If you have suffered a fatal injury in your family, you can make a claim with a solicitor, or if the death was a result of a crime, the Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority.
Fatal accidents are understandably incredibly devastating for the family left behind following the incident. Whilst the family are grieving making a compensation claim may be the last thing crossing their mind, however in some circumstances there is no choice. For example, the family may just not have the funds to cover the funeral costs, meaning a claim is necessary for them to be able to move on and say an official goodbye. Perhaps an accident at work has left a wife and children behind, and she has no way to fully support her family without her partner, again there is help out there for you if you are in this situation.
Making A Claim
If you are making a claim through a legal firm, make sure you instruct a solicitor who has had experience in dealing in fatal injury claims, you will want an individual who has an empathetic attitude and an in depth knowledge of the legal terrain to help you out. They will be able to help you with:
– Fatal accident at work
– Car accident
– Medical negligence
And more, each case is completely different so discuss yours with a legal professional today to find out whether you will have the grounds to make a successful claim.
To make a claim via the Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority (CICA) you do not need to have legal representation. They aim to fully support the innocent victims of crimes, and free advice is readily available from Victim Support and also from the Citizen’s Advice Bureau. In fact it is actively advised to not take out paid legal representation if you are claiming via CICA as they will not be able to cover the legal costs in the compensation amount.
Firstly you will need to download and complete the fatal injuries compensation form from the CICA website, a branch of the government’s ‘Justice’ website. It is easiest to make a claim purely for funeral expenses with CICA; you may not be able to make a claim through them if you are claiming for more than funeral expenses. You are able to claim for personal injury for yourself at the same time, via the same form, but not for the deceased. Full details are available on their website. To make a full compensation claim it may be easiest to instruct a solicitor. It is entirely your decision which route you take.
Contact Us
If you wish to find out more about making a fatal accident claim, contact Freeman Harris today. We offer a completely free enquiry service. Call 020 7231 7150 or fill in an online enquiry.
