Claims process with Pedestrian Law Scotland

If you, or someone you know, has been injured in a pedestrian car accident, we would recommend that you seek legal advice from personal injury solicitors who have experience with pedestrian accident claims.

What are the main causes of pedestrian accidents?

Here are some examples of when drivers can be negligent: 

• When the driver immediately leaves the scene. Known as a 'hit and run' accident.

• When the driver cannot be traced and is therefore untraceable.

• When the driver drives too fast.
• When the driver has failed to look properly
• When the driver has ignored stop signals at traffic lights.


What happens if a car hits a pedestrian?

The pedestrian that has been involved in the accident may be entitled to claim compensation for their injuries, loss and/or damage. If you have been involved in a car accident as a pedestrian and would like to make a claim, please read through this guide which outlines the process.

Been Involved in a Pedestrian Accident? Here's What You Can Claim For:

At Pedestrian Law Scotland, we can assist you in recovering compensation for any loss, injury or damage. You can claim for any reasonable loss which arises as a direct consequence of the accident. These could include:

Personal Injury

Unfortunately, as a pedestrian, you are exposed to the risk of serious injury and if you have been injured it may take some time for the injuries to heal. We can arrange to have you medically examined by a specialist medical expert to assess the extent of your injuries and the likely recovery period. The value of your claim for personal injury very much depends upon the type of injury and the recovery you have made or are likely to make as a result of the accident.

Loss of Income

Car accidents and subsequent injuries mean you are entitled to claim loss of income if your injuries have prevented you from working. This applies to both employed workers and self employed workers. During your absence, you may have suffered a reduction in take home pay or perhaps had to turn down work. We will work with your employer or accountant to prove the loss of income. If your injuries are so severe that you can’t get back to work or have to look for alternative work, we will work with vocational experts to assess your loss of income and any future loss of income.

Expenses

You can claim for any reasonable expenses such as private physiotherapy. If your personal effects were damaged or lost you can claim the cost. Mobile phones are often damaged or IT equipment held in rucksacks or laptop bags.

Needs and Services

Due to your injuries, you may need extra help from relatives providing you with personal care or you may not be able to contribute to household tasks. In serious injury cases, your cost of care needs to be assessed with expert help and input from "Needs and Care" specialists and Occupational Therapists. We have a long and proud tradition of working with the best Needs and Care experts in Scotland. It is important that you keep a list of all expenses and losses incurred following upon your accident.

Maximum Financial Recovery In The Shortest Possible Time

We can discuss your case with you in detail and will explain specifically what constitutes a loss and how your claim is valued. We recognise that injuries will vary in severity and we have provided a helpful guide in our injuries section.

Our priority is to obtain the maximum financial recovery in the shortest possible time. We will not compromise your claim by early settlement and will be guided by the medical experts in respect of your recovery or likely recovery period before we value your claim. This process will be undertaken in consultation with you to give you a clear understanding of how the injury lawyers assess the value of a claim for compensation. 

What happens if you decide to make a claim?

The Process

At our first meeting with you, Pedestrian Law Scotland will discuss your case in detail, provide sound legal advice on your prospect of success and set out clear options on how best to recover the maximum monetary value of your claim in the shortest possible time. 

Once you've given Pedestrian Law Scotland the go-ahead, we will submit a claim to the party or driver at fault or their insurance company detailing your case against them and requesting they admit liability.

We will consider all the evidence and fully investigate your case.

Photographs, eyewitness accounts and police reports will be obtained to assist in establishing liability or fault.

We will ask you to undergo a medical examination so we can determine the extent of any injuries or long term damage you may have sustained in the accident.

If liability is admitted, we will value your claim based on the injuries sustained, damage to any additional items, any expenses incurred and loss of income.

We will submit our valuation of your claim to your opponent’s insurance company and invite them to make an offer based on our assessment of your claim.

If liability is disputed and we consider you have a 50% prospect of success, we will raise proceedings in court which, thanks to our no win no fee policy will be undertaken at no cost or risk to you.

