Is it free?

If you are injured in an accident, you may wish to take a claim against the person or company you consider to blame for those injuries.

It is no secret that legal advice can be expensive and you may be worried about the costs of seeking representation to assist you in your claim.

Since the demise of legal aid in the mid 1990s, anyone seeking redress for injury has either got to pay for their legal advice or enter into what is known as a conditional fee agreement, popularly known as a no win no fee agreement.

Not all solicitors offer these agreements and they are not applicable to all sorts of cases but generally speaking personal injury cases will be covered by a conditional fee agreement by specialist personal injury solicitors.

What is a no win no fee agreement?

This is an agreement between you and your solicitor which effectively means that payment only becomes due if the case is won. In that event your solicitor receives payment for the work done on your case and a success fee under the agreement he has with you. Both of those will be paid by your opponent and their insurers.

What is a success fee?

Because your solicitor is effectively taking the risks on your case (if you do not win, he won’t be paid) he is entitled to take a success fee charged in addition to his costs  which is expressed as a percentage of the costs. So if for example the success fee is 100% your solicitor should be able to charge 100% of his base costs in addition to those costs which is recoverable from the paying party. The general principle in any dispute is that the loser pays the winners costs which include the success fee and any other expenses or disbursements paid on your behalf such as medical report fees.

Is no win no fee free?

In practical terms, if a solicitor agrees to act for you under a no win no fee agreement, he will have risk assessed your case and thought you had a reasonable chance of recovering compensation as the risks of losing fall on the solicitor. If you lose he will not get paid any costs. However you also have to bear in mind the costs of your opponent if you lose and what happens to those disbursements that have been paid-the medical report fees and the court fees? Those are not covered by the no win agreement which is limited to the costs of an action. They can be and are usually covered by an insurance policy that will be taken out by your solicitors to cover such an eventuality. This is called an “after the event” insurance but you may also find that you have cover yourself as legal expenses can be an add on  to your car insurance policy or your household policies. Either of these sorts of insurance which will be explained and investigated by your solicitor will cover you for any losses which you may have incurred during the course of your claim.

First4Lawyers retain a specialist panel of solicitors who can advise you on your claim and act for you on a no win no fee basis. You should contact First4Lawyers today.

Start Your Claim

First4Lawyers retain a specialist panel of experienced no win no fee solicitors. To find out if you can make a no win no fee claim, call us now on 0800 567 7866 or request a call back for free advice. If you wish to leave more details about your claim, then fill out our Online Claim Form and one of our specialist advisors will telephone you without obligation to discuss your claim further.