Whiplash Claims

Our Essential Guide To Whiplash Claims
(Please Read This Before Asking For Help With A Whiplash Claim)

Our guide to whiplash claims is designed to explain your options to you and to help you to make an informed decision about who to help you with your whiplash claim. Whilst we know that 1stClaims use only the best Whiplash Solicitors and that unlike other companies we ensure you receive 100% of your compensation and our service is free to you, we appreciate that you have only just discovered that. I have written this guide using my 18 years of whiplash claims experience; I hope that you will find it practical and informative. I have tried to answer every question that you might need to know the answer to, but if you have any others please call us free on 0800 2888 693. Once you are confident that you are in safe hands with 1stClaims, use one of the links to complete our free enquiry form, or call us on the freephone number. Thank you. Nicholas Jervis (Solicitor).

Claiming Whiplash Compensation Risk Free

This page is designed to provide you with all of the detail you may need. If you are looking for a short summary of our service and the claims process please see Claiming Whiplash Compensation Risk Free.

What Does Whiplash Mean?
How Is The Whiplash Injury Caused?
Can A Whiplash Injury Be Sustained Even In A Low Speed Accident?
When Is The Whiplash Neck Pain Likely To Start?
How Much Compensation Am I Likely To Obtain For Whiplash?
Why Choosing The Right Whiplash Solicitor Is Vital To The Success of Your Claim
If I Decide To Make A Claim, Should I Go To A Solicitor or A Claims Company?
Do All Companies Offer No Win No Fee, And What Does This Mean?
If I Have Legal Expenses Insurance, Do I Have To Use The Solicitor They Tell Me To?
What If I Need Treatment And There Is A Long Waiting List?
What If I Need A Replacement Car or Motorcycle?
The Other Driver's Insurance Company Has Offered To Settle My Claim And They Say I Do Not Need A Solicitor

What Does "Whiplash" Mean?

The term "whiplash" is usually used to describe only rear end collisions, often where a car is stationery and another car drives into the rear of it. Whiplash is the term used to describe a soft tissue injury to the neck when you are involved in a car accident. The pain can last for a matter of days or in more severe cases a number of years. However, only a minor percentage of whiplash injuries result in long term injuries with most people making a full recovery. The important point is to make sure you are treated by professional medical staff as soon as possible. If you are unable to obtain NHS treatment, you should be able to receive private medical treatment at no expense to you. All 1stClaims solicitors will arrange this private treatment for you.

Call us free on 0800 2888 693 or complete our Whiplash Claim form.

How Is The Whiplash Injury Caused?

The first movement in a whiplash injury is your body being pushed forwards and upwards by the car seat. As your head is not normally connected to the seat (ie not touching) it remains in the same position while the rest of your body is moving forward with the seat. If the headrest is in the correct position, rather than the neck being thrown back over the top of the headrest, the headrest will finally move the neck forward with the seat as it comes into contact with it.

The next movement as the car stops is the body being thrown forward. If restrained by a seatbelt the neck will then move forward over the rest of the body, flexing the neck now forwards. It is while the neck is over stretched (hyperextension and hyperflexion) that the whiplash injury is sustained.

Can A Whiplash Injury Be Sustained Even In A Low Speed Accident?

Yes. Quite frequently whiplash injuries are caused by low impact collisions with speeds of only a few miles per hour. Often some of the more serious injuries are sustained in this way. Remember if this has happened to you it is not your fault, and sustaining an injury in a low impact accident does not mean you have a weakness - it is a normal reaction.

Call us free on 0800 2888 693 or complete our Whiplash Claim form.

When Is The Whiplash Neck Pain Likely To Start?

This varies from person to person, but you can experience pain in your neck within minutes of the accident, or often a day or so later. Either way is quite normal.

How Much Compensation Am I Likely To Obtain For Whiplash?

