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What Is The Personal Injury Claims Process In Scotland?

By Stephen Hudson. Last Updated 3rd November 2023. The aim of this guide is to provide information on claiming compensation in Scotland. We look at victim compensation Scotland, how the law differs from that in England, and the sort of evidence that would be required when making personal injury claims in Scotland. We will guide you through the personal injury claims process in Scotland. 

Personal Injury Claims Process In Scotland

The personal injury claims process in Scotland

If you were involved in an accident in Scotland that left you suffering from an injury, whether minor or something a lot more severe, providing the incident was caused by the negligence of a third party, you could be entitled to file a personal injury claim to seek compensation for the damages and losses you suffered. To find out more about the personal injury claims process in Scotland, please read on, or if you feel you are ready to pursue your claim, please contact us on 0800 073 8804.

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Making A Personal Injury Claim In Scotland – What Are The Eligibility Criteria?

For personal injury claims in Scotland to be valid, they must meet the following eligibility criteria:

  1. A relevant third party owed you a duty of care.
  2. This duty of care was breached.
  3. Due to this, you suffered an injury.

There are various daily situations in which you are owed a duty of care. These include:

  • At work – The duty of care is set out by the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 (HASAWA). It states that employers must take steps that are reasonable and practicable to ensure the health, safety and welfare of their employees while they are at work.
  • While in public spaces – In a public place, the duty of care is set by the Occupiers’ Liability Act (Scotland) 1960.  Per their duty of care, the party in control of the public space must take steps to ensure your reasonable safety while you are visiting it for its intended purposes.
  • On the roads – Road users need to adhere to the Road Traffic Act 1988 and the Highway Code. Per their duty of care, they must navigate the roads in a way that prevents injury and damage to themselves and others.

If you have any questions about accident claims for Scotland, please get in touch with an advisor from our team.

Collecting Evidence For An Accident Or Injury Claim In Scotland

As with claims filed in England, you would need to produce relevant evidence to support an accident or injury claim in Scotland. This would entail gathering the following proof as soon as you can:

  • Photos of where the accident happened
  • Photos of the injuries and damage you suffered, preferably prior to having received treatment
  • CCTV footage, if available
  • Medical notes detailing the injuries you suffered. This should include minor symptoms you may be experiencing because you may find that a minor injury turns into something a lot more serious further down the line
  • The incident report as detailed in an Accident Book if you sustained your injuries in the workplace
  • Police report if you were involved in a road traffic accident or you were assaulted
  • Witness statements
  • The contact details of all witnesses

If you are unable to gather the required evidence because your injuries prevent you from doing so, you can ask a family member or trusted friend to do this on your behalf as soon as they are able to. The more evidence you can produce to support a personal injury claim in Scotland, the stronger your case would be and the more chance there would be of a solicitor agreeing to represent you on a No Win No Fee basis.

Pre-Action Protocols For Scottish Personal Injury Claims

What are the pre-action protocols for the personal injury claims process in Scotland? Some personal injury claims in Scotland now require that parties respect compulsory pre-action protocols and failure to do so could result in sanctions being lodged against them by the courts.

Compulsory pre-action protocols in Scotland are as follows:

  • They apply to accidents that happened on or after 28th November 2016
  • They are only mandatory for claims that are valued at £25,000 or under
  • Some claims are excluded, such as claims involving industrial disease
  • The terms regarding compulsory pre-action protocols are incorporated in the rules as set out by the Sheriff Court
  • Time-frames must be strictly respected
  • Courts in Scotland are charged with making sure protocols are effective
  • Pre-medical evidence offers to settle a personal injury claim in Scotland are discouraged
  • Non-binding admissions concerning liability are not allowed

As previously touched upon, failure to respect compulsory pre-action protocols associated with personal injury claims in Scotland would result in sanctions being levied against the parties involved. This could include the following:

  • Failure to comply with the terms of the protocol, or
  • The claimant accepts an offer where the same amount was provided under the protocol, and where the offer has been lodged through a court prior to defences being submitted. An example being within 4 weeks of proceedings having been served

A Scottish court can apply the following sanctions if compulsory pre-action protocols Scotland are not respected:

  • Stay any action so that a party is able to comply with the protocol
  • Apply a costs award against the party
  • Modify the costs that may be awarded
  • Amend any interest that may be payable on amounts awarded in damages

Time Limits For Scottish Personal Injury Claims

There are strict time limits associated with personal injury claims in Scotland as laid out in the Prescription and Limitation (Scotland) Act. As such, you have 3 years from the date you were injured or were made aware of any injuries sustained in an accident in Scotland due to the negligence or error of a third party.

  • If you are claiming personal injury compensation in Scotland on behalf of a loved one or member of your family who died, you have 3 years from the date they died.
  • The 3-year time limit for personal injury claims involving children in Scotland does not begin until a child turns sixteen years of age.
  • There is no time limit if a claim for compensation involves an injured party who lacks the mental capacity to file a personal injury claim in Scotland.
  • There is no time limit for personal injury claims in Scotland that involve child abuse and adults who were subjected to abuse as children.

