7th May 21 | Personal Injury Law

Time Limits & Personal Injury Claims

How long do I have to make a Personal Injury Claim?

If you have been injured through no fault of your own, you may consider making a personal injury claim. Claims can vary from Road Traffic Accidents, to Slips Trips or falls, or accidents in the workplace as well as others. If you can prove that the accident occurred because of somebody else’s negligence, then you are likely to be able to claim for personal injury.

There are strict time limits for making a personal injury claim, and there is little to nothing you can do if you fail to act in time.

As a general rule, if you are over 18 years old, you have three years from the date of the accident to begin a personal injury claim.

What about children?

If you are under 18 years of age, you have three years from the date of your 18^th birthday to begin a personal injury claim. This is designed so once legally an adult; the individual can take matters into their own hands to pursue a personal injury claim.

For people under the age of 18, any funds that are compensated will be held in the court’s office funds until their 18^th birthday.

How long do I have to make a claim if I have been injured due to crime?

If you have been injured due to a crime, you have only 2 years to claim from the criminal injuries compensation agency.

The CICA have been known to be very strict and vigilant with this deadline and it is highly unlikely your claim will be accepted post the given date.

How long do I have to claim for a clinical negligence or industrial disease case?

Medical negligence and industrial disease claims can be complex in nature, and time limits to bring an action can vary depending on the circumstances of the case. As such, it is highly recommended that you do not delay seeking legal advice on claiming compensation, as doing so may jeopardise your chance of success.

For adults who are mentally capable, the time limit is three years from the ‘date of knowledge’ or when they ought to have reasonably known about the negligence. This could be the date the negligence occurred (if it was realised immediately), or the date you first observed symptoms, suffered a related illness, or malpractices were discovered.

What happens if the victim dies?

Where the victim of negligence has died, the family of the deceased have three years from the date of the death to bring forward a claim on behalf of the victim’s estate. If an instance of negligence is undetected until the victim dies, the three-year limitation applies from the date of the death or discovery.

Additionally, if a claimant is in the process of a claim when they die, the Executor of the will, or person who has a grant of probate will again have three years from the date of death to continue with their claim, as it may need to be completely reviewed or started again.

Personal Injury Claims- Free initial advice

It is important that you seek legal advice as soon as possible. More often than not, other factors affect when this time limit will begin, and if you don’t notify the court within the correct time frame then you may be unable to make a claim.