By Stephen Lawson. Last Updated 18th March 2022. When someone is injured, no matter whether they were injured in a public place or on private property one of the key parts to determining whether they could make a personal injury claim and how to do so is the question of who was at fault. If you wish to claim compensation because you had an ‘accident in public, not my fault’ you could do so with an experienced personal injury lawyer.
Accident In Public Not My Fault
Determining where liability lies and who is at fault is a key part of making a personal injury claim. Once fault has been established and the defendant accepts liability for the accident, the victim could begin the process of making a public injury claim against this party. The claims process may end with a settlement being negotiated between the parties, or it may need to go to court in a minority of instances.
If you intend on bringing a personal injury claim, your lawyer (or solicitor) will need to establish that the other party is at fault and legally responsible for your accident. This will usually be a simple process. Examples could be someone being injured in a vehicle accident. If the other driver crashed into you because of their negligence, they are at fault and responsible for your injuries.
To learn more about the role of fault and liability in public accident claims, please view the rest of this guide below. If at any point you have any questions about making a public accident claim, you are welcome to contact Public Interest Lawyers and speak to our advisors. You can reach us online using our contact page or our live chat service. You can also call us on 0800 408 7825.
Choose A Section
- A Guide To Claiming For An Accident In Public Not My Fault
- What Is An Accident In Public Which Is Not Your Fault?
- What Is Fault Or Liability?
- Public Accident And Injury Compensation Calculator
- What Is Included In A Personal Injury Settlement?
- Why Is Establishing Liability Important To A Personal Injury Claim?
- What Happens If It Is Unclear Who Is At Fault?
- What Happens If The Accident Was Caused By An Unknown Party?
- How Is Fault For An Accident In Public Established?
- Fault And Negligence
- Strict Liability In A Public Place Accident
- Other Ways In Which People Can Be At Fault
- No Win No Fee Claims For Accidents In Public Places
- How To Claim Compensation For A Accident In Public Which Was Not Your Fault
- References
A Guide To Claiming For An Accident In Public Not My Fault
In this article, we look at what faults or liability are in terms of responsibility for an accident and the injuries sustained by a victim. Whether you are making a public liability claim or claiming compensation under road traffic accident law, your personal injury lawyer will need to be able to show that the party you are claiming against was at fault and that you were not at fault.
Fault is a form of liability. Typically this is the primary way in which your ability to make a public injury claim is determined. It is highly important in determining whether a person could expect to make a claim and be awarded compensation for doing so. In order for you to understand the role which fault can play in your claim, please read on through our guide.
What Is An Accident In Public Which Is Not Your Fault?
When in a public place, there are a variety of different accidents which could potentially happen to people. Depending on what sort of a public place you were in, the part responsible for the accident may differ between a private company or a public body such as a local authority. But for the purposes of this article, any space which allows the general public to make use of it can be considered a public space.
What Is Fault Or Liability?
What is liability in personal injury claims? For personal injury claims, knowing who is at fault is extremely important when you first talk to a personal injury solicitor or a personal injury lawyer, they may ask you questions in order to help determine whether you were responsible for the accident in any way and who else could be at fault. If you are making a claim for a non-fault accident in public, the party that is considered liable will be established at the beginning of the claims process. If someone or an organisation is deemed to be liable for you being injured in a public place, they are then at fault and you could be able to claim.
An example of this could be being hurt due to negligent medical treatment. The person, a doctor or a nurse, who provided the medical care may be held liable for your suffering. Your legal team can then establish evidence so that they accept liability for the accident. In another instance, if you were injured because of the actions of another road user, they may be held liable under road traffic accident law.
