insurance claim (whiplash) two months after the event
Discussion
After some advice. The Mrs has just been called by her insurers-seems she tapped the back of another car a while back. Minor and no damage to either vehicle. She got out and both parties exited the scene after a quick look at the cars. No details were exchanged and she seemingly forgot the whole thing. The third party is now claiming personal injury. Does not sound kosher to me. Thoughts?
pneumothorax said:
After some advice. The Mrs has just been called by her insurers-seems she tapped the back of another car a while back. Minor and no damage to either vehicle. She got out and both parties exited the scene after a quick look at the cars. No details were exchanged and she seemingly forgot the whole thing. The third party is now claiming personal injury. Does not sound kosher to me. Thoughts?
Thoughts?Most on here will agree with you, the law however gives them a good few years to claim, so there’s nothing wrong with that side of things.
However, what are your thoughts? You’re a doctor according to your profile.
My thoughts? As a Doctor, not asking for medical advice, more to flesh out where she stands on something that was trivial, no damage to her car and likely none to his, informal understanding at the scene that matters were not being taken forwards, then significant sounding personal injury claim two months later, sounds like something I would/will be questioning.
People are w
kers, it's 2018, where's the surprise?
The same reason some Spanish hotels have recently stopped taking British guests on package holidays (saw this reported twice in the last week), strangely the British are somewhat unique in post holiday claims for food poisoning that never got mentioned at the time.
kers, it's 2018, where's the surprise?The same reason some Spanish hotels have recently stopped taking British guests on package holidays (saw this reported twice in the last week), strangely the British are somewhat unique in post holiday claims for food poisoning that never got mentioned at the time.
They have up to 3 years to bring a claim.
Sometimes it isn't the force of the impact that causes the whiplash, its the jolt.
They will go to a medical expert and obtain a report that confirms they suffered whiplash. The expert is meant to be independent and has a duty to the Court. The judge will not upset the applecart and call the expert a liar.
Your wife shouldn't have gone into the back of someone. Her insurers won't defend it. Let them deal with it and get one with your life.
Sometimes it isn't the force of the impact that causes the whiplash, its the jolt.
They will go to a medical expert and obtain a report that confirms they suffered whiplash. The expert is meant to be independent and has a duty to the Court. The judge will not upset the applecart and call the expert a liar.
Your wife shouldn't have gone into the back of someone. Her insurers won't defend it. Let them deal with it and get one with your life.
cuprabob said:
Sounds as if an "injury lawyer" made a cold call and got lucky.
I would imagine without medical evidence it won't go anywhere.
I would agree with this.I would imagine without medical evidence it won't go anywhere.
I was helping a friend deal with a case where someone rear ended her. She had legal cover. No one was hurt but after having to use the legal cover to sort out the case because the other party would not admit liability, she was forever getting calls from no-win no-fee companies trying to entice a whiplash claim.
Another case, my mum side swiped (actually gently brushed) a car at a junction when she changed lanes last minute. So clearly her fault. Her car had no damage but the other had a scratch so it was a minor touch. After several months dealing with the case, my mum then got a letter telling her that the other party wanted £4000 damages for whiplash. There was nothing indicating this and the other party clearly did not have any injuries. But it looks like the enticement was too much and easy money.
The case went to court and she wanted to save money and not get a lawyer because it was a straight forward case showing not even a scratch on her car from two cars going the same direction and gently touched the sides. She lost and was ordered to pay £10,000 (judge got fed up with her because she gave conflicting information in the end).
There was a documentary about this. Basically there are unscrupulous solicitors who tell the party to lie in court. Also get medical evidence from GP by claiming pain when the neck moves. GP cannot verify so has to give the benefit of the doubt and confirm in writing or risk being sued.
leef44 said:
I would agree with this.
I was helping a friend deal with a case where someone rear ended her. She had legal cover. No one was hurt but after having to use the legal cover to sort out the case because the other party would not admit liability, she was forever getting calls from no-win no-fee companies trying to entice a whiplash claim.
Another case, my mum side swiped (actually gently brushed) a car at a junction when she changed lanes last minute. So clearly her fault. Her car had no damage but the other had a scratch so it was a minor touch. After several months dealing with the case, my mum then got a letter telling her that the other party wanted £4000 damages for whiplash. There was nothing indicating this and the other party clearly did not have any injuries. But it looks like the enticement was too much and easy money.
The case went to court and she wanted to save money and not get a lawyer because it was a straight forward case showing not even a scratch on her car from two cars going the same direction and gently touched the sides. She lost and was ordered to pay £10,000 (judge got fed up with her because she gave conflicting information in the end).
