Rebuilding Shattered Lives: JCP Solicitors Supports APIL Campaign
Sarah Fawkes-Grey, Associate Solicitor in the Catastrophic Injury team at JCP Solicitors, shares her team’s support for the new campaign from the Association of Personal Injury Lawyers.
Serious injury can happen to anyone, and if you or someone you know has experienced a serious injury that was not your fault, it can be difficult to know where to turn for support and justice.
JCP Solicitors’ Personal Injury team are members of APIL, the Association of Personal Injury Lawyers, who have launched a campaign to challenge misconceptions around legal claims for personal injury.
APIL’s new campaign ‘Rebuilding Shattered Lives’ aims to transform the negative perceptions around personal injury claims, and calls for grace and sympathy to be shown to anyone who seeks legal advice and guidance after suffering a serious injury.
Through the campaign, APIL and supporting Solicitors are striving to remove any shame associated with legal claims. This follows a recent report from APIL that found personal injury claims are decreasing, yet the number of road traffic accidents have not.
This suggests fewer people are claiming compensation for an injury that was not their fault, likely leaving them with costly medical bills and traumatic memories. In part, this decrease in claims could be due to the changes to whiplash injury compensation, which was introduced in 2021, all in a bid to make car insurance cheaper. Yet, car insurance premiums have not dropped and injured people have been positioned as the ones causing the problem, meaning it is a “lose-lose situation for injured people”.
It is important to remember that there are no winners in a compensation case. For example, a child who has suffered a brain injury due to a car accident or medical malpractice will need lifelong support, regardless of the cause. In this instance, compensation is not a “win”, it simply allows someone’s lifelong needs to be met.
Often, claims could be avoided in the first place with improved road safety or patient safety in medical settings.
In law, your Solicitor plays a crucial role in personal injury cases. Your lawyer can calculate fair compensation, identify liability to determine who is responsible, handle evidence such as medical records, expert opinions and witness statements, and defend against any challenges.
Personal Injury claims can be highly sensitive and emotional, and so you should always find a Solicitor who understands your personal circumstances and will strive to get you the best outcome.
If you would like expert legal advice and guidance on Personal Injury, JCP Solicitors can help. Contact our team by calling 03333 209244 or email hello@jcpsolicitors.co.uk.