Pedestrian Car Accidents - What's Involved in Making a Compensation Claim?

If a driver left the scene following a “Hit and Run," don’t assume you can't claim because, with our help, we can claim against the Motor Insurers Bureau (MIB) under the untraced drivers agreement.

The type and cause of the injury will depend on the circumstances of each individual case. No two cases are the same which is why we believe in personal specialist representation.

One of our team of specialists will assess your prospects of success at the outset and will provide you with clear options as to how best to recover the maximum monetary value of your claim for your pedestrian injury compensation in the shortest possible time.

GATHERING THE EVIDENCE

Once you've given Pedestrian Law Scotland the go-ahead to proceed with your claim, we will consider the evidence and fully investigate your case.

Photographs, eye-witness accounts and Police reports will all be taken into consideration and we might also ask you to undergo a medical examination so we can determine the extent of any injuries or long term damage you may have sustained in the accident.

SUBMITTING A CLAIM

At the outset, we will submit a claim to the party at fault or their insurance company detailing your case against them and requesting they admit liability. It may be that you are already suffering financial loss for things like treatment and being off work so we can look at getting an upfront payment to ensure you are not out of pocket. We can also get early access to specialist rehabilitation and medical specialists to aid with earlier recovery.

If liability is admitted, we will value your claim based on your own quite unique injury and loss. This will be carried out in consultation with you.

We will submit our valuation of your claim to the other side/paying party.

We will invite them to make an offer based on our assessment of your claim.

RECEIVING AN OFFER

When an offer is received, we will provide you with clear advice on whether to accept or reject the offer.

If we feel the offer is too low, we will recommend that you raise proceedings in court, at no cost or risk to you.

If liability is disputed and we consider you have a 50% prospect of success, we will raise proceedings in court which, thanks to our "no win no fee" policy, would be undertaken at no cost or risk to you.

How Long Does It Take To Make A Pedestrian Accident Claim?

At Pedestrian Law Scotland, we will deal with your claim in the shortest possible time without risking the success of your case or the value of your claim. If you have made a full recovery from your injuries, you can expect to have your case dealt with within six months. Where you have not made a full recovery, we will assess the value of your claim when we know the full extent of your injuries and any long term consequences.

Once the claim has been submitted to the paying party/third party insurer, they have 12 weeks in which to concede or deny liability. During that period, we will fully prepare your case.

If the case has to be raised in court, we will provide you with a realistic timescale regarding the court case and will keep you updated on the progress of your claim.

No financial risk

Our experienced Solicitors will assess your case and will advise on the prospects of success. The advantage to you is that we will accept the risk. This means that we won’t ask you for any payment upfront. We will fund your case and, in the unlikely event you are unsuccessful, you walk away with nothing to pay.

If we cannot get agreement from the Insurer to settle your case, it may be necessary to raise proceedings in Court. So long as you have at least a 50% prospect of success, we will support your case with a funding package. Even if we lose the Court action, you will not have to pay a penny.

Our track record in winning cases is strong and experience counts. On successful conclusion of a case, we will usually recover outlays from the losing side and unlike many claims companies, we won’t deduct a percentage from your claim.

We may charge a fee depending upon our assessment of risk and any agreement we have with you. We guarantee that on success you will always receive at least 85% of your damages.

We offer access to justice at no financial risk by offering a clear no win no fee service.

Why Choose Pedestrian Law Scotland?

Pedestrian Law Scotland offer a 'no win no fee' service. The advantage to you is that we will accept the risk. This means that we won’t ask you for any payment upfront. We will fund your case and, in the unlikely event you are unsuccessful, you walk away with nothing to pay. You can find out more about this on our dedicated 'no win no fee' page.

Have you been involved in an accident?

If you’ve been injured in a road traffic accident as a pedestrian in Scotland, please call us for an immediate, no obligation, free legal consultation on 0333 555 7781.

Alternatively please fill in this call back form with your first name, last name, phone number and email address for a member of the team to call you.