There was a documentary about this. Basically there are unscrupulous solicitors who tell the party to lie in court. Also get medical evidence from GP by claiming pain when the neck moves. GP cannot verify so has to give the benefit of the doubt and confirm in writing or risk being sued.
So rather than let her insurers deal with it at no cost to herself, your mum decided to defend herself at Court which would mean that the insurers probably wouldn't indemnify her as she went off on a frolic of her own and she was ordered to pay £10k? I was helping a friend deal with a case where someone rear ended her. She had legal cover. No one was hurt but after having to use the legal cover to sort out the case because the other party would not admit liability, she was forever getting calls from no-win no-fee companies trying to entice a whiplash claim.
Another case, my mum side swiped (actually gently brushed) a car at a junction when she changed lanes last minute. So clearly her fault. Her car had no damage but the other had a scratch so it was a minor touch. After several months dealing with the case, my mum then got a letter telling her that the other party wanted £4000 damages for whiplash. There was nothing indicating this and the other party clearly did not have any injuries. But it looks like the enticement was too much and easy money.
The case went to court and she wanted to save money and not get a lawyer because it was a straight forward case showing not even a scratch on her car from two cars going the same direction and gently touched the sides. She lost and was ordered to pay £10,000 (judge got fed up with her because she gave conflicting information in the end).
There was a documentary about this. Basically there are unscrupulous solicitors who tell the party to lie in court. Also get medical evidence from GP by claiming pain when the neck moves. GP cannot verify so has to give the benefit of the doubt and confirm in writing or risk being sued.
I was rear ended a couple of months ago while stationary waiting to turn right.
It was quite a substantial thump and my wife had to go to hospital later that night as she was getting tightness in the chest. The diagnosis was whiplash made more serious by her having arthritis in the neck.
I mentioned my neck was sore as well (which it was) and got diagnosed with the same.
That’s 2 whiplash claims there and then with very little proof required. As it turns out my wife needs physio as her neck is still bothering her but im fine
However the 2 claims are still going forward but I must be the only claimant who is trying to play down the extent of their problems as it was a stiff neck for a couple of days and nothing more.
But it just shows how easy it is to play the system as how do you prove the client is trying it on?
It was quite a substantial thump and my wife had to go to hospital later that night as she was getting tightness in the chest. The diagnosis was whiplash made more serious by her having arthritis in the neck.
I mentioned my neck was sore as well (which it was) and got diagnosed with the same.
That’s 2 whiplash claims there and then with very little proof required. As it turns out my wife needs physio as her neck is still bothering her but im fine
However the 2 claims are still going forward but I must be the only claimant who is trying to play down the extent of their problems as it was a stiff neck for a couple of days and nothing more.
But it just shows how easy it is to play the system as how do you prove the client is trying it on?
I was rear ended in 1993, had treatment for whiplash but made no claim, 3 months later had a major relapse where I was almost completely immobilised and had to take over a week off work, extensive physio etc, an X-ray showed I had a displaced vertebrae in my neck (still do, can cause issues mountain biking on very rough trails) so my claim wasn't started until circa 6 months after the event, my wife had mild whiplash and made no claim. I wasn't in any pain at the time and didn't go to A&E until about 4 hours after the accident. Just an example that not being in any pain at the time isn't any indication of severity, but the state of the back of the car was probably more indicative (written off, the impact put a mild buckle in the floorpan ahead of the rear axle, rear overhang also shortened by about 6").
pneumothorax said:
After some advice. The Mrs has just been called by her insurers-seems she tapped the back of another car a while back. Minor and no damage to either vehicle. She got out and both parties exited the scene after a quick look at the cars. No details were exchanged and she seemingly forgot the whole thing. The third party is now claiming personal injury. Does not sound kosher to me. Thoughts?
I think she's going to be in trouble for not telling her insurance company she's had an accident.leef44 said:
Also get medical evidence from GP by claiming pain when the neck moves. GP cannot verify so has to give the benefit of the doubt and confirm in writing or risk being sued.
Not consistent with a whiplash claim I and my wife made some years ago: had to see different consultants for both insurance companies - ours and the one for the git that crashed into us; so I would be surprised for an injury settlement to be made on the basis of going to the GP and saying 'ow'. Having said that; both consultants demonstrated they didn't understand soft tissue injuries like whiplash - the one for 'our' side even suggested that we'd feel better once we'd got the payment! Injuries like whiplash don't necessarily present themselves immediately after the event, it can take hours, days or even longer for it to manifest. They also are horrible to resolve - I generally resist commenting on all the 'whiplash is a myth' twaddle posted at times: it is very real, it HURTS and continues to do so, in the case of my wife and I: decades later.
