Five deadly mistakes that can destroy your case
1. The solicitor refers you to a doctor - There is nothing apparently wrong with that but there is a problem. The client may not realize that the solicitor has referred other clients to the same doctor and when you go to the court, the defence solicitor may have seen the doctor many-many times; even the judge has also seen the same doctor many-many times. It is not to your benefit to have the solicitor recommended to a particular doctor for you. Because, what will happen during cross-examination by the defence that, they will going to bring out the fact that this solicitor has recommended clients to this particular doctor many times and not just this solicitor but many others solicitors refers clients to that particular doctor as well. The main reason is that, if he testifies well and he gives them information that they like and is favourable to them, other solicitors are going to start using him too. So when a solicitor refers a client to a doctor, many people will tell this, a case of death and you don't want to have this problem at the time of trial. There is enough legal issue that will arise during your trial and this should not be the one of them. If you are not comfortable with the doctor that you are seeing, then go to another doctor of your choice or get referral from you friends or family.
2. Hiding past accidents from your solicitors - If you hide your past accidents from your solicitor, then that will destroy your case. If you don't tell your solicitor about your past accidents and injuries, then you are tying your solicitor's hands. What will happen is that, he will get sand-bagged during the course of your deposition or at trial in the worst case. If your solicitor doesn't have the information that is necessary to prosecute your case properly you are not going to have effective counsel and you really don't want to be put in that situation. It will be very detrimental for your case.
3. If you hide other injuries, you are destroying your own case. For example - Some kind of accident had happened to you 10-15 years ago and now you are claiming that you suffered similar injury or an aggravation of that injury, but you neglect to tell your solicitor about an accident that had happened many years ago. During the course of investigation your solicitor finds that out but it's too late to do anything about it. The worst is when the client doesn't tell a solicitor that they had a similar accident causing similar injuries in the past. When a defence solicitor asks a question, "well Mr Mike have you ever been involved in any other accident", if you say no and it turns out that you are and they learn about that accident, then your case is just as good as over as anything else. You have to tell your solicitor about your past accidents and injuries. Only then your solicitor can properly prepare you about how to answer the question properly.
4. Not having accurate tax return can get clients into lot of trouble - When you claim that you are out of work due to personal injuries as a result of an accident then, if your tax returns are not accurate, the defence solicitor will going to bring up the matter as an issue of credibility. Defence solicitor will turn on you and show clearly that you have lied about things in your taxes and if you lied about one thing then there might be possibility that you have lied about other things related to the case. If you have problem with tax return that needs to be corrected then fix it up.
5. Misrepresenting your activity level - When you are injured and you claim that you can't do all the things that you used to do before the accident, 0.the defence solicitor may hire private investigator to keep an eye on you. They might take pictures or videos of you doing things that you have claimed you can't do after the accident. Like if you claim you can't play basket ball, can't change tyres, can't workout in the gym and somebody gets you on video doing those exact activities. Then your case is finished. Do not misrepresent your activity level.
Always hire a good accident solicitor to fight your case, never try to deal with the insurance company by yourself.
2. Hiding past accidents from your solicitors - If you hide your past accidents from your solicitor, then that will destroy your case. If you don't tell your solicitor about your past accidents and injuries, then you are tying your solicitor's hands. What will happen is that, he will get sand-bagged during the course of your deposition or at trial in the worst case. If your solicitor doesn't have the information that is necessary to prosecute your case properly you are not going to have effective counsel and you really don't want to be put in that situation. It will be very detrimental for your case.
3. If you hide other injuries, you are destroying your own case. For example - Some kind of accident had happened to you 10-15 years ago and now you are claiming that you suffered similar injury or an aggravation of that injury, but you neglect to tell your solicitor about an accident that had happened many years ago. During the course of investigation your solicitor finds that out but it's too late to do anything about it. The worst is when the client doesn't tell a solicitor that they had a similar accident causing similar injuries in the past. When a defence solicitor asks a question, "well Mr Mike have you ever been involved in any other accident", if you say no and it turns out that you are and they learn about that accident, then your case is just as good as over as anything else. You have to tell your solicitor about your past accidents and injuries. Only then your solicitor can properly prepare you about how to answer the question properly.
4. Not having accurate tax return can get clients into lot of trouble - When you claim that you are out of work due to personal injuries as a result of an accident then, if your tax returns are not accurate, the defence solicitor will going to bring up the matter as an issue of credibility. Defence solicitor will turn on you and show clearly that you have lied about things in your taxes and if you lied about one thing then there might be possibility that you have lied about other things related to the case. If you have problem with tax return that needs to be corrected then fix it up.
5. Misrepresenting your activity level - When you are injured and you claim that you can't do all the things that you used to do before the accident, 0.the defence solicitor may hire private investigator to keep an eye on you. They might take pictures or videos of you doing things that you have claimed you can't do after the accident. Like if you claim you can't play basket ball, can't change tyres, can't workout in the gym and somebody gets you on video doing those exact activities. Then your case is finished. Do not misrepresent your activity level.
Always hire a good accident solicitor to fight your case, never try to deal with the insurance company by yourself.
Source...