact them.
Some companies promise to sort out your car repairs and provide you with a hire vehicle, sometimes this is done satisfactorily however often it is not. You might find that repairs take weeks and that your car is taken to a garage many miles from your home. Worse still if your car is deemed to be a “write off” some companies will make you a single offer for your car. If you are not happy with their offer or if you want the car repairing instead they will take back any hire car, send you a bill for their services and your are back to square one.
Many insurance companies will try and persuade you to use their Legal Expenses Insurance suggesting that if you do not you will be charged by your solicitors. This is simply not true. They actually want you to go to solicitors that they choose so that they can receive a payment from them. The suggestion that you will be charged is nonsense as most solicitors who deal with this type of claim will offer their services on a “no win no fee basis”.
Martyn Brown, principal solicitor at Integrum Law, comments “I have been dealing with claims arising out of road traffic accidents for over 20 years and during that time I have seen a massive increase in claims or accident management companies. They will often harass people who have been involved in accidents by sending letters, making ‘phone calls and even sending texts promising large amounts of money.”
Unfortunately there are now many companies who are more interested in lining their own pockets than helping you to get your life back on the road. However everything that these companies offer can be done just as well, if not better, by a local solicitor who specialises in this type of claim.
Martyn adds “we are often called upon to try and sort out the mess and confusion caused by these companies but my advice is that if anybody contacts you after you have had an accident – tell them that you are not interested”.
