What should i do?

[Meade's Ball]

So today i had word of the compensation the Motor Insurance Bureau are willing to offer me after being run over all those years ago in a hit and run. The amount is £130k. I lose 15% as apparently i wasn't wearing a cycling helmet at the time. And i lose another 20% to my solicitor. So that leaves me with £84k. The solicitor had put on the schedule that i should receive £392k.
The options for me are to accept, whilst the solicitor tries to push it up a few grand by pointing out certain parts that they have forgotten to include, or take the risk of having it handled and reassessed by an arbitrator. The latter means maybe losing £50k of what i have been offered. Or gaining so much more, depending on the person/judge i get, i suppose.

I have six weeks to decide. It's no where near as much as i had hoped for as i'd wanted enough to go part-time and have myself re-educated with a chunk of knowledge i lost thanks to the accident. But then how much am i as a person worth to want more cash for the few pounds of flesh i'd had taken from me, and how can i expect someone to prove i deserve it back.

I know i need to speak to my solicitor and those around me, but i find it all abstract and upsetting to accept a value of the lost parts of me combined with the deadening of my unproved potential. They want a decision from me, but i don't know what is right with this or what i am meant to feel.

I dunno. Probably just getting a thought or two off of my head.

 

[Cadiz Seagull]

My daughter had a sililar case, although not as serious. I think the general principle is don't accept the first offer, as in any sort of negotiation.

She turned the first offer down and eventually got quite a bit more.

But I don't know anything about your circumstances so please don't rely on this.

There must be some sort of forum on the internet for people in your situation that would be able to give you more and better advice than we could.

But good luck whatever you decide.

 

[Simster]

It's going to be very difficult for the layman to give an opinion, but I remember the accident and what it did to you and it was bloody serious. Perhaps the real decision should be based on whether or not you can do what you need to do with the £84k being offered? That said, if there is a serious chance of the amount being increased, then I think you should consider it, Andy. Good luck with whatever you choose to do.

 

[bennibenj]

I think getting some professional advise in whether to proceed further, but I wish you all the best and that whatever the outcome it supports you and enables you to do what you had hoped.

 

[Curryisgreat]

I feel bad - I never know this had happened to you, and I once accused you of being thick for one of your posts.

I do apologise and wish you all the best in your quest for adequate compensation.

 

[Barrel of Fun]

It is a crying shame that the whole game ends up with a bit of bluffing and provisional/derisory offers and then counter offers with a gamble of losing from the primary offer. A bit like a shitty episode of Deal or No Deal without the fragrant Noel and happy/smiling people clapping and cheering you on your way.

I don't know anything about the process, but I would seek information/experiences from other people in a similar position and/or organisations/charities whom work to push for a fair deal.

I imagine it is difficult for you to put a monetary sum on the changes your accident made to you. Difficult not to be blinded by figures or coerced by people with more to lose or more to gain.

What I do know is that you should write a book about it all. Your writing style is entertaining and you have experiences many of us will never encounter.

 

[pipkin112]

My wife works as a Senior Claim aAjuster for a well known international company. Bascially she has just told me the following, however this is only her personal opinion:

It's ultimately up to you and whether you want to accept, however it is likely that this is an opening offer from the insurance company and it is common place for the solicitors to start negotations based on case law from previous claims. However you should not rely on what the solicitor is telling you with regards to what they are putting forward on their schedule - they will 'over inflate' your claim in order for negotations to take place.

You will ultimately be receving two forms of compensation, the first being General Damages - this is for the personal injury you have sustained.

The second is your special damages - this is items like care & assistance, loss of earnings, loss of future earnings, travel costs to & from treatment appointments etc. It is the special damages that are usually over inflated in order for negotation to take place. You should be aware if you are claiming for loss of earnings it may be that any benefits you have received from the Department of Work & Pensions will have to be repaid from this - you should ask your solicitor to confirm if and how much you will loose from any compensation paid.

In most cases a judge will favour on the side of the claimant and in the case it sounds like you have ultimately done no wrong, apart from perhaps not wearing a cycle helmet, however 15% contributory negligence is a good offer for not wearing appropriate protection.

In her opinion you should hold out and ask your solicitor to negotiate in the first instance with the insurance company, they can use the threat of legal proceedings against the insurance company as most will want to settle out of court.

Finally, she has said that in all the Personal Injury cases she has come across the insurance comapny will be liable for your costs, so you should ask your solicitor why they are deducting their fees from any settlement you are awarded.

I hope this helps, but feel free to ask if you have any further questions, although without knowing the full facts of the claim and what has been disclosed by both parties it is only her opinion.

 

[Dick Knights Mumm]

It's going to be very difficult for the layman to give an opinion, but I remember the accident and what it did to you and it was bloody serious. Perhaps the real decision should be based on whether or not you can do what you need to do with the £84k being offered? That said, if there is a serious chance of the amount being increased, then I think you should consider it, Andy. Good luck with whatever you choose to do.

