Personal Injury Claims Plummeted in 2020The Association of Consumer Support Organisations (ACSO) made a freedom of information request to the Government’s Compensation Recovery Unit (CRU) which have shown that there has been a 47% drop of personal injury claims across the board in 2020. The total number of claims has dropped from 843,000 to around 445,000. COVID-19 Impact on Personal Injury ClaimsCar accident claims fell by 46% to 356,000, while employer liability claims were down by 60% in 2020 mainly due to the effect of the pandemic. This is likely because many people are working remotely or have been furloughed meaning there are less people in a workplace environment and also less people on the road.It seems that the insurance industry has already achieved the fall in claims intended by the Civil Liability Act, which is not due to be implemented until May, but has yet to pass on any significant savings to the insured. It is hoped that the Government will now consider the proposed reforms following the drop in claims. It is clear that there will be an impact from COVID-19 and insurers and solicitors alike will need to be mindful of the changing landscape.Speak to our Personal Injury SolicitorsAt Browell Smith & Co Solicitors, our legal experts have a wealth of experience in handling personal injury cases and are always happy to discuss matters with you. Contact our expert team today to arrange a free initial telephone consultation or alternatively use out Call Back Request or Live Chat function on our website.
Food Poisoning ClaimsWhat is Food Poisoning? Food poisoning is caused as a result of consuming contaminated food. In the majority of food poisoning cases, the food is contaminated by bacteria such as salmonella or E.Coli, or a virus, such as the norovirus. Food poisoning is usually not serious and a recovery can be made within a few days, however, it can be unpleasant. Research undertaken by the Food Standards Agency (FSA) in 2019 showed that there were 2.4 million cases of food poisoning in the UK. More recently, the FSA has urgently recalled several chicken products from UK supermarkets due to a possible health risk. It has transpired that 480 cases of Salmonella occurred as a result of the defective products. The FSA and Public Health England (PHE) are therefore urging people to take care when handling and cooking frozen raw breaded chicken products at home, for example, nuggets, goujons, poppers and kievs.How to claim if you have been affected by Food PoisoningThe Consumer Protection Act (1987) outlines that a food retailer has to provide food that is free from harmful bacteria. A successful case will consist of demonstrating that you were suffering from food poisoning and that this was caused by food or drink supplied or prepared by a specific retailer. Any claim for compensation for food poisoning will be made on the basis of pain and suffering suffered as a result and any money lost as a result of your illness, such as loss of earnings if you have had to take time off work.Claim Personal Injury Compensation with Browell Smith & Co If you have suffered from food poisoning, once you have consulted your GP (if required), you should seek to contact our specialist Personal Injury Solicitors. We are able to assist you in getting the compensation that you deserve. Contact our expert team today to arrange a free initial consultation.
The main cause of cyclist related road traffic accidentsProtecting those who are ‘Road Vulnerable’Unsurprisingly there are a number of ways cyclists accidents can occur but this discussion will consider two causes. In 2019 cyclists were considering the second most vulnerable road user (1). This is not surprising considering data showed that out of 16,884 cyclist accidents which were reported to the police 100 were killed and a further 4,333 were seriously injured (2). This is particularly concerning as with a lack of public transport and exercise facilities being shut, more people are cycling. The survey highlighted that 29% of respondents stated that they were riding more on the road since lockdown began (3).‘Not able to be seen’In a survey done by the AA Charitable Trust it highlighted that 93% of other road users stated it is difficult to spot cyclists on roads. Could the reason of ‘not able to be seen’ be the cause of why so many cyclist related accidents occur at junctions.Our advice to other road users:Be mindful that not all road users are in four wheeled vehicles and always approach junctions, roundabouts and other potentially hazardous areas with caution at a slow speed.Our advice to cyclists:Wear high visibility clothing at all times of the day, certain weather conditions such as fog could impact you being visible and install a bike light- these can be extremely beneficial in showing your presence on the road.‘Punishment Breaking’The notion of punishment breaking is when other road users overtake cyclists and then suddenly break when in front so the cyclist has to either break themselves or attempt to avoid the vehicle to prevent a collision. The THINK campaign was released in 2014 to try and build empathy from other road users towards cyclists and prevent this bad road user behaviour.Our advice to other road users:Be mindful of the THINK campaign and have empathy towards those cycling. Do not adopt the punishment breaking behaviour or you could be responsible for killing or fatally injuring someone as a result of a moment’s anger.Our advice to cyclists:Whilst you cannot prevent punishment breaking, we do advise you to wear safety protection always. Whilst this may not prevent an accident from occurring in the unfortunate event one did, safety helmets can be crucial in the severity of your injury.Have you been involved in a road traffic accident?Unfortunately, some accidents cannot be prevented regardless of the safety precautions you take.If you have been a cyclist involved in a collision which was not your fault call our team of personal injury experts where we can discuss matters further and see how we can assist you.If you have been a cyclist involved in an accident which was not involving another vehicle such as a pothole, this is also something that you can potentially claim for. Please call our experts or request a callback for a further discussion. Chart 6: ‘Reported road casualties in Great Britain: 2019 annual report’ <https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/922717/reported-road-casualties-annual-report-2019.pdf> Date Accessed: 28/01/2021 ‘Table RAS30001: ‘Reported road casualties by road user type and severity, Great Britain, 2019’ <https://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/ras30-reported-casualties-in-road-accidents? Date Accessed: 28/01/2021 AA Populus Driver Poll Summary <https://www.theaa.com/about-us/public-affairs/aa-populus-driver-poll-summaries-2020#december2020> Date Accessed: 28/01/2021