Compensation after an accident or injury
Check your insurance policies
You may already have insurance to pay for the legal costs of making a claim for compensation. You can:
- check your insurance policies (such as motor, home contents or holiday insurance policies) to see if they include ‘legal expenses insurance’
- check if you have legal cover as a member of a trade union, or an organisation like the RAC or the AA
Policies normally only cover you for some types of legal problem and have other terms and conditions.
‘After the event’ insurance
If you’re not insured, you could take out insurance after the incident to protect yourself against a large legal bill.
A solicitor can help you choose an ‘after-the-event’ insurance policy and may take it out on your behalf.
If you win, you may be able to get some of the costs back from the losing side.
Some insurance companies will not insure you if they think you’re unlikely to succeed, and some policies are very expensive.