What is a personal injury claim?

What is a personal injury claim?

Filing for a personal injury lawsuit is a matter one needs to carefully consider before taking action. Personal injury claims can consist of a variety of incidents, including slip and fall injuries, dog bite incidents, road accident claims, medical negligence injuries, and any other incident in which a personal injury was suffered due to the negligence of another person. Furthermore, a personal injury can be defined as an injury to your body, mind or emotions. Nevertheless, to ensure that your claim is legitimate, it is encouraged that you seek legal advice.

Perhaps the most prominent of personal injury claims is medical malpractice injuries. The law requires a medical professional to exercise reasonable skill and care when treating a patient. If you have sustained a negative consequence of a medical treatment that could have otherwise been avoided by the medical practitioner, then the professional may be held liable to you for damages.

Time is of the essence when launching a personal injury lawsuit. Legal action must be instituted within a period of three years from the date the claim arose (i.e. the day you were injured). Anything after the time stipulated will be deemed invalid and you will not be able to proceed with the lawsuit. Furthermore, a personal injury lawsuit can be a lengthy process in itself. Though, this depends on whether or not the matter can be settled out of a court of law. As the litigation process is quite complex, finalising such a case usually takes between 3 to 4 years.

You also need to consider what you can claim for.

Claims include:

Past and future medical expenses due to your injury.
Disability accommodation for your vehicle and home.
Past and future loss of income due to your injury.
General damages.

Damages can range from economic, such as medical expenses and lost income, to noneconomic, such as emotional pain and suffering. For obvious reasons, psychological damages are harder to claim as it is hard to place a monetary value on them. The plaintiff also needs to be certain that the person they wish to claim from, is financially able to pay out the claim. Claiming from a party who has no assets would be futile.

Even though launching a personal injury lawsuit may seem daunting, if you are certain that the incident involving another person who was the sole and direct cause of your injury, it is advisable that you try to claim compensation for personal injury. If more people start claiming compensation for personal injury, other people may also start being more mindful and considerate before doing something that might cause others harm.

Learn more about our personal injury legal services
If you think you have a personal injury claim, contact our offices for a free 1-hour consultation to review your case. Malcolm Lyons and Brivik work on a no win, no fee basis for personal injury claims.