Understanding “No Win No Fee”

With personal injury claims there is always a dispute about who is to blame and the percentage of the blame they should take. This can only be calculated on how much evidence the claiming party is able to present. Some cases can be resolved though mediation without the need to go to court, this is true of a case where a lot of evidence is strong enough and the party believes they stand no chance. A lot of cases go to court which may seem like wasted court time, but this is your legal right. Some cases where the accident is very serious a claim for compensation is far better served going to courts as the award may be larger and you will stand a more of a chance of a better pay out.

It is possible to spend months or years trying to get the responsible party to compensate you. You may also be concerned about how to pay for the fees involved. “Conditional fee agreements” or better known as the “no win no fee” agreements were introduced in 1995 when legal aid was still available for personal injury case. The reason it was introduced was to give the people with incomes above legal aid eligibility limits the chance to fund personal injury litigation. People whose income was just about the limit were still finding it difficult to pay for a solicitor. This “no win no fee” agreement eventually became available to fund most civil cases and the consequence of this was that legal aid was abolished 2000. Contrary to popular belief there has not been a compensation boom, in fact the number of claims has dropped since this time.

With pure no win no fee arrangements; no winning compensation is paid to the winner’s lawyer. The winner leaves the case with their entire award intact. You should however before signing on the dotted line check that there are no ‘hidden fees’. It is still wise to find a solicitor firm that has years of experience dealing with personal injury cases.

Accident Consult is made of very experienced solicitors with over 60 years of experience between them. They offer no obligation professional advice for anyone who has suffered a personal injury.

Tags: aid eligibility, boom, conditional fee agreements, consequence, contrary to popular belief, dotted line, incomes, lawyer, legal aid, mediation, nbsp, personal injury case, personal injury claims, personal injury litigation, responsible party, solicitor firm