Compensation claims
Damages and compensation for harm
We pursue damages and compensation for harm arising from road accidents, accidents at work, torts and medical malpractice.
Why it is worth instructing a law firm
We offer comprehensive legal services in pursuing all benefits due to persons injured in road accidents, accidents at work and other events causing personal injury.
Insurers often try to avoid liability by raising various arguments. They may claim that the injuries did not arise in the accident, pointing to the injured person's pre-existing conditions, or that the injured person contributed to increasing the loss, which reduces the benefit due.
We help analyse the case, gather the necessary documents and work out a favourable strategy, and we guide the injured person through the whole process. With professional support there is a better chance of obtaining full compensation for the harm suffered and of closing the claims process quickly.
Damages and compensation may be sought from the person who caused the loss or from the insurer with which that person holds third-party liability cover. Where the identity of the holder or driver of the vehicle has not been established, claims may be brought against the Insurance Guarantee Fund.
Types of benefit
Damages
Material losses - treatment, rehabilitation, travel, damaged property, lost income.
Compensation for harm
Redress for non-material harm: pain, suffering, stress, loss of enjoyment of life.
Annuity
A periodic benefit where earning capacity is lost or needs have increased.
Benefits for the family
Costs of treatment and the funeral, maintenance annuity, damages and compensation.
How we work together
Free consultation
We discuss how the event unfolded and the consequences it caused.
Documentation
We help gather medical records and evidence of the size of the loss.
Filing the claim
We put the claim to the insurer or the person liable and run the claims process.
Court proceedings
Where the insurer's offer is too low, we pursue the claim before the court.
Example cases
What can be claimed after an accident
The catalogue of benefits is wider than an insurer usually offers. Below we explain what each of them covers.
Damages
Following a road accident, or another event that causes loss, the injured person may claim damages for the material losses suffered - such as the costs of treatment and rehabilitation, travel to medical facilities, and the cost of care where the injured person cannot function independently.
- Costs of treatment and rehabilitation
- Travel to doctors and medical facilities
- Costs of caring for the injured person
- Damaged property: vehicle, clothing, personal effects
- Income lost through inability to work
Compensation for harm
Compensation for harm is a form of financial redress awarded to an injured person for non-material harm such as pain, suffering, stress or loss of enjoyment of life. Unlike damages, which cover material losses, compensation for harm is intended to alleviate the psychological and emotional consequences of the accident.
Under Article 445 of the Civil Code, in the case of bodily injury or health disorder the court may award the injured person an appropriate sum as compensation for the harm suffered.
- The degree of injury: disability, disfigurement, restricted movement
- The persistence and intensity of suffering, including painful procedures and operations
- The length of treatment
- Restrictions in everyday activities, work and sport
Annuity
Where the injured person has lost, wholly or in part, the capacity to earn a living, or where their needs have increased or their prospects for the future have diminished, they may claim an appropriate annuity from the person liable to repair the loss. The annuity provided for in Article 444 § 2 of the Civil Code is compensatory in character, and the money is a surrogate for the non-monetary performance the debtor owes.
The annuity is prospective - its purpose is to compensate future and continuing loss. Compensation for material loss arising in the period before the annuity is awarded is made solely by paying damages. A condition for the right to an annuity is that the consequences of the bodily injury or health disorder are permanent, which does not mean irreversible.
Benefits for the family of the deceased
These benefits are governed by Article 446 of the Civil Code and cover both damages and compensation for harm. Where bodily injury or a health disorder has resulted in the death of the injured person, the party liable to repair the loss must reimburse the costs of treatment and of the funeral to whoever bore them.
The provision also protects those entitled to maintenance. A person towards whom the deceased owed a statutory maintenance obligation may claim from the party liable an annuity calculated according to the needs of the injured party and the earning and financial capacity of the deceased, for the probable duration of the maintenance obligation. The same annuity may be claimed by other close persons to whom the deceased voluntarily and regularly provided means of support, where the circumstances show that the principles of community life so require.
The court may in addition award the closest members of the deceased's family appropriate damages where their situation in life has deteriorated significantly as a result of the death. The catalogue of benefits also includes compensation for harm, that is redress for non-material loss, which the court may award to the family of the deceased.
Has the insurer offered too little?
The first consultation is free. We will check whether the sum awarded matches the size of the loss.