A car accident caused by someone else can cause serious injuries as well as financial losses. It can also impact your car insurance policy in several ways, such as potentially losing your no claims discount and how much future car insurance quotes will cost. If you’ve been in such an accident, you may be wondering, “Can I claim for a car accident that wasn’t my fault?” If another party breached a duty of care they owed you, then you may have valid grounds to start a claim.
In this guide, we will discuss the eligibility criteria for starting a car accident claim, including the duty of care you are owed by other users of the road. We’ll also talk through the potential steps you could take to help support you when making a claim. Additionally, we will explain how your compensation settlement may be calculated and the different forms of harm you could be compensated for. We’ll also explain how our panel of No Win No Fee solicitors can support car accident claims.
If you would like to speak to an advisor about how to claim car accident compensation, then you can contact our team for free by:
- Calling us on 0800 408 7825
- Using our online contact form.
- Or by using our 24/7 live chat service.
Select A Section
- Can I Claim For A Car Accident That Wasn’t My Fault?
- When Can I Claim For A Car Accident?
- What To Do After A Car Accident That’s Not Your Fault
- How Much Compensation For An Accident That Wasn’t Your Fault?
- How We Could Help You Claim For A Car Accident That Wasn’t Your Fault
- Read More About Claiming For A Car Accident
Can I Claim For A Car Accident That Wasn’t My Fault?
Each road user, including car drivers, owes one another a duty of care to use the roads in a responsible manner that avoids causing harm to themselves and others. They should also adhere to the Road Traffic Act 1988 and the rules and regulations established in the Highway Code to maintain this duty of care.
If a road user were to breach their duty of care, such as driving under the influence of alcohol, for example, this could result in an accident that causes injuries.
However, you may be wondering, ‘Can I claim for a car accident that wasn’t my fault?’. To be able to make a personal injury claim following a car accident, you will need to prove that the following apply to your case:
- You were owed a duty of care by another car driver.
- The party that owed this duty breached it.
- You suffered your injuries as a result of this breach.
What Is A Non Fault Claim?
If you make a non fault car accident claim, it means that you aren’t considered at fault for the incident your case is focused on. If a solicitor is supporting you with such a claim, then they will usually seek a payout from the defendant’s insurance provider. Alternatively, compensation may be sought from the Motor Insurers’ Bureau (MIB) if the party to blame is either an uninsured driver or untraced.
It could still be possible to claim car accident compensation if you were partially responsible for the incident. However, this would not be considered a non-fault accident, and it’s known as a split liability claim. If you do make a split liability claim, then any compensation that can be awarded will be reduced to reflect how much responsibility you carry for the incident. So if, for instance, you and another driver are considered 50% responsible for what happened, then the 50-50 split liability claim will award you just half of the compensation that would have been given if only the other driver was to blame.
If a car accident wasn’t your fault, and you would like more advice on non fault claims, you can contact one of our friendly advisors today.
When Can I Claim For A Car Accident?
There are numerous ways you could potentially end up in a car accident because another driver breached the duty of care they owed you. Some examples of car accidents that could occur due to a road user breaching the duty of care they owed include:
- Another driver crashed head-on into you due to driving under the influence of drugs and alcohol. This causes you to suffer multiple serious injuries, including a head injury, chest injury and broken leg.
- A car driver pulled out of a junction but failed to check whether the road was clear before doing so. This causes them to crash into the side of your car and you suffer an arm injury.
- You were hit from behind in a rear-end collision by a car driver who was distracted and, therefore, failed to notice that you had come to a stop at a red light. In this collision, you suffered a back injury.
Is There A Time Limit When Claiming For A Road Traffic Accident?
As established by the Limitation Act 1980, there is a three-year time limit for starting a personal injury claim, such as one following a car accident. This generally runs from the date your injury occurred.
Certain exceptions could be made to this time limit. This includes cases involving minors and those lacking the mental capability to manage their own claim.
You can contact our team for free today if you’ve been hurt in a car accident and would like to know whether you may have a valid claim and if you are still within the time limit for claiming. They can also discuss the time limit exceptions with you.
What To Do After A Car Accident That’s Not Your Fault
Immediately after a car accident, you should make sure other people involved in the accident are fine. You should also exchange any necessary details, such as your name and insurance company provider. If you have suffered any injuries, you should also seek medical attention for these, whether this be with your GP or at Accident and Emergency (A&E). Following this appointment, a medical record will be made of your injuries and treatments. This record could then be used as evidence within your claim.
You may also be wondering, ‘What other evidence could support my case when making a claim for a car accident that wasn’t my fault?’. Some examples may include:
- Any video footage showing the car accident, such as dashcam or CCTV footage.
- Photographs of the car accident scene, including damage to your vehicle.
- The contact details of any witnesses who are able to provide a statement about the car accident.
- A copy of the police report if they attended the accident scene.
