MISTAKES COMMONLY MADE BY POTENTIAL CLAIMANTS

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1 MADE BY POTENTIAL At Sinnamon Lawyers, we understand the complex legal and insurance issues that underpin personal injury and damages claims. If you have been injured in a motor vehicle accident or workplace accident, it is important that you act quickly, as strict time limits are imposed on personal injury claims. If you do not act within the required time limits, your right to claim damages will be lost. Sinnamon Lawyers was established by Robert Sinnamon, the Principal of the firm in 1995 at which time he commenced practice together with his father Tony Sinnamon who had established A G Sinnamon Lawyers in Prior to this Robert had worked in the Brisbane City Litigation Department of an International Law Firm and immediately prior to the establishment of Sinnamon Lawyers with a Melbourne firm that practiced exclusively in the area of Motor Vehicle Accidents and compensation recovery. We now have offices in the Brisbane CBD, Upper Mt Gravatt, Browns Plains, Cleveland and Toowong. We also have offices on the Gold Coast, the Sunshine Coast, and in Gladstone and Rockhampton so there is an office near you. We will even come to you if you are struggling with mobility and can t get to one of our offices. When we say we act no win no fee we mean exactly that. If you don t win then you pay us nothing. As your personal injury lawyer we will not only act no win no fee in respect of our legal costs but we will also pay all of the outlays involved and there is nothing for you to pay if the claim is unsuccessful. We have acted in thousands of personal injury claims and have been successful in more than 99 % of those cases.

2 1. Failing to get prompt medical attention Insurers often look critically on claims in which the injured person has not promptly sought medical attention. We advise our clients to seek the assistance of a properly qualified medical practitioner as soon as possible following an accident and to follow any course of treatment recommended. 2. Not advising Doctors of all injuries suffered. An argument can develop down the track in relation to a claim as to whether a person suffered a specific injury following an accident if that injury was not reported to the Doctor early after the accident. If you ve been to a Doctor and have not reported an injury which becomes apparent later then we recommend that you should see that or another doctor again so that the injury is recorded. 3. Not receiving treatment paid for by the Insurer available through the CTP system. The Motor Accident Insurance Act provides that Insurers are obliged to pay to claimants injured after an accident reasonable rehabilitation expenses including the cost of Physiotherapy. It is not necessary for claimants to shoulder the cost of rehabilitation expenses when they can be met upfront by the Insurer. 2 lorem ipsum :: [Date]

3 4. Missing the opportunity to claim WorkCover Benefits in addition to CTP Benefits. If you have been travelling to or from work and have been involved in a Motor Vehicle Accident you would not only have rights under the Compulsory Third Party System but you may also be able to claim WorkCover Benefits. WorkCover will pay statutory benefits including costs of any treatment and lost wages. The Compulsory Third Party Insurer will ultimately reimburse WorkCover for the amount it has paid in the event that a claim is successful. 5. Not realising that a claim can be made by a passenger in an at fault vehicle or when the other vehicle cannot be identified. Any passenger in a vehicle can make a claim for compensation as the passenger is not at fault. This is the case even if the vehicle was driven by a friend or relative. There is also provision under the Compulsory Third Party System for a claim to be made against the Nominal Defendant in the event that an unidentified vehicle is involved and cannot ultimately be identified. A claim involving an unidentified vehicle must be made within 9 months of the date of the accident or it cannot proceed.

4 6. Failing to meet strict time limits that apply to Personal Injury Claims. Generally claims must be made within 9 months of the date of the accident failing which a reasonable excuse must be provided. All claims are statute barred if a period of 3 years elapses after an accident and a claim is not made. We again refer to the Limitation Period applying to unidentified vehicles which is 9 months. 7. Not keeping records of Care and Assistance provided by family members or friends whose time may be claimable. In certain circumstances the care provided by friends or relatives can be claimed on an hourly basis. It is not uncommon for care and assistance to be provided by friends and relatives immediately following an accident and this can be ongoing. If we can prove that the care and assistance is needed for a period of 6 months or more for more than 6 hours per week then the time can be recovered, however it is best to keep records of that time as evidence of the care provided. 8. Not keeping proper records of extra staff employed by self employed injured claimants after an accident. If you have a business and need to employ other people following an accident to work in the business then you can claim the wages paid to those extra staff. It is important that you keep records of the extra wages paid.

5 9. Forgetting to notify the Police after an accident. The Motor Accident Insurance Act requires that the Police be notified following an accident in the event that a claim is made. You should not assume that the Police have made a report because they attended the scene of the accident. Sometimes the Police don t bother making a report and it is best to attend the Police Station to make a report. If however this hasn t been done we can then complete a form at our office which can be forwarded to the Police department and this will satisfy the requirements of the Act. 10. Not appreciating the significant compensation benefits available including pain and suffering, medical expenses and income loss which we can recover for our clients on a no win no fee basis. Many Claimants don t appreciate that they have a significant claim. A Whiplash injury for instance can attract very significant compensation especially in relation to economic loss. Whiplash injuries can be debilitating to the sufferers and can impact significantly on a person s ability to perform their job. In all cases there is a claim for pain and suffering and medical expenses both past and future. You should feel free to contact us to discuss your likely entitlement to compensation as we have experience in providing advice to injured claimants concerning all of the damages that they might recover.