Personal Injury Services
Serious Injury
Head, brain, spinal cord and other serious injuries can have a devastating and life changing affect upon the individual concerned and their family. Clients who have had the misfortune to be seriously injured are dealt with by an expert Solicitor within the Serious Injury Team. We fight every day for people whose lives have been changed by serious injury. The ASD promise to seriously injured clients is as follows:-
- Provide a 'No Win - No Fee' service, with a guarantee that the success fee will not be more than 10% + vat of the damages recovered
- Pay a loyalty fee of £750.
- You will be dealt with by a Solicitor from the Serious Injury Team throughout the life of your case.
- We will give you an interest free loan of up to £2500, if required (subject to terms & conditions)
- We will arrange an immediate needs assessment to be carried out by our rehabilitation company
- We will, at the earliest opportunity, secure an interim payment for you
- You will be seen ‘face to face' throughout your claim
Head and Brain Injuries
Spinal Injuries
Loss of Limb
Road Traffic Accidents
Every year tens of thousands of people are injured on the road through no fault of their own. Injuries can range from relatively minor soft tissue injuries to serious brain and spinal injuries. At ASD our solicitors have many years of experience in assisting clients who have been injured on the road as a driver, passenger, cyclist or pedestrian and fight every day for compensation from insurers.
Car Accidents
Hundreds of thousands of people are injured in Road Traffic Accidents every year. Injuries can range from minor whiplash to the cervical spine to serious fractures and brain injuries. If you have been injured as a result of the negligence of another driver you are likely to be compensated by the insurance company. Even if the person driving is uninsured we can still assist.
Bus Accidents
If you have suffered injury when being carried by a bus we may be able to assist. Bus passengers are often more vulnerable than passengers in a car, they do not have the benefit of seat belts and the potential for injury is therefore greater. Bus passengers may not be able to brace themselves in anticipation of the accident. Even if you do not know what happened we still may be able to assist. Buses are likely to be fitted with CCTV which will record the incident. If the injury was caused by an untraced driver we can still help you.
Injuries Caused by Uninsured and Untraced Drivers
The Motors Insurers Bureau (MIB) estimates that there were 1.4 million uninsured drivers on the UK road in 2010. Thousands of people were injured, some very seriously, as a result of the negligent driving of uninsured drivers. The MIB indicates that untraced drivers kill 160 people and injure 23,000 every year. The MIB was set up by the government to compensate people who were injured due to uninsured and untraced drivers. They will also, in certain circumstances, compensate the family in the event of a fatal accident.
Motorbike and Bicycle Accidents
Motorcycling is an increasingly popular form of transport. However, motorcyclists are one of the most vulnerable road users. In 2010 403 motorcyclists were killed on the road and 4780 were seriously injured. This is despite only forming 1% of road traffic.
Fatal Accidents
Every year collisions on UK road result in nearly 3000 fatalities. We believe that bereaved partners and family members deserve the best possible legal representation. For that reason we will ensure that a Solicitor is with you every step of the way. We will arrange an immediate home visit with a Solicitor that has experience in dealing with fatal accident claims.
Accidents at Work
By law, an employer has to protect the health, safety and welfare at work of those they employer. They have to make sure the workplace is safe and without risk to health. As part of these duties, employers must, amongst other things:-
- Make sure that plant and machinery are safe and regularly maintained, and that the systems used in the workplace are safe
- Provide protective clothing where necessary
- Reduce manual handling to its lowest level reasonably practicable
- Report certain diseases and injuries to the relevant authority
- Provide adequate and safety equipment and facilities
- Take precautions against fire and provide adequate means of escape and means of fighting fire
- Assess the risks that might be involved in work practices.
- Provide safe traffic routes.
Every day employers fail in their duty to protect their employees, often resulting in personal injury and even death. At ASD our expert Solicitors fight to ensure the best possible outcome for our clients.
