28
East Cork
by KAREN WALSH If you have been in-
volved in an accident, you have legal rights and you can potentially bring a claim against the wrong- doing party. There are a variety of result
factors which in
accidents occurring. The three most common types of accidents are: 1. Road traffic accidents
which normally arise out of a motor collision in- volving motorists and pe- destrians.
2. Accidents at workplace. the Business
What Are Your Legal Rights If You Have Been Involved In An Accident
places.
3. Accidents in public In all the above type of
accidents, insurance will normally be in place. Mo- torists are required by law to ensure their vehicle is insured. An occupier of a public place or an employ- er should have a public or employers liability policy in place. If parties are in- volved in an accident they should immediately report it to their insurers. If an accident is report-
ed early, it allows for prop- er investigation to be car- ried out and it is helpful in proving causation that any injuries suffered are aris- ing from the accident. In
this regard it is advisable to attend your GP or hos- pital on the day of the ac- cident or as soon as possi- ble. Under legislation, it is possible to obtain a court order that the scene of the accident is preserved as much as possible in order that accidents can be fully investigated. Liability is then inves-
tigated by the insurance companies and they will normally make a decision then as to whether they in- tend to dispute fault or ad- mit the claim. If you have suffered an injury arising out of an accident it is ad- visable that you consult a solicitor. The procedure is
that the solicitor will then write a letter of claim to the appropriate parties or insurance company and it’s advisable that you then attend a treating doctor. If the injury is minor in na- ture, you would normally attend a general practi- tioner but for more serious injuries it is advisable you are treated by a specialist such as an orthopaedic surgeon depending on the nature of the injuries. Your solicitor will ask
your treating medical ex- pert to complete a report which will set out the in- juries suffered as a result of the accident and will often give a prognosis as
to when you are likely to recover from your inju- ries. The prognosis will often be contingent on whether further surgery is required. The doctor will normally not be in a posi- tion to give a final progno- sis until the injuries have settled post-surgery. Under Irish Law there
is a limitation period and you have two years to bring a case for personal injury to the courts. How- ever before a case can be brought, an application has to be made to the Injuries Board. Once a claim is submitted to the Injuries Board, the limi- tation period stops to run
and it begins to run again once it leaves the Injuries Board. The
Injuries Board
normally assess a claim which can take a number of months and they make a decision as to whether they will offer an award or alternatively
they will
give authorisation to issue court
proceedings. The
Injuries Board do not ac- cept certain claims such as psychological cases. You have the option to accept or reject
the award of-
fered. If you reject, the In- juries Board will then give you authorisation to issue court proceedings. Depending on the se-
verity of the injury and the level of damages sought, your Solicitor will then decide as to what the appropriate court to sue in is. The courts for bring- ing personal injury claims are the District, Circuit and High Court. Damag- es normally consist of an award for pain, suffering and loss and you can also claim for quantified dam- ages arising out of an ac- cident. An example of this would be loss of earnings or medical expenses. If you have suffered an
accident, it is advisable to consult a Solicitor as soon as possible as you may be entitled to damages.
info@eastcorkjournal.ie
Thursday, 5th
July 2018
Experience you can trust FINANCIAL PLANNING ADVISORY RETIREMENT PLANNING
www.heritagewealth.ie
27 Cook Street, Cork City Tel: 021 463 8000 • Email:
info@eastcorkjournal.ie • Web:
www.eastcorkjournal.ie eastcorkjournal
021 2390880 @eastcorkjournal / #eastcorkjournal
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