Road traffic accident abroad claims
Our Travel & Foreign Law Department has wide experience of representing clients who have suffered injury as a result of being involved in a road traffic accident (RTA) while abroad.
Whether you have been injured as a driver, passenger, cyclist or pedestrian our specialist team is here to help you. This is a complex and changing area of law and you need prompt, expert and informed advice.
Time limits
If you are involved in a road traffic accident, you have a set period of time after the accident in which to start the process of making a claim for compensation.
When a road traffic accident takes place abroad, it is important to note that the time limit for making a claim will be governed by the law of the country where the accident happened.
Time limits in some European countries are shorter than the 3 year period which applies in Scotland for making a claim. It is therefore critical to get expert legal advice as soon as possible after a road traffic accident abroad.
Making a claim for road traffic accident abroad
In addition to a different time period for making a claim, the process for making a claim for compensation, and the amount of compensation which you receive, may also be different to the situation in Scotland.
Our specialist personal injury solicitors can provide advice tailored to your specific circumstances. They can advise you whether it may be possible to raise your claim via the Scottish courts if you have been injured in a road traffic accident in Europe. This can be possible in some cases, avoiding the additional expense and uncertainty of having to go through the legal process in a foreign country.
This may not be possible in every situation, for example if the road traffic accident happened in a non-European country. Where this is the case the legal process and amount of potential compensation will be determined by the foreign legal system, rather than Scottish law.
In that event, we have access to a global network of lawyers who can help with the compensation process for road traffic accidents abroad.
No win, no fee personal injury solicitors
The expression “No win, no fee” is often used in personal injury cases. It is used as a way of funding a compensation claim where the accident victim does not have the means to pay for the costs involved as the case progresses.
A number of solicitors are prepared to handle personal injury cases on a “No Win – No Fee” basis but very few are able to offer their clients complete protection if the case is unsuccessful.
In that event, the client could end up being liable for many thousands of pounds in legal expenses or the case won't be fully investigated and therefore likely to under-settle.
Compensate 'no win, no fee' funding
Digby Brown has its own funding company, Compensate, which provides the funding to allow the case to be fully investigated, employ the best experts surrounding the circumstances of the accident and/or injuries sustained and where and if necessary go to court.
If for whatever reason the case is unsuccessful, Compensate pays all your legal expenses and those of your opponent – you pay nothing.
On average our clients receive over 3 times the pre-litigation offer
Because of Compensate funding Digby Brown's success rate is extremely high and on average our clients receive three times the pre-litigation offer.
In the event the case is successful, a small percentage of your damages will be deducted with VAT to pay for this service. The percentage which Compensate will charge depends on the degree of risk involved. We believe that this is the fairest method of giving clients access to justice whilst ensuring their cases are fully investigated, prepared and funded.
Don’t take our word for it, just read many of the court decisions and case studies on our website.
Beware of compensation offers which may be too good
We know you will have seen many adverts offering 100% compensation or telling you that you will not lose any of your compensation, however we believe there are a number of problems with companies that do this.
- How do they make their money if they don’t charge you anything?
- If they aren’t taking any money from you, the client, what incentive do they have to ensure you receive the right level of compensation, appropriate to the injuries you have sustained?
- Fully preparing a case, finding out exactly what happened and what the consequences of your injuries may mean in the long term, is expensive, how do they do this properly?
- If they aren’t fully preparing these cases will they just accept the first offer they are given on your behalf by the Insurance company?
- It makes simple business sense, the less work they do the higher their profit margin is - they simply have no incentive to work harder on your behalf.
- These adverts in the main are from English firms on national television which operates in a different way and therefore wouldn’t apply to a Scottish person.
We know from the many client cases we mandate from other firms of solicitors (in the main at the request of the client who is extremely unsatisfied with the service received for the other firm) that many shortcuts are taken in preparation and that the first offer received is being recommended for acceptance, regardless of the value.
Getting something for nothing is usually the first sign of poor service.
Correct level of compensation with Digby Brown
Our experience and statistics show time and time again we will achieve the correct level of compensation which will be substantially more than the insurer is initially prepared to offer.
Even after we have deducted our percentage as a success fee you will gain considerably more than you would have achieved using a 100% compensation model.
Contact Digby Brown's personal injury solicitors
We have offices across Scotland in Glasgow, Edinburgh, Dundee, Kirkcaldy, Inverness, Aberdeen and Ayr.
For further information about no win, no fee, or anything else, call us on 0333 200 5925 or fill in our enquiry form below and someone will get back in touch with you.
Specialist solicitors at Digby Brown
Digby Brown is Scotland’s largest specialist personal injury practice. We are rated Band 1 by the leading independent publications, Chambers Guide to the UK Legal Profession and Legal 500.
We understand the effect that a road traffic accident can have on individuals and families and help thousands of people every year who have been involved in crashes. With offices in Glasgow, Edinburgh, Dundee, Kirkcaldy, Inverness, Aberdeen and Ayr, we can handle road accident abroad claims across Scotland.
0333 200 5926
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Saturday and Sunday: 12pm - 4pm
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