The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) estimates that there were 1.2 million people suffering from work related injury or illness in 2010. 171 workers were killed and 115000 people were seriously injured. 26.4 million working days were lost to work related injury/illness. The majority of these deaths and injuries could have been prevented if the employer had taken more care. All employees are entitled to work in an environment where risks to their health and safety are properly controlled. Under health and safety legislation, the primary responsibility for this is down to employers. Unfortunately employers often fail to meet their legal requirements.
Falls From A Height
Manual Handling and Spinal Injuries
Construction Site Injuries
Defective Equipment Injuries
Rehabilitation
It is often the case that the injured person, following an accident, requires some assistance, treatment and rehabilitation in order to aid their recovery.
Should this be the case then ASD, in accordance with the Rehabilitation Code as set out within the Civil Procedure Rules, will jointly instruct with the Insurers an appropriate rehabilitation provider. In the alternative ASD will simply instruct the Rehabilitation provider directly.
Depending on the severity of the injuries rehabilitation can take the form of either direct and early treatment, say, physiotherapy, or can include an “immediate needs assessment” followed by appropriate case management and ultimately occupational therapy, as provided by a qualified rehabilitation provider.
ASD have a number of such providers who offer the following services:-
The majority of rehabilitation providers will carry out an initial triage, which is typically undertaken by telephone by one of their carefully selected and appropriately qualified healthcare professionals. They will discuss the injury sustained, the injured persons current situation and answer any question. Subject to this triage and the severity of the injury appropriate treatment will be organised, whether that be by physiotherapists, osteopaths, chiropractors, psychotherapists or case managers. The rehabilitation providers have access to a number of centres in this region to ensure that the appropriate treatment provider can be located close to the injured person’s home.
Once an appropriate treatment provider has been identified we at ASD will ensure that funding is put in place to enable the treatment to be provided as soon as practical. The treatment provider will carry out an initial assessment and discuss with the injured person the ideal number and frequency of treatment sessions. Such treatment is usually successful in alleviating the acute pain suffered during the first few weeks/months post-accident.
If the injuries are complex, numerous and/or severe then, post triage, the rehabilitation provider will typically instruct one of their health practitioners, which is usually a qualified registered nurse, to attend the injured person at their home in order to carry out a full “immediate needs assessment”.
For rehabilitation to be effective the earlier the intervention and support the better. During an immediate needs assessment the treatment provider will assess the injured person’s disabilities, both physical and psychological and prepare a report setting out such injuries and what treatment and aids are appropriate.
The immediate needs assessment report will typically outline the injured persons post injury levels of function, to include strengths and weaknesses, how best treatment can be provided and any aids or adaptations which may be required to assist the injured person around their home. The report will typically give a breakdown of costs associated with the aids and adaptations required around the home, together with the cost of the treatment.
Once in receipt of the Immediate Needs Assessment Report ASD will seek to agree funding from the Defendant Insurer so that such aids, adaptations and treatment can be put in place.
It may be a suggestion within the immediate needs assessment report that on-going case management should be provided by the rehabilitation provider, such case management is usually appropriate for complex injuries and catastrophic cases which require specialist knowledge and expertise.
Case Management typically entails the Case Manager establishing care and support services for the injured person, whether that be for a few hours a day or for full 24 hour care. In addition the case manager will seek to liaise with the injured person’s NHS treating medics and GP or will source and seek funding for appropriate treatment to be carried out on a private basis, or a combination of the two. The injuries sustained may require a multidisciplinary approach to rehabilitation, which may involve a number of different treatment providers which the case manager can co-ordinate.
In addition case managers will often assist and liaise with other treatment providers, to include Occupational Therapists. An occupational therapist would assist the injured person in either returning to work, by informing and updating the injured person’s employer or, if alternative employment is required due to the extent and severity of the injuries then the occupational therapist and case manager will assist in sourcing alternate employment or identifying other jobs that the injured person would be able to undertake.
Ultimately the aim of rehabilitation, whether it is provided in the form of a course of physiotherapy or much more detailed and comprehensive support by a case manager, is to assist the injured person in recovering from their injuries as quickly as possible and returning to their pre accident condition and life, or, where that is not possible due to the injuries sustained, ensuring that recovery to the best possible level is achieved, to enable the injured person to regain the best possible quality of life.
