Who to turn to when you have had an accident
I am often approached by victims of accidents who have had problems with the handling of their accident claims, often because their claims are being handled by inexperienced people or in call centres or offices far away from them.
The problems really start from the choices they make over who to approach after they have had an accident.
Firstly many garages or recovery services now call themselves “accident repair centres” or “accident solutions” and will offer to deal with claims. Why would anybody ask a garage to handle their claim? They might be the first people they encounter but who would ask a mechanic for legal advice?
If they steer clear of garages they might think about speaking to a claims management company. These are businesses that gather claims and then sell them to solicitors of their choosing. What is the point? You can easily go direct to a solicitor who is local to you and who you choose. Claims managers add nothing to the process and are just unnecessary middlemen.
Often people choose to speak to solicitors recommended by their insurance companies, in fact their insurance company will have sold their claim to solicitors. The claim will often be handled by somebody you never meet in a far away call centre. Many clients who come to me after having been with one of these firms complain that the firm was more interested in keeping the insurance company happy than the client.
So it is really quite simple. If you have an accident go to a local solicitor who you choose. After all if you are ill you see your doctor, not an “illness manager” and if your pet dog is unwell you take it to a vet, not a dog groomer. So if you want to claim compensation see a solicitor.
If you don’t already know a solicitor firstly ask any of your family or friends if they can recommend one. If they can’t, a list of all solicitors is available on the Law Society website and solicitors specialising in accident claims are listed on the website of the Association of Personal Injury Lawyers.