Can't put it any better than that. I have nothing but respect for you MB. Good luck with your decision.

 

[JonathanLivingstonSeagull]

Meade's - I always have taken you as an abstract comedy genius whenever you've made an appearance. I always assumed you were an eccentric intellectual type! Very surprised to hear you have had an accident which you consider / is considered to have affected your potential.

I didn't know about this accident (noobishness I suppose) and can't offer any advice without being pure layman about it (no deal!) but then I am a gambling type (not that it is necessarily a gamble, per se... ack) But anyway I'd like to wish you good luck pursuing your claim whatever you decide.

 

[The Antikythera Mechanism]

Your compensation is probably low due to being the victim of hit and run. Had there been an insured person liable the situation would, probably be different. That said, surely your compensation, at the very least, should reflect loss of earning potential. I don't know how old you are, but if, say ,you have 30 years until retirement, the £130k sounds totally inadequate at just over £4k a year. Also this amount doesn't include for trauma, the effect on your personal life etc. I would, seriously consider getting independent advice, as I fear your solicitor is doing you a disservice. I wish you all the very best,

 

[Lord Bracknell]

If you put £84,000 in a savings account, how much is the interest worth? Next to nothing, once inflation is factored in. If you just spend £84,000, when would it run out?

It doesn't strike me as a great offer that has been made.

 

[severnside gull]

My wife works as a Senior Claim aAjuster for a well known international company. Bascially she has just told me the following, however this is only her personal opinion:

It's ultimately up to you and whether you want to accept, however it is likely that this is an opening offer from the insurance company and it is common place for the solicitors to start negotations based on case law from previous claims. However you should not rely on what the solicitor is telling you with regards to what they are putting forward on their schedule - they will 'over inflate' your claim in order for negotations to take place.

You will ultimately be receving two forms of compensation, the first being General Damages - this is for the personal injury you have sustained.

The second is your special damages - this is items like care & assistance, loss of earnings, loss of future earnings, travel costs to & from treatment appointments etc. It is the special damages that are usually over inflated in order for negotation to take place. You should be aware if you are claiming for loss of earnings it may be that any benefits you have received from the Department of Work & Pensions will have to be repaid from this - you should ask your solicitor to confirm if and how much you will loose from any compensation paid.

In most cases a judge will favour on the side of the claimant and in the case it sounds like you have ultimately done no wrong, apart from perhaps not wearing a cycle helmet, however 15% contributory negligence is a good offer for not wearing appropriate protection.

In her opinion you should hold out and ask your solicitor to negotiate in the first instance with the insurance company, they can use the threat of legal proceedings against the insurance company as most will want to settle out of court.

Finally, she has said that in all the Personal Injury cases she has come across the insurance comapny will be liable for your costs, so you should ask your solicitor why they are deducting their fees from any settlement you are awarded.

I hope this helps, but feel free to ask if you have any further questions, although without knowing the full facts of the claim and what has been disclosed by both parties it is only her opinion.

I guarantee you will struggle to get better advice than that particularly with regard to your legal costs

 

[Mackenzie]

Screw the bastards for all you can get MB.....and get some professional advice on the correct manner in which to do so.

Good luck.

 

[The Antikythera Mechanism]

I guarantee you will struggle to get better advice than that particularly with regard to your legal costs

The drawback is that he is dealing with the MIB here, rather than an Insurance company acting for a liable party

 

[Pondicherry]

My wife works as a Senior Claim aAjuster for a well known international company. Bascially she has just told me the following, however this is only her personal opinion:

It's ultimately up to you and whether you want to accept, however it is likely that this is an opening offer from the insurance company and it is common place for the solicitors to start negotations based on case law from previous claims. However you should not rely on what the solicitor is telling you with regards to what they are putting forward on their schedule - they will 'over inflate' your claim in order for negotations to take place.

You will ultimately be receving two forms of compensation, the first being General Damages - this is for the personal injury you have sustained.

The second is your special damages - this is items like care & assistance, loss of earnings, loss of future earnings, travel costs to & from treatment appointments etc. It is the special damages that are usually over inflated in order for negotation to take place. You should be aware if you are claiming for loss of earnings it may be that any benefits you have received from the Department of Work & Pensions will have to be repaid from this - you should ask your solicitor to confirm if and how much you will loose from any compensation paid.

In most cases a judge will favour on the side of the claimant and in the case it sounds like you have ultimately done no wrong, apart from perhaps not wearing a cycle helmet, however 15% contributory negligence is a good offer for not wearing appropriate protection.

In her opinion you should hold out and ask your solicitor to negotiate in the first instance with the insurance company, they can use the threat of legal proceedings against the insurance company as most will want to settle out of court.