Public Accident And Injury Compensation Calculator
People sometimes come across articles such as this when searching for a personal injury claims calculator. Knowing how much a personal injury lawyer could help to reclaim is an important thing for many people at the start of their journey in claiming compensation for an accident in a public place. As such, we have included a comprehensive personal injury claims calculator which can help you to see examples of what people could be able to claim in damages.
| Where was the injury? | How serious was it? | About the injury | How much you could claim |
|---|---|---|---|
| Your hand or hands | Minor - serious | A variety of different injuries to the hands which are short of amputations or loss of the hand or hands. | Up to £54,280 |
| One of both of the wrists | Minor - loss of function | Various different injuries affecting your wrists. These could be minor injuries up to those which cause you to lose the use of the wrist. | £3,090 - £52,490 |
| Arm, between shoulder and wrist. | Less severe - severe | Such arm injuries could lead to your being left disabled to some degree. | £16,830 - £114,810 |
| Shoulder/ shoulders | Moderate - severe | These categories exclude minor levels of injury (which are awarded lower amounts of compensation). | £6,920 - £42,110 |
| Neck injuries | Minor - severe | Various forms and levels of neck injury are covered here. Could happen in conjunction with injuries to the back or to the shoulder. | From up to £2,150 - £130,060 |
| Head and/or brain | Minor head or brain injury | This only includes what are considered minor levels of injury to the brain or to the head. | £1,940 to £11,200 |
| Back (upper, middle, or lower) | Minor - severe | This includes all levels of injury to your back. | From up to £2,150 - £141,150 |
| Hips or the pelvis | Lesser - severe | Injuries run from lesser to severe and at the highest levels they could affect you as seriously as losing a limb. | From up to £3,460 - £114,810 |
| Leg between hip and foot | Less serious - severe | As with other body parts, these levels cover various forms of injury which affect the legs. | Up to £119,210. Amputations could be awarded more. |
| Feet | Modest - Amputation of both feet | There are a variety of different forms and types of injury to the foot or a the feet. | From up to £12,050 to up to £176,660 |
Please note that these figures are current at the time of publication and are taken from the latest version of the Judicial College Guidelines.
What Is Included In A Personal Injury Settlement?
When it comes to claiming compensation for accidents in public places, your lawyer (or a solicitor) will try to ensure that you are compensated to the maximum possible extent. They will ensure that you get the best possible compensation for your injuries as well as be compensated for other factors which could affect your financial position.
They will add up all of your provable out of pocket expenses which you have incurred and which could be included in your public liability claim. When bringing a personal injury claim your lawyer will look at the financial implications across your life. This could be the cost of medical treatment or even the cost of getting to a hospital appointment. What is important is to ensure that you do keep a note of all of your receipts and invoices for expenses you have met because of your injuries. Your legal team could then build these costs into the case and present them to the personal injury at fault party.
Why Is Establishing Liability Important To A Personal Injury Claim?
In order for you to be able to make a claim with a personal injury solicitor or lawyer, they will need to establish the liability of the other party. This is one of the most important steps in how to win injury compensation. Once this has been proven, you will be able to make a public accident or injury claim. You will also be able to claim damages for the expenses which incurred as a result. After being injured in an accident you may not automatically know who the liable party is. By contacting us, we may be able to help you to establish who is at fault for your injuries.
What Happens If It Is Unclear Who Is At Fault?
In some cases, the party who is at fault or liable for the accident may not immediately be clear. Examples of this could be in a road traffic accident. You could need to make a whiplash claim, when the person at fault is unknown, the other driver having left the scene. There may also be instances where you were partially at fault or in some way contributed towards your accident taking place. If you were injured in a vehicle accident caused by another party, but, were not wearing a seatbelt, liability for your injuries may be unclear at first examination. By contacting our experts, we can help you to establish who is at fault in your public interest claim.
What Happens If The Accident Was Caused By An Unknown Party?
Again, if we look at a case where you were injured in a hit-and-run accident you may not know or be able to establish who is responsible for your injuries. However, it could still be possible for you to make a compensation claim.
When you contact our team we will be able to help you to find out who was to blame for your accident. If it is not possible to find or identify this person, we will move on to exploring other ways in which you could claim damages. For some claimants, this may mean doing so via a government body such as the Motor Insurers Bureau which could be appealed to for compensation in the event of a hit and run accident.
In the case of other accidents in public, not my fault and where you do not know who to blame, there may be articles of legislation or government bodies which have been set up to help people to be compensated for their injuries.
How Is Fault For An Accident In Public Established?
