Page 1 of Legal advice needed regarding a `crash`/claim etc..

Eh, what`s this? Bold, italics etc. Changes eh..

Anyway, just got back from holiday and need some advice.
Amongst the stack of mail was a Solicitor`s letter.
Right, the background..
On 12 December 2002 (it says so in the letter) I was driving in to work with a colleague and was approaching a roundabout. The traffic lights were not working so I approached with caution. Anyway the car in front basically slammed on the brakes. Neither car was going fast and there was no traffic on the roundabout.
Anyway I hit the car in front. We were going no more than a couple of mph - in fact I wasn`t even sure there was any contact until he opened his door. My passenger asked why was I getting out. I got out and we had a look. There were a few marks to my bumper but we couldn`t see any damage to his car. We were probably out of the cars about 20 seconds. He just shrugged his shoulders, said `no harm done` and we both got in our cars and drove off - we didn`t exchange any details or anything, the incident appearing to be so minor. That, basically, was it. Until today.
The letter has my car registration so he must have taken a note as he drove away and also states they don`t "yet have complete instructions upon the claim for special damages. These will be provided". What does this mean? How can he wait over 6 months before doing anything? In fact, can he? Is there a time limit when a claim should be made?
I know I`ve just got to pass the letter to my insurance and they`ll deal with it but was just asking for advice on anything I can/should do. I know I was to blame as I hit him from behind, I just don`t want to sit around while I`m (and the insurance) shafted because I just refuse to believe the incident caused `loss and damage`.
It`s nice to see the company (Shoosmiths) offer a no win-no fee scheme and that "At Shoosmiths we have a dedicated team dealing with these claims"

Great to be back...

Ste

Not a claims expert but I would state that

1) He will have to explain why he didn`t put forward the claim 6 months ago. Ordinarily, this would have gone against him on any claims that he has made against you but ever since these "no win, no fee" d*******s have come about then they will probably defend him as they always state "any accidents in the last 3 years (rubbish)...".

2) As you hit him in the rear (of the car), irrespective of what speed you were going, you unfortunately become the guilty party. I have never come across a driver (who had shunted a car in front) winning a claim as the responsibility to prevent the accident was the driver in the back. If the car in front stopped abrutly, and you shunted him in the back then the other party will claim you were driving too close. The only way out of this is to state that he reversed into you.

Sorry to lay the bad news but it seems that this guy is taking advantage of the situation knowing that he was shunted from the back (hence your fault automatically) and is probably using the "no win, no fee" (asreholes) to get lots of monies for probably non-existant back/neck injuries".

Its a bit late but its always worth mentioning these incidents, no matter how small, to your insurer.

Hope this is sorted out.

You have 3 years to bring a claim which is based in negligence, as this one will be. It doesn`t matter whether you leave it until the 364th day of the the third year before you issue it - nothing can be read in itself by the court into the fact that the claim wasn`t brought straightaway.

Shoosmiths are actually a pretty well-regarded law firm, rather than one of these Claims Direct like ambulance chasing creatures. Still, that`s not to say that they don`t tout for business on a no win, no fee basis.....

It will be up to the claimant to prove that he actually suffered the losses ("special damages" - things like hire car costs, time off work if injured, damage to stuff in the car - I know these are unlikely to apply here, I`m just listing out a few things which can fall into this category) - if he can`t prove that he actually lost money as a result, he won`t be entitled to recover it.

The fact that you recall him shrugging and saying "no harm done" is something which your barrister would use to try to attack his credibility cross-examination if this ever reached court. That is a decision for your insurance company.

Just a quick note on Sultan`s observation that if you run into the back of someone you are deemed in every case the guilty party. I was a witness to a car accident where the driver of the car in front was found guilty - this was because they had accelerated thro` the gears then slammed their brakes on - so don`t become too disheartened.
Another point - you should be able to find what the claim is for from Shoosmiths so you have the right to defend the action. Once you have this plus you have a witness as a passenger - I think a quiet word with Shoosmiths through your insurance is called for.

Regards,
Peter

I would deny all knowledge of anything happening, I mean no one was hurt, it was six months ago and there were no other witnesses. Its his word against yours = NO CASE.

