How Long Do Personal Injury Claims Take?

If you’re wondering ‘How long do personal injury claims take?’ this blog post could help. You might like information about what time frames could be involved before starting a compensation claim. You may also like to know how long it takes for you to be compensated once you start a claim.

We begin by looking at the various factors that influence the personal injury claims process. For example, there are steps called the Pre-Action Protocol that need to be followed. This post explains these steps. Also, we explore how different types of injury might impact the length of a claim. After this, we will look at what happens if the third party denies responsibility for your injuries.

Furthermore, once liability is accepted, you could be eligible to receive a portion of your compensation in advance. We explain what factors go into awarding an interim payment. Lastly, we look at how instructing a personal injury solicitor might be a helpful option to navigate all this.

If you’d like to chat about your personal injury claim now, please feel free to get in touch. Our team of dedicated advisors can offer an instant assessment of the strength of your claim and if you qualify, connect you to one of the personal injury solicitors from our panel.

To discuss the time scale involved with a personal injury claim:

A personal injury claim represented by scales with two people in front.

Select A Section

  1. How Long Do Personal Injury Claims Take?
  2. What Is The Personal Injury Claims Process?
  3. Does The Type Of Injury Affect How Long A Personal Injury Claim Takes?
  4. Does Claiming For Multiple Injuries Take Longer?
  5. Will My Claim Be Delayed If The Third Party Deny Liability?
  6. Could I Receive Interim Payments?
  7. Why Claim Personal Injury Compensation On A No Win No Fee Basis?
  8. Read More About Making Personal Injury Claims

How Long Do Personal Injury Claims Take?

How long it takes a personal injury claim to settle will vary between cases. Various factors can affect how long a personal injury claim takes to settle, such as:

  • The type of injury or illness. For example, the long-term repercussions of multiple injuries or serious brain injury. Claims of this nature take much longer to calculate than a simple whiplash claim because of their medical complexity.
  • The exact circumstances of the accident or negligent treatment. It’s important to provide a clear account of the cause of injury.
  • Whether the other side (the defendant) accepts liability. The other party may deny responsibility or argue that the claimant was at fault for their injuries.
  • The length of anticipated recovery, how long you were unable to work and how long it takes a solicitor to gather all the appropriate supporting medical information.

Contact a dedicated member of our advisory team to discuss how long do personal injury claims take.

What Is The Personal Injury Claims Process?

Typically, the personal injury claims process might follow these steps, called the Pre-Action Protocol:

  • Letter of Notification – This is the notification sent to the defendant telling them that a personal injury claim is likely to be launched against them.
  • Rehabilitation – The parties involved need to promptly consider the need for any medical treatment or rehabilitative measures and how this should be arranged.
  • Letter of Claim – Letters need to be sent to the defendant and their insurance company. They should include a clear summary of events and outline the physical harm, psychological injury and financial impact the injuries have had on the claimant.
  • The Response –The defendant must respond to this letter within 21 calendar days. After this, the defendant has 3 months from the date of acknowledgement to conduct their own investigations on the claim.
  • Disclosure – This is an opportunity to promote an early exchange of information on both sides to help clarify or resolve the matter.
  • Experts – The opinion of relevant experts can be taken into account here, for example, orthopaedic professionals or psychologists.
  • Negotiations – If the defendant admits liability, an offer can be made to settle the claim.
  • Alternative Dispute Resolution – This provides an opportunity to see if a satisfactory resolution can be found before the necessity to go to court.
  • Quantification of Loss – Here amounts can be assessed for the financial and physical harm caused if liability is settled.
  • Stocktake – One final opportunity for both sides to reach a resolution before going to court.

Please note, low value personal injury claims may follow a different process.

Does The Type Of Injury Affect How Long A Personal Injury Claim Takes?

When asking ‘How long do personal injury claims take?’ it’s important to take into account the nature of the injuries. Cases of severe injuries can entail a much more complex treatment and recovery program. So this would impact the speed of any decision.

Furthermore, injuries like this might need an independent medical assessment from specialists who are not immediately available. Coordinating schedules, getting appointment windows and waiting for specialists’ reports can all delay the how long the claim takes to settle.

However, it is important that the injury severity is accurately accounted for. Once your personal injury compensation claim has reached a settlement, you will not be able to reopen it, even if further injuries are discovered or the prognosis is worse than initially thought.

Does Claiming For Multiple Injuries Take Longer?

In a similar way, a full valuation for multiple injuries might require detailed reports from an array of different specialists. It may be necessary for a solicitor to wait for all these different reports to come in before making a final compensation calculation.

As stated above, once your claim is settled, it cannot be reopened for any reason. Therefore, a complete assessment of the injuries must be allowed to ensure that you are compensated correctly.

A man with multiple injuries that showed on his medical report.

Will My Claim Be Delayed If The Third Party Deny Liability?

Another factor that can impact how long it takes for a personal injury claim to settle is acceptance of liability. In some cases, the third party will admit responsibility immediately and seek to reach a speedy resolution.

However, in other cases, the other party may deny liability. Here is where an expert personal injury solicitor can build a solid case and negotiate vigorously on your behalf to move the claim along.

Could I Receive Interim Payments?

Amounts can be paid to the claimant in advance when liability has been admitted, but the final settlement has not yet been reached. The courts may grant interim payments as needed on an individual basis.

A portion of the anticipated total compensation is subtracted to cover interim payments. Interim payments are usually given if the claimant needs emergency care or has other immediate expenses caused as a result of their injury.

Why Claim Personal Injury Compensation On A No Win No Fee Basis?

As you consider the question, ‘How long do personal injury claims take?’ it can be helpful to know that you’re not alone. The expert solicitors on our panel can assist eligible claimants through each and every stage of a compensation claim in a way that doesn’t add to your financial burdens. They have decades of experience in:

  • Collecting evidence and gathering supporting statements.
  • Explaining complex legal jargon.
  • Calculating compensation that takes everything into account (such as loss of earnings both present and predicted as well as the full extent of your injuries).
  • Presenting your claim for road traffic accident,  accidents in public places, or accidents at work in a professional and organised way at all times.

They can do all this by offering a type of No Win No Fee contract called a Conditional Fee Agreement (CFA). Under an arrangement like this, you can avoid paying upfront or ongoing fees for solicitors’ services. You also don’t need to pay your solicitor for their completed services if your claim is unsuccessful.

In the event of a positive claim outcome, they will deduct a small and legally limited percentage from the compensation award. Notably, there is a legislative cap on this percentage. Therefore, as the claimant, you always receive the bulk of the compensation awarded.

Contact Us For Free 24/7 To See If You Can Make A Compensation Claim

‘Our dedicated team of advisors are available at any time that suits you to discuss the personal injury claims process. They can answer any questions you might have and provide free guidance on your options for seeking personal injury compensation. Additionally, if you meet the eligibility, you could be connected to one of the personal injury solicitors from our panel. To connect now use our ‘contact us’ form or phone 0330 0433679

A solicitor looks at how long do personal injury claims take while sat at a desk.

Read More About Making Personal Injury Claims

You might find these other resources from our website useful:

External resources that might help you:

  • Here is information about claiming statutory sick pay (SSP) from the government.
  • As well as this, here are details on performing first aid from the NHS.
  • Lastly, read about the time limits for launching claims as detailed in the Limitation Act 1980 legislation.

In conclusion, thanks for reading our guide. We hope it has helped answer the question ‘How long do personal injury claims take?’ and if we can assist further, please connect with the team.