Why you should be in charge of your injury claim

In this case our client, Mr MacLean - a nineteen-year-old - was driving home in the Highlands of Scotland when a caravan driven by a tourist on holiday in Scotland, and proceeding on the wrong side of the road, hit our client head on at speed.

Mr MacLean was left seriously injured. He suffered significant and wide ranging fractures and internal injuries. He was air lifted to hospital where he underwent multiple surgeries over several weeks. He experienced significant restrictions and was off work for months while he recovered.

Insurers offer to take on injury claim

Mr MacLean was initially approached by his road traffic insurers who offered to represent him in a personal injury claim.

However, after undertaking research, he discovered Digby Brown’s Inverness office and decided to get in touch. Having met with us in person, he decided that he would prefer we represented him rather than solicitors which were picked by his insurance company.

In terms of the reason for the choice Mr MacLean said “I choose Digby Brown as it was recommended to my father by a friend of his. He had heard lots of good reviews on the company.

“The best thing about using Digby Brown Inverness was that it was a local office which was a big help.”

Complexity over future employment

Mr MacLean’s case was challenging due to complexity around his future working capabilities.

He was a young lad just starting out in the building trade and one of the more significant injuries was a fracture to his foot. All the medical evidence stated he would not be able to continue in the building trade and would have to have change his career – not such an easy task!

As the case progressed, it became clear that his foot injury had not healed and he would require further surgery. Our solicitors in Inverness managed to recover the full cost of private surgery from the other drivers’ insurers, and arranged for the surgery and recovery to be complete, before settling the personal injury claim.

Rightful damages – However long it takes

Throughout the case, the insurers for the third party driver sought to under-settle our client’s case.

They continually alleged that he would be able to return to his pre-accident employment and, therefore, he was only entitled to a lower settlement figure.

Alternatively, they argued that even if he changed jobs, he will still make the same level of earnings.

Four years after the road traffic accident and having undergone multiple surgeries, we received four separate compensation offers of much lower value.

In the end our client’s road traffic injury claim settled for almost double the initial insurer’s offer, in the sum of £150,000.

Your choice for your injury claim

Mr MacLean sustained substantial and life changing injuries which had a significant impact on his home life and career prospects.

He sought the legal support and advice of Digby Brown Inverness from the outset and decided to proceed with them rather than a solicitor chosen by his insurance company.

By making this choice, he placed himself in control of his ongoing personal injury claim.

Why not let my Insurers choose?

Being passed to a solicitor of your insurer’s choice can happen for a number of reasons. There might be financial interaction or a commercial relationship between the two; this means that you may not be with the best firm, just the one they want to pass you to.

You should never be forced to be represented by someone that is not of your choosing. Mr MacLean contacted Digby Brown Inverness to receive representation through the Compensate, no win no fee, funding package, and recovered the full damages he deserved.

“The service from the Inverness office was first class, I would highly recommend David McGowan who was my solicitor.

“I found him excellent to deal with and if I had any problems or had anything that didn't make sense to me he made sure he went over everything so I could understand it clearly.