But for OP: it could be the occupant(s) of the car your OH hit felt some discomfort later, it is also possible that unseen damage was caused to either/both cars. A couple of months is nothing in the scale of things for this sort of injury - or it could be ambulance chasing scam!
pneumothorax said:
After some advice. The Mrs has just been called by her insurers-seems she tapped the back of another car a while back. Minor and no damage to either vehicle. She got out and both parties exited the scene after a quick look at the cars. No details were exchanged and she seemingly forgot the whole thing. The third party is now claiming personal injury. Does not sound kosher to me. Thoughts?
So if no details were exchanged and there is no damage how do they know who to get in contact with?If there was no damage etc, I would simply say "dunno WTF you are talking about".
My wife did exactly the same in 2013 (in my car). No damage, no injury, everybody reported they were fine at the time. Some of the passengers didn't notice anything had happened. Photos taken at the scene. Sadly I was not there at the time, but she had two witnesses with her.
In 2014, our insurance informed me there was now a claim for whiplash and damage. We told them to stand firm and fight this fraudulent claim. They sent an assessor to look at the car and agreed that there was no damage and clearly, this could not have resulted in any injury or damage. I specifically and repeatedly asked the insurance to not pay out as we would take this all the way to court. I had legal cover so thought this would be sorted OK.
The whole thing went away until late 2015, when I got a letter saying the claim had been paid and my no claims would be deducted accordingly. Having discussed this with the insurer and the legal team, it turns out there was 'a doctor's letter' that stated the other driver had whiplash (as did the passenger who did not notice the accident) and so they paid out as it would be unlikely we would win in court. One letter from a doctor was enough to scare off a whole legal team.
TLDR / Moral of the story is: assume ANY bump you have will result in a whiplash claim that many insurers (especially the one named after a seafaring rank) will pay out because it is easier.
The most galling bit of all is that the fraudulent claim was for £7.5k without it getting to court. I have no idea how and they would not tell me (assume a chunk of legal / compensation for missed holidays / needed new TV to cope emotionally with the trauma?).
In 2014, our insurance informed me there was now a claim for whiplash and damage. We told them to stand firm and fight this fraudulent claim. They sent an assessor to look at the car and agreed that there was no damage and clearly, this could not have resulted in any injury or damage. I specifically and repeatedly asked the insurance to not pay out as we would take this all the way to court. I had legal cover so thought this would be sorted OK.
The whole thing went away until late 2015, when I got a letter saying the claim had been paid and my no claims would be deducted accordingly. Having discussed this with the insurer and the legal team, it turns out there was 'a doctor's letter' that stated the other driver had whiplash (as did the passenger who did not notice the accident) and so they paid out as it would be unlikely we would win in court. One letter from a doctor was enough to scare off a whole legal team.
TLDR / Moral of the story is: assume ANY bump you have will result in a whiplash claim that many insurers (especially the one named after a seafaring rank) will pay out because it is easier.
The most galling bit of all is that the fraudulent claim was for £7.5k without it getting to court. I have no idea how and they would not tell me (assume a chunk of legal / compensation for missed holidays / needed new TV to cope emotionally with the trauma?).
Drawweight said:
...As it turns out my wife needs physio as her neck is still bothering her but im fine
However the 2 claims are still going forward but I must be the only claimant who is trying to play down the extent of their problems as it was a stiff neck for a couple of days and nothing more...
Part 26.6 of the Civil Procedure Rules sets out the position with track allocation. There can be small, fast and multi-track cases depending on a number of factors, including "quantum", I.e. value.However the 2 claims are still going forward but I must be the only claimant who is trying to play down the extent of their problems as it was a stiff neck for a couple of days and nothing more...
If you have instructed a solicitor on a CFA ("no win, no fee"), the likelihood is you will attend a medical appointment with a GP (or similar) under the "Medco" procedure. If that report states that your neck symptoms were for a couple of days only and then fully resolved, then it is very unlikely, in the absence of any other symptoms, that your claim for "general damages" (I.e. Pain, suffering and loss of amenity) would get you past the required threshold for the fast track, which is £1k.
Your claim it then likely to be regarded as a small track matter and the Defendant's insurer would not need to pay any legal costs.
But all you can do is report everything honestly, as you have done, and let your legal representative advise you accordingly.
If you haven't already seen the medical expert (known as a medico-legal expert, as they will report on your injuries (prognosis, recommendations etc.), rather than treat you), then you may wish to discuss the claim for general damages with your legal representative.
All this might be irrelevant if you haven't engaged a solicitor, your claim settles without medical evidence, or there are other factors not mentioned in your post, but I hope it is of some help.
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