We've been bombarded these days with advertisements for ‘no win, no fee' personal injury claims. You'll see adverts on the television, in newspapers and magazines. Most people would like to think they have a grasp on what no win no fee personal injury claims actually mean, but the sad truth of the matter is that they don't: at best they might have a limited understanding of what conditional fee arrangements are, but in practise they are often taken aback when they discover that even if they win their case, they won't necessarily receive 100 percent of the compensation as they are obliged to pay for disbursements that they hadn't previously been made aware of. So, if you've recently had an accident and are considering hiring the services of a solicitor or claims company, here are some points to consider before making a personal injury claim.
What is No Win No Fee: Conditional fee agreements, commonly referred to as 'no win no fee'
agreements, were introduced in the UK in 1995. Legal aid, a funding for
people unable to afford legal representation, was abolished for
personal injury cases in 2000, and the no win no fee system was extended to fill the gap. 'No win no fee' means is that if the claimant does not win their case ('no win') they will not need to pay ('no fee').
In a ‘no win no fee' compensation claim, a lawyer will not charge
their regular fee, but will instead accept part of any money that you
receive as their payment for service should the case be successful. In
many cases this can be a fairly large amount so you will need to keep
that in mind. The advantage of this type of arrangement is obviously
that it means that you only pay if you actually win your claim.
Why would lawyers agree to provide such a service?: In general lawyers are only going to agree to a no win no fee
arrangement if they are reasonably sure that they can win. After all
lawyers are not going to want to waste time on cases that they are not
going to get paid for. Therefore a lawyer will review any potential case
in order to determine how likely it is that it will be successful. If
the lawyer determines that there is a good chance then they will agree
to take the case on a no win no fee basis. In many cases the percentage
of any settlement that the lawyer takes can be anything from a third to a
half of the final settlement, so it's important that any client
establishes all the details before committing to the case.
Who pays for all the courts costs, fees and disbursements?: With the no win no fee system, all costs in personal injury cases must be covered by the losing side. If the client wins their case, either the courts or the losing side's insurers will pay damages to the client. On top of this, the insurer will need to pay legal costs and expenses. With most no win no fee arrangements, the client will not have to pay anything at all, and will be able to claim 100% of any compensation they have been awarded.