Finally, she has said that in all the Personal Injury cases she has come across the insurance comapny will be liable for your costs, so you should ask your solicitor why they are deducting their fees from any settlement you are awarded.

I hope this helps, but feel free to ask if you have any further questions, although without knowing the full facts of the claim and what has been disclosed by both parties it is only her opinion.

Except the offer is from the Motor Insurance Bureau who are NOT an insurance company but are an organisation set up to compensate those hit by uninsured drivers and hit and runs. They are funded by a levy taken from normal motor insurance companies (and in effect us through out motor insurance premiums). Legal fees for H&R can not be claimed from the MIB.

As to whether to accept the payment or not I can not really comment. You would have to look at previous similar cases that have gone to arbitration and look at the monetary outcomes (positive and negative).

It is a tough one and I feel sorry for you because you are being faced with problems and decisions just because the person who hit you could not be traced. Clearly this is not your fault. Good luck with whatever you decide.

 

[CheeseRolls]

MB follow your instinct, you know what you want to get from this and it honestly doesn't sound as if you are motivated by greed. Just don't let the dog-pummellers grind you down.

 

[seagullsovergrimsby]

I thought the 20% costs your solicitor is trying to rake off would have been met by the MIB as they are liable for your costs but a post above states otherwise , so your solicitor needs to get you an extra 25% minimum as a starting counter proposal. At the time of the accident was the wearing of a safety helmet considered as being 15% negligent ? Professional advice is the way to go , the opening offer is to get you worried that if you don't accept it it could be less if a re-negotiation is unsuccessful.

 

[Zeff]

Difficult one MB.

The MIB is funded by all insurers to compensate victims injured as a result of untraced/uninsured drivers, so your not dealing with an insurance company/solicitors who will fight against you to prove the amount offered is fair, it's a case of whether a judge would agree with them that's it's a fair offer for your suffering, past/present and maybe future. The MIB are not out to make money, obviously they have overheads like any other business, but they have a pot of money to go round to assist unfortunate accident victims like yourself.

As most people have said you really need to take some advice regarding the injuries/trauma you have suffered from an independent solicitor who specialises in injury compensation, to see if the offer is fair and reasonable.

If you were dealing with an insured driver, then the £392K figure quoted could have been very realistic in this day and age, however without knowing the injuries/trauma suffered by you, I could not say, and I don't expect you to disclose them on here either.

I wish you the best of luck, and hope you spend the next 8 weeks making sure you make the right decision.

Good luck, and keep us informed.

 

[Meade's Ball]

I feel bad - I never know this had happened to you, and I once accused you of being thick for one of your posts.

I do apologise and wish you all the best in your quest for adequate compensation.

Luckily i have memory processing problems, so i can't really remember your light insult.
You are entirely forgiven. In about ten minutes from now.

 

[Meade's Ball]

Thanks for all the kind words and the advice too. Having read through the solicitor's letter again, she is advising to accept. The MIB have potentially been more accepting of me being struck by a vehicle than a court might be. The police report of the accident was that i might've fallen sideways, despite my skull and shoulder being broken, and no evidence is fully out there to confirm that that didn't happen. There is nothing certain to say that i didn't fall first rather than being knocked off of my bicycle by any vehicle, so it could be a dangerous path to take, the whole court stuff etc. I'll ponder it when the light depression of the reminder of the past six years is overcome by busyness or booze, and quiz an organisation or two, as recommended.
From what's on offer i can't buy a flat and live rentfree for the rest of my life as i half-dreamily hoped, working three days a week, studying for one day and writing and drifting on another. But it could allow me to put it all behind me. I'm a bit deaf for life, my right leg is a bit inactive in places and I tire more easily than i'd like to after a strenuous day or more than ten minutes of trying to learn. Much worse could have happened. To be in a coma for a fortnight and have a brain so inflamed that i was near death after a few days should have had me worse off, so as much as i mourn deeply within, i should find a way to feel blessed unreligiously somehow and thankful.

I sometimes wonder which part of my personality remained to not wish to find the person who did it and wish them punished. If i'd come across them ever i don't think i'd growl or snarl over an incident i simply cannot picture. I wouldn't offer them a warm handshake either or a creepy cuddle, unless they were hot and eager to repent. I wouldn't want them to feel bad, really, although i may be wrongly predicting that they might. Either way, time can't be reversed or physical matter reimplanted thanks to the nearing guilt of one accidental aggressor. I don't think it was the noble part of me, but the self-blaming bit, that made it through.

Anyway, i'll try not to remain too down or bludgeoned by a loose memory of the character, played by me, that had to sullenly loiter as his brain slowly rebuilt around him. Life goes on, whether i like it or not at times.
I'll inform of what i decide, and i suppose what i end up doing with the money, however much it ends up being.

Thanks again.
Andy