Safe Speed Forums

I can’t remember if or where I’ve said this but my sister came off the back of a motorbike about 18 months ago and broke her wrist. It was a silly thing the way it happened but, in short, the motorbike went into the back of a car at about as slow as it’s possible to travel but he lost the balance and they fell to the side.

Ordinarily you would just pick yourself up from this type of bump because it’s no different to just falling off your feet. But she fell and landed with her full weight on one hand fracturing her wrist.

About 18 months on, and after much pain, pins and physiotherapy, it has now been settled and she told me yesterday that she received a cheque for £20K. She doesn’t have, and probably never will, full mobility back in her hand and the scars are unsightly as well as the bones showing a degree of deformity. (Less bothersome to men than women I think, if that's not a sexist remark these days). It’s also quite likely she may get arthritis there later in life because of this, as I’m sure we all know.

Do people think this claim culture is fair and if so how much is too much or not enough? Let’s be honest, it’s what’s putting all our insurance premiums up.

_________________
The views expressed in this post are personal opinions and do not necessarily represent the views of Safe Speed.
You will be branded a threat to society by going over a speed limit where it is safe to do so, and suffer the consequences of your actions in a way criminals do not, more so than someone who is a real threat to our society.

Tony.

It is only because people are insured that these claims happen.
Whose fault was the accident? From the description it sounds like the driver of the motorcycle. I doubt if she would ride pillion with a stranger so it is some-one she knows, a friend or a boy-friend, who is not massively wealthy. Now, if there had been no insurance in place - say an accident while they were dancing - would she have sued him for 20K? I doubt if she would have found a lawyer to pursue the case. And if she had would she have any realistic expectations of getting the money?

_________________
When I see an adult on a bicycle, I do not despair for the future of the human race. H.G. Wells
When I see a youth in a motor car I do d.c.brown

It's perfectly fair.
It is not a "claims-culture" either, it is using insurance the way it is supposed to be used. To obtain redress for an injury.
It is, after all, what the passenger liability that the driver paid, is for.
How many pay for "new for old" and use it to obtain new televisions by having and "accident" with the old one ?
Quite a few !
Loads in fact.
I had an insurance assessor around a month ago (disputed damage claim...my wing mirror is supposed to have damaged another wing mirror) as the guy said "not much chance....his is half a metre lower than yours")....and the story came out about another case. a stolen lotus and the drivers claim for 10K......only thing was the driver had obtained insurance for the car the same night it was supposed to have been stolen and damaged......claim denied. And the couple who had settled for 2.5K on a 10K claim for accident injury car....for the third time in a year.
So, was the girls claim good ?
She was injured and claimed for that injury.
No problem from me......
Compensation culture ?

_________________
The world runs on oil, period. No other substance can compete when it comes to energy density, flexibility, ease of handling, ease of transportation. If oil didn’t exist we would have to invent it.”

56 years after it was decided it was needed, the Bedford Bypass is nearing completion. The last single carriageway length of it.We have the most photogenic mayor though, always being photographed doing nothing

I should maybe have said I am open minded about it so far but there was a case I personally know of recently, which I can’t talk about here in too much detail for obvious reasons, where someone I know got, from memory, £7,000 for whiplash after a solicitor contacted them and told her what to do and say. It included her, her two children who were 'traumatised' and her husband. It was all a complete lie and fabrication!

In my sister’s case it isn’t, so maybe there should just be some big changes to the way these things are done.

To answer your question Dave, it was her boyfriend and it was deemed his fault. Since the driver put in a claim my sister thought she should too, so I don’t think it’s so much suing him as simply just claiming compensation off his insurance. Saying she sued him sounds a bit harsh, like she’s sticking the boot in him, but I know what you mean.

I’m not disagreeing with you Jom, I just need to chew on it for a while.

_________________
The views expressed in this post are personal opinions and do not necessarily represent the views of Safe Speed.
You will be branded a threat to society by going over a speed limit where it is safe to do so, and suffer the consequences of your actions in a way criminals do not, more so than someone who is a real threat to our society.

The reason I called it a claim culture is because, (and we all know it goes on), whiplash is a real thing but people are abusing it like mad; probably the most abused one of all IMO.

My gut feeling is that it goes on much more than anyone knows, or could ever possibly find out. “Have you had an accident in the last four years which wasn’t your fault?” Where there’s blame there’s a claim. Not sure if you're for or against those ads Jom but personally I think of these businesses as parasites which are making the world a worse place.

“Blame culture is a set of attitudes characterized by an unwillingness to take risks or accept responsibility for mistakes because of a fear of criticism or prosecution. People blame each other to avoid being reprimanded or put down”

This is where it’s heading, for better or worse?

“An overwhelming 96 per cent of people in Britain believe we are more likely to seek damages today than we were a decade ago a new report reveals. Independent research commissioned by Norwich Union looked at whether the public believe there is a compensation culture and what people really think about claiming compensation.

While three-quarters of Brits are worried about the impact of an increasing ‘blame and claim' culture, nearly half say they are themselves more likely to claim compensation. In fact more than one in five people (21%) believe they should claim for compensation whenever they can.

