Shopping trips or meeting friends and family for drinks, lunch or dinner are likely to be part of your life on a day to day or weekly basis, and whilst strolling down the aisles with your basket or trolley or enjoying a coffee or a bite to eat, you should always expect to feel safe.

In most cases, a visit to the local supermarket, corner shop or coffee shop doesn’t require a second thought, but if something does go wrong and an accident occurs through no fault of your own, you could make a claim for compensation.

Typical accidents in shops, supermarkets, café, bar or restaurants are usually caused by:

• slipping on a substance which should have been cleaned up by a member of staff
• tripping over packaging or debris left on the shop floor by a member of staff
• items falling on you as a result of them being unsafely stacked on shelves
• staff members pushing trolleys or cages into you
• the shop failing to repair holes or defects in the floor which cause you to trip or fall
• advertising material falling on you
• servers dropping hot drinks or food on you

How can we help you? 

We have dealt with many claims against all kinds of accidents in shops, from supermarket to the small shop to the local pub. We would be happy to discuss your shop accident claim with you whilst offering down to earth, honest advice.

When visiting a hairdressers or beauticians, you should always expect professional treatment and care from specialists to make sure you look and feel your best.

Hairdressers and salons are required to meet particular regulations controlling the storage, use and disposal of chemicals such as hair dye. They are also required by law to ensure electrical appliances used for hair styling are regularly tested for safety.

Salons should also carry out a hair strand test where required to ensure chemicals in styling products will not damage your hair follicles.

However, there is currently no registration scheme in the UK for these services, so you cannot always be sure of receiving professional treatment by fully trained people, and things can go wrong. If they do, we can help get you the compensation you deserve.

Some examples of hairdresser claims and salon negligence include:

• hair loss, brittle and/or thin hair
• burns or blisters to the skin or scalp
• reactions to chemicals or products
• delayed regrowth of hair
• itchy or flaky skin irritations
• waxing resulting in damage to skin
• eyelash treatments resulting in eye irritation

Should you suffer as a result of negligence by a hairdresser, we will obtain evidence from a Trichologist (a hair expert) to prove the damage has been caused by them, and to predict how long it will take for your hair to return to normal.

If you would like to discuss your case in confidence contact us now for support and guidance.

All sports hold a certain level of risk, some more than others. In some contact sports, injuries are inevitable and injuries from legal tackles and falls do not constitute as acceptable personal injury claims.

However, if some of the sports equipment you are provided with is faulty or the playing area has been badly maintained to unsafe standards and this caused your accident, you would be able to make a personal injury claim.

Or, if you were a spectator and you received and injury while view the sport as a result of improper safety measures being in place for spectators, you too could make a personal injury claim.

If injured from a result of an illegal tackle cause by the manner in which another player is playing the game, you may be entitled to compensation.

Many sport injuries can result in permanent damage and a loss of income through taking time off employment.  If you believe you, or a loved one’s sport injury has happened through the negligence of another person, you could be entitled to compensation.

Contact Litigaid Law and find out how our solicitors can help you today. 

This is the most common question we are asked when anyone makes an enquiry about making a personal injury claim. All injuries are given a value on a sliding scale, taken from the Judicial College Guidelines, depending on the severity of your injury. We have to consider the chances of a successful and full recovery or if you are left with an ongoing condition or scarring as a result of your accident. For this we need to obtain a full medical report from an expert. Therefore, although we cannot give you a specific figure, particularly at the beginning of your claim, we will be able to give you a rough idea of the amount you can expect, based on other settlements. If the defendant has made an offer and we do not feel that the defendant is offering you a fair settlement, we will continue to court and let a judge decide on your award.

This is another question which is almost always asked, and another one that is difficult to answer unfortunately. This depends on whether the defendant admits that their actions caused your injuries and if you are fully recovered or not. If your claim is on-going, we may be able to apply for an interim payment from the other side, providing they have admitted liability. This payment will be advanced to you, and will be deducted from your final settlement.

The UK recently made changes to the way in which personal injury claims are funded and whilst we have not had definitive guidance in Gibraltar, the legal profession here are following the UK claims funding process. This means that we are no longer able to recover all of your legal costs from the other side. This does not mean that you will be facing a large legal bill though. We will make it clear right from the start what your costs will be, and we won’t expect a penny until you receive your compensation. There are a number of different options to consider when looking to fund a personal injury claim and we will advise you which one is the most suitable in the circumstances.

The time period for personal injury claims is usually 3 years from the date of your accident, however it is not always that straightforward and there are variations. It is important that you get advice from a solicitor as soon as you can because missing the deadline will leave you unable to make a claim at all. Even if you are near the end of the 3 year period, we can take steps to protect your right to claim.

A ‘no win, no fee’ agreement is actually called a conditional fee agreement or CFA. This agreement lays out how your legal costs will be paid for when making a claim. If you win, the losing side will pay most of your legal costs and if you lose, you will have an insurance policy in place to pay the legal costs of the other, so you are not liable. In the event you lose, you will not pay us any costs for running your case either. So you can see, no win, no fee does what it says it does, is relatively straight forward and is a good way of funding a claim, with little risk.

As long as you follow our advice regarding your funding options, you will never face a large legal bill. In the event you should lose your claim and are therefore liable for the other side’s legal fees, an insurance policy will cover these costs for you. You will need to pay for this policy though, as this is no longer recoverable from the other party.

You will have to attend a medical assessment, but this will be booked at a time and place that is convenient for you. This medical examination will give us the evidence we need to value your claim and to demonstrate how the accident and your injuries have affected your life. You will be asked questions about how your work life has been affected and in addition, any hobbies which have been affected such as playing football or going to the gym.

By utilising the services of a specialist personal injury solicitor, you can be sure that the insurance company you are claiming from does not try to under settle your claim. These companies are answerable to their shareholders and therefore will try to pay as little out as possible in compensation. Without a solicitor working on your case, you will find it impossible to know what your injuries are worth and once you have taken the money you have agreed this in ‘full and final settlement’ of your claim. This means that if you do not recover fully, you will not have been compensated fully and left with no opportunity to recover this money.

No you should not, especially if you have not yet had a medical examination. Your injury may seem straight forward, but it may have caused degeneration to an existing condition or actually be more complicated than you think. If you accept the insurance company’s offer, you may be settling prematurely. In addition, the Law Society of England and Wales says that usually a claimant (you) will receive two to three times more if you use a solicitor to help with your compensation claim. Whilst it may look an attractive offer, you may be able to double or triple it with a solicitor representing you.

Hopefully this has given you the answers to most, if not all of your questions but if you still need help or you would like to discuss making a personal injury claim, please call us on 200 60481.