CK@Chris Knott Insurance Posted October 20, 2014 Share Posted October 20, 2014 Every driver needs to know this... My MD was telling me about a minor car accident he had recently. Ever since, he's been plagued by calls from firms asking him if he was injured. When he says “No†he's asked if he's sure he wasn’t injured. Again he says “No, I wasn’t injuredâ€. So he's then asked “Was there anyone else in the vehicle who might have been injuredâ€. He has two objections to this. Firstly, he objects to being encouraged to make a claim for injury that clearly isn’t warranted and, secondly, he wonders from where they got his personal details. Recent law changes arising from something called The Jackson Review aimed to stamp out such ‘ambulance-chasing’ practices, particularly by banning the referral fees offered by law firms. NO WIN NO FEE These sort of 'No Win No Fee' arrangements mean that if you don’t win your case there is no charge levied by the law firm/accident management firm for their services. It has always been worth a punt even if there wasn’t much chance of success. However, many won’t appreciate the sting in the tail - the flip-side of the coin where if you win, a fee most likely will be charged and it could be as much as 25% of your compensation award. This kind of approach is known as After The Event (ATE) cover, where assistance is offered or solicited following an accident/injury. Since the reforms, if there’s not much chance of success these providers tend to back away quite quickly rather than fight your corner and get you what you might deserve, leaving you on your own. LEGAL EXPENSES COVER A better alternative to 'No Win No Fee' is something known as Before The Event (BTE) cover. Usually called Legal Expenses cover, this is arranged in advance (to run alongside your motor insurance). Chris Knott Insurance offers this protection which is designed to pay your legal costs & expenses to pursue a claim. We have taken care to additionally ensure that our Legal Expenses offering guarantees that there will be NO deduction at all for costs from any compensation award. I thought it might be useful to see these two very different approaches operating in stark monetary terms. So here goes… If using a 'No Win No Fee' type firm (ATE) an injury award of just £8,000 could see a fee of 25% (£2,000) being payable for success, reducing your payout to £6,000. In comparison, that £2,000 would buy you 80 years’ worth of BTE cover with Chris Knott Insurance (charged at £25 for the year) and you’d get to keep 100% of your award. For the best service and to guarantee you keep 100% of your injury award it really does make sound financial sense to arrange cover in advance, just in case. To add (BTE) Legal Expenses Cover to your Chris Knott policy at the next renewal please call 0800 917 2274 or 01424 200477. PLEASE BE ASSURED TOO THAT WE NEVER PASS ON ANY DETAILS TO ANYONE FOR THE PURPOSES OF PESTERING CUSTOMERS TO CLAIM FOR INJURIES. We only share data as necessary to directly service your cover and to process any claims you instigate. best, Nick PS. Don't forget to call us if your car insurance is due in the coming months as we have prizes available until the end of the year. Details of this month's prize draw have previously been posted to the site. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
codders Posted October 20, 2014 Share Posted October 20, 2014 I had a very minor (3 mph) accident 4 years ago. They are still calling me now but due to the abuse I gave them they are now automated calls. "£3600 has been held back by your insurance company for the accident on blah blah blah" "No one was injured. The accident was just a tap at 3mph" "£3600 has been put aside for any injuries though and if you don't claim it will go straight back to the insurance company ..." "Are you suggesting I commit fraud?" <dialtone> Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ricey Posted October 20, 2014 Share Posted October 20, 2014 I get calls telling me I've been in an accident! WTF! I think I'd know about it! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CK@Chris Knott Insurance Posted October 20, 2014 Author Share Posted October 20, 2014 They're certainly persistent. The best way to get rid of them I've found is to tell them the claim has been settled and you've been paid in full. They then won't bother passing your details on when they sell their list to the next firm. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WhackyWill Posted October 20, 2014 Share Posted October 20, 2014 I had a woman back into the X5 in a car park a few years ago and cracked the front bumper and did a headlight cost £850. I for months got call's from claims companies, asking if I was injured, when I said it was parked they then said "are you sure you weren't in the car"..?? FFS. :angry: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ricey Posted October 20, 2014 Share Posted October 20, 2014 They're certainly persistent. The best way to get rid of them I've found is to tell them the claim has been settled and you've been paid in full. They then won't bother passing your details on when they sell their list to the next firm. I find the best way is to put them on speaker phone and make a variety of animal/sex noises 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coldel Posted October 20, 2014 Share Posted October 20, 2014 Mine was the same, had a company car that got hit whilst parked overnight whilst I was safely tucked up in bed - still had companies ringing me suggesting I go for a whiplash claim - yes your honour I was sat asleep in my car at 4am when a passing car grazed the bumper... 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Will370z Posted October 20, 2014 Share Posted October 20, 2014 This infuriates me. My colleague has received regular calls over the past 2 years asking him to claim on an accident years ago. He has told them to politely bogg off but now ignores them. One chap said "i will keep on calling until you make a claim".... Its scandalous 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CK@Chris Knott Insurance Posted October 20, 2014 Author Share Posted October 20, 2014 That's what they should stamp out - soliciting claims, not just the referral fees. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gball1973 Posted October 20, 2014 Share Posted October 20, 2014 A couple of years ago, while on way to Lakez, Vicky and I had a bump in Edinburgh with a biker who (in basically stationary traffic) decided to "filter" through via the nearside of an artic. Fast forward to two years later, our (now ex)insurer told us they were going settle 50/50. Their reason being that, they had passed the files to an English law firm, but due the accident happening in Scotland they basically couldn't be bothered to find a Scottish law firm. We then asked why we had been paying for legal (BTE) cover if they had no intention of providing said cover in Scotland, and shouldn't we be entitled to a refund (full or part) of costs of said cover? Still waiting for a response and/or refund of legal cover. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
docwra Posted October 20, 2014 Share Posted October 20, 2014 (edited) They're certainly persistent. The best way to get rid of them I've found is to tell them the claim has been settled and you've been paid in full. They then won't bother passing your details on when they sell their list to the next firm. I find the best way is to put them on speaker phone and make a variety of animal/sex noises My personal technique is to tell them that they are robbing scumbags whose parasitic actions of tempting people to commit fraud are the reason my insurance goes up every year and then ask them how they can sleep at night Edited October 20, 2014 by docwra 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
codders Posted October 20, 2014 Share Posted October 20, 2014 My personal technique is to tell them that they are robbing scumbags whose parasitic actions of tempting people to commit fraud are the reason my insurance goes up every year and then ask them how they can sleep at night Done that. I get automated calls now. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coldel Posted October 20, 2014 Share Posted October 20, 2014 Not that I would buy this, but would the £25 fee per year be kept constant for 80 years? Just that £25 in 80 years time is likely to worth about 10p now which represents a good deal over time - as long as Sky guarantees that it doesn't rise with inflation Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CK@Chris Knott Insurance Posted October 20, 2014 Author Share Posted October 20, 2014 80 years at current rates if you're being picky 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wayne370Z Posted October 21, 2014 Share Posted October 21, 2014 Don`t "No win, No fee" adverts usually advertise the fact that you get to keep 100% of the compensation awarded ? And that`s because legal costs are recoverable separately from any compensation from the guilty party insurers ? And if that is correct why would there be any difference between BTF and ATF cases ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CK@Chris Knott Insurance Posted October 23, 2014 Author Share Posted October 23, 2014 That's the point of the reforms - the success fee is no longer recoverable from the defendant. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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