To settle your claim your solicitor will refer to a guide called the Judicial Studies Board Guidelines for the Assessment of General Damages in Personal Injury Cases. However, not all solicitors will obtain the same amount of compensation for you, as shown in the paragraph below the figures:

£750 to £2,500 if you make a complete recovery within 1 year
£2,500 to £4,250 if you make a complete recovery within 2 years
£4,250 to £7,750 (slow recovery, increased vulnerability)
£7,750 to £13,750 if you have permanent ongoing symptoms

Call us free on 0800 2888 693 or complete our Whiplash Claim form.

Why Choosing The Right Whiplash Solicitor Is Vital To The Success of Your Claim

One of our clients had suffered a whiplash injury and had been offered £1,200 in settlement of his whiplash claim. He felt that this was a bit low and after looking around he decided that 1stClaims were the right company to help him and advise him whether the offer was enough. We immediately put him in touch with one of our solicitors and within 3 months he was in receipt of a cheque for just under £5,000. The right whiplash claim solicitor will ensure that you receive the right amount of whiplash compensation!

If I Decide To Make A Claim, Should I Go To A Solicitor or A Claims Company?

The simple answer is that if question one above is answered with confirmation that you will not have to pay any costs, you can use either. The advantage of using a claims company is that an independent third party has already carefully selected a solicitor and carries on working with them. For a claims company to do this they must be satisfied that the solicitor is meeting high quality standards of service and is looking after the clients.

With 1stClaims, we have personally selected and checked each solicitor that we work with, but at the end of every matter we ask our whiplash clients to complete a questionnaire to ensure that our solicitors have looked after them well. Thankfully, the feedback is always incredibly positive. If this changes, our solicitor will have to explain the reasons and improve their performance. This way we can ensure that you are always going to be placed with an excellent solicitor who provides a great service.

Call us free on 0800 2888 693 or complete our Whiplash Claim form.

Do All Companies Offer No Win No Fee, And What Does This Mean?

Unfortunately the statement "No Win No Fee" does not always mean the same thing. The strict definition is that if you do not win your case you should not have to pay a fee. However, many claims companies use the expression to hide the fact that if you do win they will charge you a "handling" or "administration" fee. The fact of the matter is that a whiplash claim is a straightforward legal claim. A solicitor should be able to advise you whether you have a claim with good prospects of success, and if you do you should not have to pay any fees either during or at the end of your claim. All 1stClaims solicitors will ensure that this is the case: You pay no fee whether you WIN or LOSE you claim.

If I Have Legal Expenses Insurance, Do I Have To Use The Solicitor They Tell Me To?

No. You have a basic legal right to choose the solicitor that you think will do the best job for you. If you have a legal expenses insurance policy, you can stil ask for an expert whiplash solicitor chosen by you.

We come across more and more situations where clients choose to come to us after their Legal Expenses Insurer has already selected a solicitor for them who they are not happy with. If you have been involved in an accident it is your choice who represents you and your choice only. So ensure that you are happy with your whiplash claim solicitor. In a time when you have suffered already, you want to be completely confident that the solicitor looking after you really does have your best interests at heart.

Call us free on 0800 2888 693 or complete our Whiplash Claim form.

What If I Need Treatment And There Is A Long Waiting List?

Any solicitor who specialises in whiplash claims should be able to arrange immediate treatment for you privately and at no cost to you. If you have a good claim for compensation, they will be able to claim the costs of the treatment back from the other driver's insurance company.

If your solicitor is vague about private treatment then they are not the solicitor for you. 1stClaims solicitors have arrangements with private treatment providers across England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. If you need treatment, our solicitors will arrange it for you at no cost to you.

What If I Need A Replacement Car or Motorcycle?

Again, a specialist whiplash solicitor should be able to arrange one for you quickly and without cost to you if you have a good claim even if you only have third party insurance and there is no obligation for your insurer to supply you with one. 1stClaims has arranged hire for our clients across the country. We appreciate how vital your transport is to you and our solicitors will help to get you back on the road as soon as possible.

Call us free on 0800 2888 693 or complete our Whiplash Claim form.

