As of April 2010 the claims process for road traffic accidents with a relatively low compensation payment has been changed in order to make the claims process quicker. The new process will apply to cases where the compensation payout is likely to be between a thousand and ten thousand pounds and it is mainly the initial stages that differ from the old process.
Prior to the change the process meant that the insurer had a 21 day period in which they acknowledge receipt of the letter of claim, then a period of three months in which to carry out investigative work, so they could decide whether they were liable or not. A frustrating length of time for the potential claimant.
In the new process, rather than a letter of claim, the claimant submits an online Claims Notification Form, using a new secure process. After this has been logged the insurer will then have 15 days to respond with their decision on liability, which will also be submitted online.
The new Claims Notification Form requires more detail than a claim letter would so a claimant may be delayed while they gather the correct information, but this would have been required at latter stages during the old claims process, and once the claim is lodge they have much less time to wait for a decision so the process should be much quicker.
Another big difference to the old process is that rather than waiting for the insurers offer, it is the claimant who makes an initial settlement offer, based on the medical evidence and any financial losses.
The third time saving measure is that if liability is not in question, but a settlement figure cannot be agreed then rather than a court appearance the Court will make a judgement based on the information they already have.
The process is still in its infancy, and so making a judgement on it is difficult, but so far it seems to be working effectively and whilst many cases cannot go through the process the more straightforward ones will certainly benefit from a more efficient process.
If you have had an RTA and think you have a whiplash, head or neck injury claim, then a personal injury solicitor can see if you are elgible to make a compensation injury claim