In this guide, we’ll explain the road traffic accident claims process. This guide can provide examples of when you could claim and how much your injuries could be valued.
Road traffic accident claims guide
You can also contact our advisors for answers to questions like, “I was a passenger in a car accident, can I claim?”. They are available 24/7, offer free legal advice and have years of experience providing advice on car accident claims.
Our advisors can also put you through to a No Win No Fee lawyer from our panel who specialises in these types of claims. Contact our team using the details below:
- Call us now using the phone number above.
- Contact us through our website.
- Please write to us using the Live Chat window that’s now on your screen.
Select a Section
- What Is A Road Traffic Accident And How Do They Happen?
- How Common Are Collisions On The Road?
- The Evidence Required To Prove Road Traffic Accident Claims
- Road Traffic Accident Claims Against Uninsured And Untraced Drivers
- How Has Road Traffic Accident Claims Been Impacted By The Whiplash Reforms?
- Make A No Win No Fee Road Traffic Accident Compensation Claim
What Is A Road Traffic Accident And How Do They Happen?
A road traffic accident (RTA) is an accident that occurs on the road. This category includes car accidents, as well as other incidents like pedestrian accidents and cycle accidents.
This guide will look at the different types of road traffic accidents that you could be injured in. However, whether you can claim depends on whether you’re able to prove third-party negligence.
Proving this means that the below three things need to occur regarding your injury:
- The third-party in question needs to have a duty of care.
- Their actions need to have breached this duty.
- This breach needs to have led to your injury.
Every road user in the UK has a duty of care to one another set out in The Road Traffic Act 1988. The things that road users are expected to do to ensure one another’s safety is set out in The Highway Code.
These guidelines clarify appropriate road conduct. If someone acts in a way that goes against the Highway Code, they could be considered negligent. As a result, if you’re injured, you may be able to claim.
Examples of incidents that could cause road traffic accident claims might include:
- Rear-end collision
- Side-impact collisions
- Head-on collisions
However, this is not exhaustive. You might be involved in another kind of accident as a result of negligence that causes you injury. For example, a cycling accident or an accident on a motorcycle.
For more information on the kinds of accidents that could entitle you to claim, speak with an advisor today. They’ll be happy to offer you free legal advice on the process of claiming.
How Common Are Collisions On The Road?
The Department for Transport provides reported road traffic accident statistics across Great Britain. We’ve used some of these statistics to create the graph above.
The data shows that you can suffer an injury on the road in many different kinds of accidents. While accidents involving cars resulted in the largest amount of road casualties in 2020 (at 64,255), the other figures are far from insignificant. A pedestrian accident is one where you could, for instance, be crossing a road and being hit due to a car breaking the speed limit.
In total, the amount of pedestrian, pedal cyclist and motorcyclist casualties reported in 2020 comes to 44,648. For this reason, don’t assume you can only make road traffic accident claims if you were inside a car.
To find out if you can claim, please call us today using the phone number above. You could be connected with a No Win No Fee solicitor to work on your claim.
The Evidence Required To Prove Road Traffic Accident Claims
Whether you’re claiming for a motorcycle accident or wanting to receive cycling accident compensation, the principles of making a successful personal injury claim remain the same. The most important aspect is proving that the third party in question broke their duty of care and, in doing so, caused you to be injured. An example of this could be getting injured while cycling because a car drove through a red traffic light.
To prove this, you need to supply evidence. Whether you use a personal injury solicitor or not, road traffic accident claims can hinge on whether you have sufficient proof of the other road user’s negligence.
Evidence you could provide could include:
- CCTV footage
- Witness details and police reports
- Photographs, of both the scene and your injury
- Damage reports of the vehicles involved
In addition to this, an independent medical examination will be performed as part of the road traffic accident claims process. In this, an independent expert will assess your injuries and confirm that they’re consistent with the accident. The report from this assessment will be used to value your claim.
Road Traffic Accident Claims Against Uninsured And Untraced Drivers
You may be wondering how car accident claims work if they involve an uninsured or untraceable driver. This is an issue because car accident claims are usually made through the insurance company of the drivers involved. If a driver isn’t known or doesn’t have an insurer, it can be difficult to determine whether you can claim.
You could potentially claim compensation in these circumstances through the Motor Insurers’ Bureau. Furthermore, you can still use a No Win No Fee solicitor to make claims through the MIB. The solicitor can help build your case by using their legal expertise to gather evidence.
How Has Road Traffic Accident Claims Been Impacted By The Whiplash Reforms?
There is another important aspect to consider when looking into the car accident claims process. Drivers and passengers over the age of 18 must now claim for minor injuries, such as whiplash, through a different method. This is due to the Whiplash Reform Programme.
Below, we have included some of the damages for whiplash injuries as outlined by the Whiplash Injury Regulations 2021.
| Duration of injury | Total amout for one or more whiplash injuries | Total amount for whiplash and psychological injuries |
|---|---|---|
| No longer than three months | £240 | £260 |
| Between three to six months | £495 | £520 |
| Between six to nine months | £840 | £895 |
| Between nine to twelve months | £1,320 | £1,390 |
| Between twelve to fifteen months | £2,040 | £2,125 |
| Between fifteen to eighteen months | £3,005 | £3,100 |
| Between eighteen to twenty-four months | £4,215 | £4,345 |
However, this reform doesn’t necessarily just affect whiplash injuries. Any road traffic injury valued at less than £5,000 caused by someone else’s negligence would need to be claimed through this method.
As you can see from the table above, the amount you could receive depends on how long you’ve suffered from the injury and whether the injury has also caused psychological issues, such as a fear of cycling after an accident.
You may be unsure how much your injuries are worth. If that’s the case, don’t worry. Our advisors can provide you with car accident claims advice.
They can value your injuries and provide you with a reliable compensation estimate over the phone. Contact them using the phone number above.
Make A No Win No Fee Road Traffic Accident Compensation Claim
You could benefit from making road traffic accident claims with a personal injury solicitor from our panel. If they agree to take your case, they could offer you a No Win No Fee agreement, otherwise known as a Conditional Fee Agreement.
The benefits of this include not having to pay your solicitor’s legal fees until you receive your compensation. A small, legally capped amount of your compensation will be taken by your solicitor as a “success fee”. You will also not have to worry about paying your solicitor’s legal fees during the claims process or if your claim isn’t successful.
Our advisors could answer any questions or queries you have and put you through to a No Win No Fee personal injury solicitor from our panel. Contact us today using the details below.
- Call us now using the phone number at the top of the page.
- Contact us through our website.
- Please write to us using the Live Chat window that’s now on your screen.
More Resources On Road Traffic Accident Claims
To learn more about car accident claims, please use the links below.
You can use the MIB can check the insurance details of a car you were in an accident with.
More road accident and safety statistics can be found on the Department for Transport website.
If you think you may have broken a bone, please refer to the NHS website.
We have some other guides that you may find useful:
- Or head here to learn more about accident at work claims
- Read our guide to personal injury claims here
- Learn more about the personal injury claims time limit here
- And head here to learn more about what to do after a slip, trip and fall
Other Road Traffic Accident Claims Guides
Thank you for reading our guide on road traffic accident claims. We hope that you’ve found it helpful.