solicitor question for car accident

[scorpious321]

I was working for my employer on PAYE and got hit by a car whilst stationary at a round about by a unisured driver and injured my spine this was in company time and driving the company. My employer had legal protection with a solicitor and it was offered to me at the time to make a claim against the the other driver for loss of earnings and injuries sustained thinking he was insured and later the solicitor came back and told me he was a untraced driver and told me in a letter he was taking it through the MIB motor insurance burea. Almost four years later he still has not got any where through them the MIB. As this was my company paying for this legal protection through his insurance I feel that this solicitor is really representing my employers own interest, to keep it away from his own insurance at the time of the accident. and I feel that I should of had three option to this claim. One employers liability insurance. Two company van insurance Three MIB last resort I have never been offered any medical assistance what so ever by MIB or my employer. and now this solicitor wants to quickly settle this claim for peanuts and I feel he was not representing me at all. All he keeps saying well we are dealing with the MOTOR INSURANCE BUREA. and my answer was to him ********. when if this tacken through my Employer the out come might of been different,eg medical help etc My question is could this of gone through my employers liability or company van insurance ?because if so he never offered me that option at all.

[Buenchico]

(2-part post):

Your employer's liability insurance won't help. It's there to protect your employer (and to ensure that there's enough money to pay you) if you were able to sue the employer for an injury which came about through the employer's negligence. e.g. if you'd have been injured because the company had failed to properly maintain the vehicle, you'd have been able to make a claim. However, the employer wasn't to blame for your injuries, so you can't claim against the employer (or their liability policy).

The van insurance won't help you either. Just like your own car insurance, it doesn't pay you a penny if you're injured in an accident. (It only covers injuries to the other party, if you were responsible for the accident, together with damage to their vehicle and, if comprehensive, damage to the van). When you're injured in an accident which is the fault of the other driver, it's their insurance which pays compensation. The only thing that your (or your employer's) insurers can do is to act as your agent in getting that compensation from the other insurance company. Where there is no other insurance company (because the other driver was uninsured) they'll try to get the money from the MIB's fund. (i.e. the most that your employer's insurers could do would be to take over the negotiations with the MIB).

[Buenchico]

At the end of the day, whether you deal with themself or through a third party (such as the solicitor or, possibly, the employer's vehicle insurers), you've got to sort it out with MIB. They're the only ones who've got the money to pay you some form of compensation. However, the MIB scheme is a voluntary effort by the insurance companies to make sure that you get at least some form of payout when you're injured by an uninsured driver. The funds are limited (because they come from an additional charge on the policies of law-abiding drivers) and the payouts are often far less than you'd have got if the other driver had been insured.

If you've suffered any level of disability through an injury while at work, you should be claiming IIDB:
http://www.direct.gov.uk/en/DisabledPeople/Fin ancialSupport/OtherBenefitsAndSupport/DG_10020 628
That's totally separate to any payout from the MIB and, while it's only a small weekly amount, it would seem foolish not to claim.

Chris

[factor-fiction]

Great answer Chris. Uninsured drivers are a major problem, especially when they cause serious injury . The MIB steps in. Every insured driver has to pay (via their insurer) towards the cost of the MIB but the money doesn't go far. It's a shame but the MIB aren't a money rich business with lots of clout and resources.