If a car accident solicitor is supporting your claim, then they can assist you with gathering evidence. Contact our team of advisors for free today for more information about gathering evidence or getting support from a solicitor on our panel.
How Much Compensation For An Accident That Wasn’t Your Fault?
You may be asking, “How much compensation could I claim for a car accident that wasn’t my fault?”. Following a successful claim, the compensation awarded may include general damages and special damages. General damages compensate you for the pain and suffering caused by your car accident injuries.
The table below includes some of the compensation guidelines found in the Judicial College Guidelines (JCG). This document may be used by those valuing your claim for general damages. It includes numerous kinds of injuries alongside guideline compensation brackets. The injuries and subsequent compensation guidelines we have listed below are examples of injuries that may occur in a minor car accident or a more severe accident.
Please only view the following table as a guide. Take note as well, that the first entry and last two entries in the table have not been taken from the JCG.
| Injury | Severity | Compensation Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Multiple Serious Injuries With Special Damages | Serious | Up to £500,000+ |
| Brain Damage | Moderate (ii) | £110,720 to £183,190 |
| Arm Injuries | Severe Injuries | £117,360 to £159,770 |
| Arm Injuries | Less Severe Injury | £23,430 to £47,810 |
| Hip and Pelvis Injuries | Severe (i) | £95,680 to £159,770 |
| Neck Injuries | Severe (ii) | £80,240 to £159,770 |
| Ankle injuries | Very Severe | £61,090 to £85,070 |
| Ankle injuries | Severe | £38,210 to £61,090 |
| Whiplash Tariff | A whiplash injury and a psychological injury lasting for more than 18 months but less than 2 years. | £4,345 |
| Whiplash Tariff | A whiplash injury lasting 18-24 months | £4,215 |
Those eligible to claim general damages may also be able to claim special damages. This can compensate you for the financial expenses you have expereinced because of your car accident injuries. Examples of losses that could potentially be claimed under special damages include:
- Loss of earnings if your injuries have required you to take time off work while you recover.
- Travel expenses for vital appointments.
- The cost of certain medications or treatments you’ve required for your recovery.
To claim special damages, you will need evidence which could include certain documents like wage slips or bank statements.
Can I Claim For Whiplash After A Car Accident?
In Wales and England, the process of how certain low-valued road traffic accident claims are made was changed by the implementation of the Whiplash Reform Programme (WRP). You will now need to make your claim via a different avenue if you are above the age of 18 and suffered whiplash injuries as a passenger or driver, which are valued at £5,000 or less.
If you make a whiplash claim, the amount of compensation you receive will be valued in accordance with the tariff set out in the Whiplash Injury Regulations 2021. These are fixed amounts, and we have provided some examples of these in the table above.
Any additional injuries you are claiming for that are not covered by this tariff, or if the overall value of your claim exceeds £5,000, you would make your claim via the traditional route. However, the tariff amounts would still apply for your whiplash injuries.
For more advice on how much compensation can be awarded for road traffic accident claims, contact our advisors for free today either online or by calling us.
How We Could Help You Claim For A Car Accident That Wasn’t Your Fault?
Our advisors could potentially connect you with a No Win No Fee solicitor on our panel if you have valid grounds to start a car accident injury claim.
The solicitors on our panel can support such claims under a Conditional Fee Agreement (CFA). Such an agreement means you won’t need to pay your solicitor for their services before your claim has started or while it’s being processed. You also won’t need to pay your solicitor for their work if the claim fails.
If your claim is a success, your solicitor will take a success fee from you to cover their payment. This success fee is normally a small percentage of your compensation. There is a legal cap in place to limit this percentage, and it helps ensure that you get to keep most of the compensation that is awarded.
Contact our advisors for free today, and you can ask questions such as “Can I claim for a car accident that wasn’t my fault with a No Win No Fee solicitor?” We can also discuss each key step of the claiming process with you. To get in touch with our team, you can:
- Call us on 0800 408 7825
- Use our online contact form.
- Or you can message us through our 24/7 live chat service.
Read More About Claiming For A Car Accident
Additional road traffic accident claim guides by us:
- If you have specifically suffered lower back pain after a car accident that wasn’t your fault, then you can read our guide on claiming for this type of injury.
- If you’re seeking more advice on claiming compensation when you’ve been injured as a passenger, you can read our guide about claiming under such circumstances.
- If you have suffered anxiety after a car accident, this guide discusses whether you could claim compensation for your psychological injuries.
Further external resources:
- You can view the GOV.UK website’s collection of road accident and safety statistics.
- The road safety charity Brake has an online guide on the procedures that follow a road crash where someone has died or been seriously injured.
- You can also read the road safety advice guide on the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents (RoSPA) website.
If you would like to speak to an advisor about questions such as “Can I claim for a car accident that wasn’t my fault?”, you can contact our team online or by phone today.