If there is no damage to your car, who cares about the reg no, it could have been anyones as far as you are concerned.

This bloke was stopped on the street by these `no-win-no fee` guys and thought, `mmm I could make a grand or two on losses, no skin of my nose if it goes tits-up`.

I had a very similar problem 2 years ago when no win, no fee started, all I did was to get a solicitor to send a strong letter of complaint stating that you do not know of this person and to get their facts right, No claim on their insurance is your saviour.

End of story.

(I do not charge for this I am voluntary).

If the guy does pursue the complaint then they should soon suss that there`s nothing wrong with him. My girlfriend`s car was hit from behind twice in a short space of time, causing her no end of back pain. Even so, it has taken over a year to get even one settlement (and that wasn`t a lot) and she had to go to shed loads of doctors to get reports done etc. It`s very hard to actually fake the kind of injuries, especially six months on.

Having said that, if this bloke has done his back in since, he could now be trying to claim it was as a result of you hitting him. Not nice, but does happen. I was in the car with the lass when the second accident occured, and I had minor aches and pains for a week or two. I decided not to pursue the claim as it would be takign the p***. About a week later I was lifting one of those huge HP colour lasers and totally did my back in. Six months later it`s still buggered, but I would never have pretended it was the accident.

These "no win, no fee" tossers should be shot for encouraging this kind of thing. They`re only contributing to our "something for nothing culture". Whenever they approach me a tell them there`s an abulance up the road that needs chasing, and to f*** off and stop bothering me. They like that.

Having had a think about this you could push for the fact that he left the scene of an accident without giving any details.This is a crime in the eyes of the law, but if asked why you never proceded with any claim you could say becasue there was no damage done and it wasn`t worth wasting police time with it.
My friend had a crash a couple of years ago when a lady pulled out of a junction and he hit her.
She got out of the car and swapped seats with the male passenger and then drove off.
My friend had witness statements ,the car plate number and a good description of the 2 occupants.
He went to the police who later told him there was not enough evidence for them to proceed with a prosecution.
He could not make any claim against them because there was no way they could prove who was driving the vechile at the time.
If i where you then i would not respond to there claim and play dumb. this works for footballers who do driving offences.

This item was edited on Tuesday, 24th June 2003, 12:18

"Having had a think about this you could push for the fact that he left the scene of an accident without giving any details.This is a crime in the eyes of the law, but if asked why you never proceded with any claim you could say becasue there was no damage done and it wasn`t worth wasting police time with it."

Indeed, more importantly if there is human injury as a result of the crash then I`m pretty sure the police have to be notified immediately. That alone would probably be enough to get the case ditched pretty quickly.

I was in a similar situation years ago involving a council van. No real harm done but I eventually got a letter asking for payment. I ignored it and after a couple of goes they gave up as there were no independent witnesses. For minor situations it is never worth involving your insurance as you lose out on the no claims at least. In rear impact situations like this a `knock for knock` result is often the result - which means your own insurance pays for your repair (if fully comp) or, more probably, writes your car off if it is at all elderly like mine.

A few points to add very quickly:

a) It has absolutely no bearing on the case that he has waited to claim;

b) Shoosmiths are a large and pretty reputable firm - They are not some Claimsdirect ambulance chasers. Therefore they are unlikely to have started the action unless he made a good case to them. People get very hot under the collar about the whole "no-win, no-fee" system, but it doesn`t mean solicitors take on any old case regardless of the strength of the claim. Don`t forget, if they spend time and money on a case and don`t win then they make a pretty big loss, so they do exert some objective view over the value of each case;

c) Bear in mind that it might not be him instructing the solicitors, it may be his insurance company - he might be trying to scam them, and they`re trying to recover from you;

You need to Get Your Story Straight. It is vital that you speak to your colleague and without `reminding` them of what happened (ie. get their independent opinion) determine what their recollection of the events are. If they match with yours, get them to write that down in a statement.

Next, you will need to wait until Shoosmiths make the particulars of the claim, because it`s only then you`ll know what you`re up against.

I hope you`ve got legal costs cover on your policy...

Let us know what goes on and we`ll no doubt help as we can.

This item was edited on Thursday, 26th June 2003, 20:54