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Car Accident Claims Increasing Car Insurance Premiums

Car insurance premiums have risen steeply in the last year at a rate of 5.9%, which is almost three times the rate of inflation as measured by the Consumer Price Index. The cause of this rise is being touted as an increase in the amount of compensation being paid out to car accident victims. Higher medical bills and ongoing care arrangements are costing insurers huge amounts in compensation and this is being reflected in the premiums they charge.

In the mid 1990s the European New Car Assessment Programme was brought in as a measure of car safety across all car categories. It is now the accepted method for rating cars according to their ability to minimising the effects of a side or head on collision. Most new cars nowadays receive a 3 or 4 star rating due to better vehicle design and more safety features. The good news is that the likelihood of surviving a car crash is significantly higher in today’s vehicles. The bad news is lawyers are cashing in on this by pushing for higher sums of compensation even for accident victims with minor injuries.

Legal costs have also increased significantly over the years earning traffic accident lawyers the title of ‘ambulance chasers’. The insurance industry claims that the cost of car accident claims is rising by 10 per cent every year, in part because of the legal fees involved. At present the average claim takes just under a year to settle with some cases being open for up to two years. Two years of legal representation is going to cost a lot of money, which ultimately the insurers will end up paying. It seems like the legal system at the moment is too much in favour of the lawyer and until a simpler method of sorting out claims is devised compensation payouts and the insurance premiums which pay for them will continue to rise.

The Association of British insurers is currently lobbying the government to allow a quicker method of sorting out claims to be introduced. For small claims under £25,000 it has been suggested that a straight forward streamlined way of handling claims will mean fewer lawyers will need to be involved and bring down the costs of administering the claim.

However, it must be noted that the rising cost of compensation claims is not entirely due to increased compensation for the accident victim, but also due to the fact that newer safety features in cars cost more to fix and replace. Larger crumple zones and more airbags add to the cost of repairing the vehicle and this cost must be passed on to the drivers. Although due to the competitive nature of the insurance industry, premiums still need to be attractive in order to gain customers, not all of this cost will be charged in higher premiums.

But with 40 pence out of every £1 in a compensation claim going to the lawyers, it is clear that the rising cost of insurance premiums is down to the legal system and if we want this to change, a way needs to be found for handling compensation claims more effectively and with less legal interventionUpdated

Christian is an author of several articles pertaining to No Win No Fee, Compensation Claims, Accident Claims, Personal Injury Claims and other legal articles.

Car Accident Claims Increasing Car Insurance Premiums / Author: Christian Ward

Work Accident Compensation

Work place accidents occur due to the lack of safety and security measures provided by a company to its workers. Such careless behaviour can cost a company dearly in case the worker faces life threatening accidents and injuries at work. In order to help out the workers in such cases, work accident claims are meant so as to provide monetary compensation to the workers so as to provide them with due compensation. Work accident claims deal with all kinds of injuries that occur in a work place due to the negligence of the employer who fails to prove enough safety and security measures for its employers.

Well, in case an individual is facing injuries at work, he/she is liable for work accident compensation that include financial assistance and compensation by the employer to the employee. In such cases, the injured party has to solicit the services of an expert legal attorney who helps in fighting the case in the right spirit and getting the right compensation for the injured party. Many a time, these workplace compensation cases are fought in no win no fee basis so as to save the injured from the paying money for failed compensation claims.

However, if an injured individual wants to get the due compensation, it is very important to choose the right kind of attorney. The work accident compensation also depends upon the kind of claim and the kind of injury. In case of minor injuries, the compensation is not much in comparison to life threatening injuries where the compensation figures can run into huge amount of bills.

However, in order to curb the rate of work place accidents, many companies are taking exceptional care of their workforce so as to help them from getting injured. The common jobs that involve great risk include exposure to chemicals, radiations and dust that can lead to respiratory troubles along with umpteen other diseases and ailments that can take the form of life threatening diseases. So, in order to help the workers, many companies take due care of work conditions and emphasise on cleanliness and hygienic work conditions so as to keep the workforce hale and hearty.

In case you are nursing an industrial injury, you have the right to sue the company for workforce compensation in a legal way without jeopardising your prospects. While making a compensation claim, just be careful to check out the best legal attorney who is an expert at work accident Compensation cases so as to help you in a perfect way.

Ian Hass is owner of Excalibur Solicitors, an experienced UK law firm specialising in all forms of Compensation. Excalibur Solicitors handles claims for Accident Types including Whiplash Injury, Personal Injury and Accidents at Work Accident Compensation claims.

Work Accident Compensation / Author: Silviu Marian

Industrial Injuries & Illnesses

Though the working conditions at the workplace have improved immensely in the past few years, still it is quite common to see cases where people have developed industrial injuries and illnesses due to excess of exposure to any harmful substance that is extensively used at their workplace.

In case, an employer has exposed their employees to some harmful substance that has further lead to the development of any disease or illness, the grieved employee can then claim for compensation for his condition from the employer. It is the responsibility of the employer to provide protection to its employees from hazardous situations and substances while they are working for the company. This can be done by either minimising or replacing the harmful substance with a less harmful one.

However, if it is not possible to replace or minimise the use of the harmful substance, employees can then be made available any device or clothing to protect themselves from any industrial injuries and illnesses that might be anticipated due to an exposure to that harmful substance or situation. For instance, in case the working environment at the workplace is too noisy to bear, it becomes the duty of the employer to take measures so as to decrease the noise to the acceptable level. If this doesn’t seem to be a possible option, employees can be made available ear defenders to avert Noise Induced Hearing Loss or Industrial Deafness. If these protective defenders are provided to employees, wearing them is surely their responsibility and not the employers.

In case an employee is undergoing sufferings due to any previous conditions at the workplace, he may be entitled to a personal injury compensation claim. There are various factors that might lead to industrial disease compensation for conditions such as lung cancer, industrial deafness, vibration white finger, pneumoconiosis, asbestosis, industrial skin diseases, industrial respiratory diseases and mesothelioma. Nevertheless, the numbers of victims placing a claim for industrial diseases have reduced to a great extent due to improved working conditions that are ensured to employees these days.

Unlike the industrial disease compensation claims, generally the claim for the personal injury should be made by the victim within three years from the accident date. However, this limitation of three years is overlooked in certain rare cases if the victim is not aware of the injury or illness in the first three years. To make the claim for the same, it is necessary for the victim to prove that he/she acted promptly after his/her diagnosis about the suffering.

About the Author

Ian Hass is owner of Excalibur Solicitors, an experienced UK law firm specialising in all forms of Compensation. Excalibur Solicitors handles claims for Accident Types including Whiplash Injury, Industrial Injuries and Illnesses and Accidents at Work compensation claims.

Industrial Injuries & Illnesses / Author: Silviu Marian