It is worth noting that some personal injury claims in Scotland may have shorter time limits associated with them and as such, it is far wiser to seek legal advice as soon as you can to prevent a case from being statute-barred.

Criminal Injury Claims In Scotland

If you were the blameless victim of a crime of violence in Scotland, you may be able to claim compensation for the injuries and damage you suffered through the Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority (CICA). However, because claiming through the CICA Scheme can be complex, it is far better to seek legal advice before submitting your application to the authority. This is where a member of our specialist team can be of assistance.

Your claim for compensation through the Scheme must meet the strict criteria for the authority to consider it. There is also a strict two-year time limit that applies and this must be respected for the authority to accept an application. There must have been a report made to the police which must be done as soon after the crime was committed against you. Without a CRN – Crime Reference Number, the authority would not consider a claim for compensation through the Scheme.

You must also have been seen to be fully cooperative with the police and the CICA throughout the process and you must not have any unspent convictions against you which includes drink driving offences that are not ‘spent’.

Personal Injury Claims Scotland Calculator

All personal injury claims in Scotland are valued on their own merits. As such, it is hard to put an exact figure on the amount of personal injury compensation you may be awarded, whether in an out of court settlement or through a Sheriff court. There are many online compensation calculators which could provide you with a general idea of the amount you may receive in a successful claim filed in Scotland against a party responsible.

If you would like a general idea of how much you may receive in compensation, please refer to the table below. The amounts provided are based on the Judicial College Guidelines for compensation awarded in England.

Edit
Injury Award Notes
Ankle – very severe £50,060 to £69,700 Serious fracture with significant soft tissue damage. May be deformities or in some cases, below-knee amputation.
Ankle – severe £31,310 to £50,060 Injuries that fall within this bracket will require an extensive period of treatment and/or lengthy period in plaster or where pins and plates have been inserted. There will also be significant residual disability.
Elbow – severely disabling (a) £39,170 to £54,830 An injury regarded as severely disabling.
Elbow – less severe injuries (b) £15,650 to £32,010 This bracket applies to elbow injuries that cause impairment of function but do not involve major surgery or significant disability.
Hand – serious (e) £29,000 to £61,910 This bracket can apply to serious hand injuries such as those involving fingers that have been amputated but later rejoined. Injuries that have reduced the hand to about 50 per cent capacity can also be covered.
Hand – less serious (g) £14,450 to £29,000 A severe crush injury has caused significantly impaired function.
Knee – severe (iii) £26,190 to £43,460 Injuries covered by this bracket may be causing continuing symptoms by way of pain and discomfort and limitation of movement. Or the injury may lead to instability or deformity with the risk that degenerative changes and the need for remedial surgery may occur in the long term future.
Knee – moderate (i) £14,840 to £26,190 This bracket includes injuries that caused a mild future disability or those that accelerate symptoms from a pre-existing condition. It includes dislocation and tears to the cartilage or meniscus.

For a more accurate idea of how much personal injury compensation you may be awarded, we recommend you speak to one of our advisers who would advise you how much you may be able to claim in general damages and how much you could include in the way of special damages. General damages are intended to compensate claimants for the pain, suffering as well as the loss of amenity they suffered.

Special damages, however, are awarded as a way to compensate claimants for the money they had to pay out as a direct result of the injuries they suffered through no fault of their own.

Special Damages Awarded For Accident And Injury Claims

As previously mentioned, special damages are awarded in successful personal injury claims in Scotland for all out of pocket expenses a claimant had to pay out as a direct result of having been injured in an accident. Special damages that may be claimed could include the following, provided there is proof of expenditure:

  • Medical expenses incurred that were not covered by the National Health Service
  • Travel costs associated with injuries sustained
  • The cost of care, should this be necessary
  • Loss of income and future income
  • Home and vehicle adaptations, if these are necessary
  • Other expenses linked to the injuries sustained

The No Win No Fee Personal Injury Claims Process In Scotland

If you have valid grounds to claim for an accident at work in Scotland, then we recommend working with a solicitor who can support your case. If you contact our team of advisors, then they can review your potential claim, and connect you with a No Win No Fee solicitor.

No Win No Fee solicitors can support an accident claim in Scotland under different types of agreements. This includes a Speculative Fee Agreement or Damages Based Agreement that could be offered under the Civil Litigation (Expenses and Group Proceedings) (Scotland) Act 2018.

Such agreements usually provide certain benefits. One of these is that you won’t have to pay any upfront fees for your solicitor’s services, nor will you have to pay for their services if your claim fails.

If your claim succeeds, your solicitor will usually take a small percentage from the compensation payout awarded to you. This is known as a success fee. The percentage they can take is capped by the law.

For more advice on claiming accident at work compensation in Scotland, contact us for free today. You can reach our team by:

Essential References

If you need to find out more about compulsory pre-action protocols in Scotland, please follow the link provided below:

Written by Wood

Edited by Billing

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    • Patrick Mallon legal expert author

      Patrick is a Grade A solicitor having qualified in 2005. He's an an expert in accident at work and public liability claims and is currently our head of the EL/PL department. Get in touch today for free to see how we can help you.

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