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Police procedures after a road traffic accident, court procedures, making a statement, the importance of photographs as evidence, making a claim against uninsured drivers and drivers of stolen vehicles
What happens if you suffer serious injury just short of the injuries that may be fatal? The simple answer is that you fall through the net of receiving active Police help.
This is because they are unaware of the effects that the accident has had on the life of the accident victim. If an incident has a serious implication to the life of anyone, that incident then becomes a serious incident and should be investigated.
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accident victim support.
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accident victim advice.
Clearly a Life Changing Event needs the active input of police. Unfortunately this input does not always occur. It is a fault with the system.
Consider these circumstances. An accident occurs and is dealt with properly and with due diligence and expertise. There is a serious leg injury not of itself life threatening and subsequent good hospital treatment in casualty.
However subsequent treatment over the following days or even weeks and months, does not go well and because of infection the injuries become life threatening resulting in an amputation of the injured leg.
The original Police report is dealt with at an inappropriate level within the police hierarchy and not investigated because they were unaware of the necessity to do so. The system has failed the injured party because no one died at the scene and the report gets filed. If a death had occurred in the hospital the Police would have been informed through the corner and the coroner's police officer.
There must be hundreds, if not many thousands, of these serious injury cases slipping through this gap every year. Are you one of them?
Every Police accident report is admissible in evidence under the Civil Court Procedure Rules. Police Officers rarely give evidence in civil evidence cases.
The Police report gives an opinion as to how the accident happened so the lawyers are aware of who the police officer reporting the incident thought was at fault. The police officer's opinion could either be very helpful or very unhelpful to ones case. However the officer may be exceedingly junior and inexperienced and may miss reasons for the accident especially if you are ill in hospital and unable to give your side of the events.
A thorough Police investigation, resulting in your favour, can highlight evidence for your solicitor to use and so make the investigation as to who is liable for the accident easier to prove.
Time is important because of the time the law allows for the prosecution of offences in a Magistrates Court. You only have six months to bring a summary only offence to the magistrates court ie those offences only triable by a magistrate.
A successful prosecution early in the civil case, which could go on for many years, is well worth it because it reverses the burden of proof at the civil trial. So you don't have to prove the other party was wrong, it is then the other party's task to prove that he was in the right. Liability therefore does not become the issue in the Civil Case.
However liability is only half the issue. The other half is quantum ie how much your case is worth. That is where the real battle for compensation is fought and insurance companies know it. They will use any lawful tool in the book to reduce the compensation you are truly entitled to.
What can you expect from a competent Police investigation?
Police will employ an even handed approach to the injured party and the person suspected of causing the injury. Just what you would expect from the British police service.
You will not necessarily see what the Police do in every case but a competent investigation would include the following but not necessarily all of the following, again depending on the seriousness of the incident.
A witness statement. Statements also should be taken from known witnesses. Witness enquiry boards at the scene of the accident may be the only visible sign of police activity.
An accident reconstruction could be done if an accident investigation unit was called to the scene of the original accident. This is something you should consider independently if you feel you are in the right.
Photographs of the scene. Photographs of your injuries if relevant and if necessary. Photographs of the car/vehicle.
Interview of the other driver.
Victim Support. This is more normal in a criminal case. However in serious personal injury accident cases you may expect to see a liaison officer.
Trial. This is a stressful time for most people. If there is evidence to convict, one would hope the defendant would plead guilty to the charge thus taking away some of the stress of you attending court.
The trial is where most Police involvement will end for the injured party.
If you have had very little police involvement and your injuries are sufficiently serious then you could benefit from the involvement of Mentor Experience's Personal Service to advise on what evidentially can be done to strengthen your civil case.
Remember EVIDENCE is what the legal system and insurance companies have to deal with not feelings.
Accident evidence, police, witnesses and procedures
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