The Other Driver's Insurance Company Has Offered To Settle My Claim And They Say I Do Not Need A Solicitor

We are hearing this one more and more and we have to say it makes us concerned for whiplash victims. Every person has a right to their own legal representation. Valuing a claim for compensation and arranging treatment and car or motorbike hire is a specialist profession. Solicitors spend years qualifying to ensure that they can advise you properly and explain all of your options to you so that you can make an informed decision.

If an insurance company is offering to settle your claim without a solicitor say no and do not speak to them again until you have a solicitor looking after
"YOUR BEST INTERESTS". This is what a solicitor will do for you. If the other driver's insurance company is offering to settle directly with you, whose interests are they looking after? They are primarily a business interested in making more profits. One way of achieving this is to settle your claim for less than it might be worth if you had a solicitor independently advising you. In our view insurance companies should not legally be able to settle a claim for whiplash because there is plainly and clearly a conflict of interests: ie your interests to obtain treatment and the right amount of compensation, and their interests to make more profit.

If you have been involved in an accident that was not your fault you must have independent advice from a specialist whiplash solicitor. 1stClaims can put you in touch with one. Do not let the insurance company settle your whiplash claim without one.

Call us free on 0800 2888 693 or complete our Whiplash Claim form.

What Proof Do I Have That They Are As Good As They Say They Are?

At 1stClaims we take great care in selecting only specialist whiplash solicitors. One of our directors, a former personal injury solicitor for 14 years, personally selects each solicitor that helps 1stClaims' clients. We insist that they act for you on a no win no fee, and we make sure you do not pay us any "Administration" or "Handling" charge. You also keep all of your compensation, that is 100% of it.

The other proof we have is that at the end of every claim we ask our clients to rate their 1stClaims solicitor. We monitor this feedback and ensure that our clients are more than satisfied with our solicitors. Here are just some of the comments we have received about our whiplash claim solicitors.

"The 1stClaims solicitor was extremely helpful - she guided me in the right direction with the claim and I would definitely recommend 1stclaims. The solicitor was brilliant and thought of things to claim for that I had not even considered." Mrs D, Essex.

"I have been totally satisfied with everything you have done and wouldn't hesitate to use or recommend you if a situation arose in future." Mr Pittam

"I am very happy to endorse your website for it's ease of understanding and use. I would also like to say how impressed I was regarding the very prompt reply from the solicitor who contacted me regarding this matter." Mr G Kay

Would You Like Help From Expert Whiplash Solicitors At No Cost To You?

To benefit from the expertise of 1stClaims whiplash solicitors please call us free now on 0800 2888 693 or complete our Whiplash Claim Enquiry form and we will be in touch with you very soon.

PS remember we charge you no fees and your expert whiplash claim solicitor will ensure you recover 100% of your compensation so you have complete peace of mind in contacting us.

We are here to help you from 8am to 8pm Monday to Friday,
8.30am to 6pm on Saturday and 9am to 6pm on Sundays.

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Start your FREE claim for compensation by using our online claim form.

Remember we charge no fees and you receive 100% of your compensation.

Which 7 Questions Must You Ask Before Choosing Your Whiplash Claim Solicitor?

To receive our free guide advising you of all the questions you must ask before choosing your whiplash solicitor please click the link below:

7 ESSENTIAL QUESTIONS GUIDE - DOWNLOAD HERE

Why Choose Us for Your Whiplash/Road Claim?

You keep 100% of your compensation
You pay nothing whether you win or lose your claim
Your solicitor is chosen by one of our directors who was a personal injury solicitor for 14 years. This ensures you are put in touch with the best solicitors to ensure you receive a 1stClass service from 1stClaims!
All 1stClaims solicitors are monitored by client feedback to ensure a quality service is maintained for your benefit

What Our Clients Say

“I am very happy to endorse your website for it's ease of understanding and use. I would also like to say how impressed I was regarding the very prompt reply from the solicitor who contacted me regarding this matter.” - Mr G Kay