Many people here in this country are often injured through no fault of their own and sometimes it can be the fault of others even though they may not have intended to do so. The same can be said for when people go abroad it doesn’t mean because a person is in another country that they may not have an accident. Often when people are unfortunate enough to have an accident here in the United Kingdom and the accident has caused them harm or injury which is due to the fault of another person they seek compensation. To make a claim people tend to visit a claims solicitor to find out if they have the right to make a claim. If the solicitor agrees that the injury caused was due to the fault of another person or even company they may offer to take up the case on a No Win No Fee arrangement.
The actual rule also applies if a person is abroad also. The last thing many people travelling think about is being injured on holiday. Taking out holiday insurance is more a safety net than the thought of actually coming to any harm while being abroad. However accidents can occur anywhere and with some countries, health and safety rules may be more relaxed than here in the United Kingdom which may result in more accidents happening abroad. Many people while on holiday undertake activities that they probably wouldn’t participate in this country including water sports and if for any reason the equipment used was not a 100 per cent safe an injury may occur which would be the fault of the company supplying the water sports. Often the operators have lax attitudes or take risks to make the activity more exciting. This is when a claim for compensation can be made if a person is injured during such an activity through a No Win No Fee claims website. The claim most likely can be made back in the United Kingdom under a conditional fee agreement, No Win No Fee.
The Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents
According to The Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents, RoSPA give or take there are about 65 million trips abroad each year with many choosing Spain to visit making it the top European destination to visit. A small percentage of these trips are watersport based, people going abroad who want to mainly focus on activities that are focused on watersports. Although the percentage taking part is not huge accidents that occur from these activities could be largely decreased if operators running the sports took safety matters more seriously. At present there is no European-wide legislation that is put in place to manage and control watersports. Individual countries have their own rules and management put in place but rules and regulation are very often not completely followed through. This can be said not just for watersport companies but is the general consensus, in the UK health and safety regulations are constringent and are held in the highest position especially when it comes to driving safely, health and safety in the work place, sporting activities especially ones that children take part in and in the medical world, in other countries this is not always the case. If you are injured on holiday which is due to the negligence of another or a company then claiming compensation for this can be done once back in the UK under a No Win No Fee conditional arrangement.
No Win No Fee – Conditional Fee Agreement
Although the way No Win No Fee arrangements have changed since April 2014 they are still present but may come under the new term of Conditional Fee Agreements. Before the change took place No Win No Fee meant that if a solicitor took on case for compensation the client would not be at any financial risk atall as if the case was lost the client would not be responsible for the solicitor or court fees and if the case was won the client would receive all the compensation awarded and the legal fees would come from the other party who was redeemed responsible. Now that the changes have took place changes nothing in terms of losing the case but if the case is won part of the legal fees are paid by the client themselves out of their compensation. According to Justice a government website there are two types of No Win No Fee arrangements; a conditional fee agreement (CFA) and damages based agreement (DBA). Both such agreements work on the old rules if the case is lost the legal fees are not paid but if the case is won the normal legal fee plus a success fee is required or a percentage of the compensation is taken.
Why Accidents that may happen on holiday or abroad;
- Road Traffic Accident (RTA’s) if an accident on the road happened while abroad whether you were a pedestrian, driver or passenger regardless whether it was a motorbike, car, bus etc and it was not your fault but the fault of another a claim for compensation can be made under a conditional No Win No Fee agreement.
- Accidents while on an excursion can easily happen if the right instructions or safety equipment are not given which inturn would be the fault of the company and claiming using a No Win No Fee agreement can be possible
- Watersports as mentioned above can be dangerous depending on the operator. It is always essential to research into different companies to ensure health and safety is priority and that you understand the risks involved. An accident that occurs during such an activity when health and safety is not followed can result in a claim being made.
- Medical treatment in other countries may be of a different standard than to here in the United Kingdom, if you feel that the treatment you received in another country was below the standard you expected or it caused further injury a claim for medical negligence maybe possible under a No Win No Fee agreement.
- Accidents while on the holiday complex are also possible when health and safety rules and regulations are not properly followed which may result is an injury and claiming compensation may also be possible.