Who is liable for my personal injury claim? This is a question which personal injury lawyers could often be asked. The next part of looking at what is liability in personal injury claims is to look at how liability is attributed to the defendant. To support your claim and conduct it within the personal injury claims time limit, you need to provide your solicitor details of where, when and how your accident happened and who you believe was responsible for it taking place. They may then move on to organising a free medical assessment of your injuries to provide additional evidence.
To attribute liability the solicitor will look at whether you were owed a duty of care by the defendant. That this person either did not carry out this duty of care or was in breach of it in some way. Then, it needs to be shown that you were harmed as a result. It also needs to be shown that this harm could reasonably be foreseen. They could have taken actions or not taken actions which should either reasonably have been carried out, or not carried out. This means that their action or inaction is below of the standards which you could reasonably expect of them.
Can You Claim Compensation If The Accident Was Your Fault?
Looking at issues of fault and negligence, some people may ask questions such as ‘can I claim personal injury compensation if the accident was my fault?’ You may be able to do so if one (or more) other parties were negligent and if this negligence contributed towards your accident taking place.
This may mean making a split liability claim, where the compensation you may be awarded will reflect the level of responsibility you hold for your accident and injuries. So if, for example, you and other party are both considered 50% responsible for an accident, then your compensation will be half of what would have been offered if you were considered blameless.
Just to be clear, it’s usually not possible to claim any sort of personal injury compensation if you are considered fully responsible for an accident that hurt you.
Strict Liability In A Public Place Accident
In some instances where you have been injured your accident and injury could be dealt with under what is called strict liability. In such cases, the defendant is automatically assumed to be at fault and you do not need to do so. An example of this could be if you were injured due to a defect in a product that you purchased. The manufacturer could be strictly liable for your accident and injuries through the 1987 Consumer Protection Act. Another circumstance in which someone could be strictly held liable for your being injured could be if you were injured by what is considered to be a dangerous animal. The keeper of this animal is automatically liable for the injuries sustained. How to win injury compensation in some cases could be simpler to do if the defendant is strictly liable for the accident taking place.
Other Ways In Which People Can Be At Fault
Accident In Public Not My Fault Guide
There could be other types of injuries and accidents which could take place and for which there may be other forms of liability. An example of this could be that a shop, supermarket, local authority, or another public place which has not maintained areas or facilities for which they are responsible. As such, these bodies or organisations have to have what is called public liability insurance in place. These policies are put in place to cover the costs of compensation paid out if they are liable for an accident.
An additional form of liability is called employers liability. This refers to situations where employers either have not or do not ensure their staffs’ safety. An example of this could be that the employer has not provided the employee with the requisite types of personal protective equipment. Employers should have what is called an employers liability insurance policy in place. This will pay out the compensation to the claimant.
No Win No Fee Claims For Accidents In Public Places
If you have been injured in an accident where someone else was at fault and wish to claim compensation for this, you can contact Public Interest Lawyers for advice on making a potential claim. If you have grounds to start a claim, we may be able to connect you with a No Win No Fee solicitor who can assist. This means you can access high-quality legal services without the worry of how to pay for them. If you win your claim, you will be able to pay for them (at an agreed rate) from your settlement. If you do not, there will be no fees to pay.
How To Claim Compensation For A Accident In Public Which Was Not Your Fault
To start your claim, you need to get in contact with an experienced personal injury lawyer who has previously conducted similar claims and cases to your own. By contacting a professional public accident claims lawyer you are taking the first steps towards getting the compensation which you are owed. Contact us today using the contact form linked at the top of this page.
References
In addition to the information contained in this article, you can also find out more about liability in public accident claims, such as in circumstances where you have had an accident public which was not your fault in these resources. We have also included some of our other helpful guides below.
The Occupiers Liability Act
The 1984 updated version of this act expanded the level of responsibility that occupiers have in regards to ensuring the safety of those on their premises.
Health And Safety At Work Act
This piece of legislation is designed to ensure the safety of people when they are in the workplace. See how it does so in this resource from the HSE.
Accidents In A Public Place
If you have been injured in a public place you can find out more about claiming compensation through avenues such as the owners public liability insurance in this guide.
Council Accidents
If you have been injured on public property which is owned or operated by a council find out how to claim damages for accidents in public places in this article.