The report is the first in-depth look at whether and why the ‘blame and claim’ culture has taken hold in the past ten years. One of the key factors is that the British sense of collective responsibility has given way to an individualistic approach to life where, as one respondent said ‘you are what you have’.

According to David Hooker, director of claims at Norwich Union, the research clearly points to a cultural shift: "The research reveals a disparity in what people think about the compensation system, and how they act. Whilst it is excellent that over the years we have increased access to justice we have to exercise those rights with responsibility, acknowledging the consequences of our actions.

"What’s more worrying is that successively younger generations express less concern about the impact of a ‘blame and claim’ culture, and this shift, if left unchecked, could mean the nation’s compensation bill continuing to rise. The report indicates that the public is putting the compensation ‘industry’ in the frame for stimulating demand. Nearly a quarter (23%) of people think the No Win No Fee adverts on TV are raising people’s expectations of what they’re entitled to. In fact, a third of people think such advertising should be banned.

One in 10 people put the blame game down to the influence of the US ‘compensation culture’, and a further 5% put it down to a media-led perception that getting big payouts is both normal and easy and has provided people with guidelines to act.”

_________________
The views expressed in this post are personal opinions and do not necessarily represent the views of Safe Speed.
You will be branded a threat to society by going over a speed limit where it is safe to do so, and suffer the consequences of your actions in a way criminals do not, more so than someone who is a real threat to our society.

Reminds me of this joke,
4 men talking about how clever their dogs are.
1 Engineer,2 accountant,3 chemist,4 government worker.

1) Engineer calls to his dog "set square do youre stuff"
Set square trots off to desk takes out paper and pen and draws a circle square and a triangle.
All agree set squares a very clever dog.

2) Accountant calls to his dog "Spreadsheet do your stuff"
Spreadsheet goes into kitchen and brings back 12 buscuits and divides them into 4 equal piles of 3 and argued the last pile was tax deductable.
All again agree very clever dog.

3) Chemist calls to his dog "Measure do your stuff"
Measure goes to the fridge and takes out a pint of milk and a 10 ounce glass from the cupboard and poured out 8 ounces without spilling a single drop.
All agree again very clever dog.

4) Government worker calls to his dog "Coffee break do your stuff"
Coffee break gets up eats all the buscuits drinks the milk then sexually assaults the other 3 dogs, Claims he injured his back while doing so, files a compensation claim, claims unsafe working conditions and went home suffering from post tramatic stress.

_________________
nigel_bytes

It's not exactly surprising that the claims culture is getting as bad as it is, despite protestations from the insurance industry from thier own financial reports show that on some policies including the higher risk drivers ther can be as much as an 80% profit margin, so when the public are being ripped off they tend have less scruples about making spurious claims. And unlike business' who can self insure even for the legally mandated insurances and bring the insurance industry to heel the public cannot.

In the early to mid 90's the legally required insuances that employers require were starting to ramp up in cost to the silly profit margin levels - a lot of big companies got togther and suggested that a 20 - 30% profit margin was more than reasonable, the industry ignored this and then companies starting self insuring dropping the insurance companies, the insurers realised that 80% of bugger all was far worse than 20 - 30% of something, and the policies settled down. It was an interesting issue to follow in the safety press at the time, unfortunately no-one seems that fussed about helping the public, eslpecially when it comes to legally mandated insurances like car insurance.

The Insurance companies own (or at least have very cosy relationships with) the 'no win, no fee' claims companies and it is standard practice for insurers to sell details of thier policy holders who have had recent accidents to companies that specialise in this sort of claim work.

The original CFA (conditional Fee Agreement) came about under Labour, I rather suspect not because of a huge legal aid bill, but because with 'sucess fees' it made Tony's missus and former colleagues a lot of money.

_________________
Gordon Brown saying I got the country into it's current economic mess so I'll get us out of it is the same as Bomber Harris nipping over to Dresden and offering to repair a few windows.

Chaos, panic and disorder - my work here is done.

http://www.wildcrafts.co.uk

I think it tougher to sue someone you know than someone that you don't. His premiums will raise and it would be interesting to know by how much (approx) if you ever get that info ?
I have only ever sought re-dress after a broken bicycle and personal injury (broken bones) and that all led to my loosing work. I didn't like to process one bit as it all felt wrong and that was all years ago long before all this 'claim culture'. I didn't get anything like that sum and I can live with the resulting damage but I was fortunate it wasn't that much worse. I did have a very knowledgeable surgeon who made the right decisions at the time.

Isn't that the point though we don't know how the future will pan out so we claim to get the help in case of longer term effects.
I recall recently a case (somewhere) where a chap though great personal achievement improved beyond all expectations through sheer grit determination and then the issuing company who paid out asked for the money back ! that seems both unfair and unacceptable !
But it raises anther interesting issue, if you have an incentive to help yourself as the money in the bank will help you live life better than you might have before does that help to influence how you improve ? So the money inspires or not and I have NO idea in the case mentioned that it was not just his own will power to help himself for himself than any money incentive.
If the money and life interest improves however, is that not incentive enough to ensure (for some) that money can psychology improve lives - as well as the converse! (make them lazy!) So then is installments a wiser option ?

For some life does seem to require a fight for everything.

_________________
Safe Speed for Intelligent Road Safety through proper research, experience & guidance.