Personal injury specialists.

Ask yourself these three questions:

• Have you been injured in an accident that was someone else’s fault?
• Have you had any time off work to recover?
• Have you had any treatment?

If you answered yes to these questions, then it’s likely you can make a personal injury compensation claim.

But do you need a lawyer to claim compensation?

It’s possible to make a claim without using a lawyer or solicitor, however it’s important to understand that you’ll be making your claim against an insurance company that does have lawyers on its side. So, you’ll have a much better chance of success and you’re likely to get a much better compensation payout with good compensation lawyers on your side.

If you’re not sure, you can simply call us for free legal advice, then decide if you want to claim.

Our compensation lawyers in Melbourne can help you claim everything you’re entitled to in VIC:

• If you’ve had time off work, you’ll be paid back for your lost wages.
• If you’ve had medical or care expenses, these will be paid back to you.
• Depending on your injuries, you may also be entitled to lump sum payments for future lost wages, permanent impairment or pain and suffering.

Your compensation payout amount will also depend on how you were injured, your age and the extent of your injuries. For more information and examples of compensation payout amounts, read our compensation payout guide.

There are four stages to the claim process:

1. Our personal injury compensation lawyers will assess your situation and determine whether you have a valid injury claim, then provide you with advice on how to proceed. Part of this process is to identify the insurer.
2. We’ll spend time getting to know you and your situation, so that we can thoroughly prepare your claim. This includes gathering the evidence to back up your injury claim, including medical reports to show evidence of your injuries.
3. We’ll submit your claim to the insurer, and if the insurer accepts your claim it will generally offer to make a settlement payment to you. Your personal injury lawyer will negotiate hard on your behalf and advise you on what is a reasonable settlement and how much you should accept.
4. Most of our clients’ claims are settled out of court, but if the insurer denies your injury claim or we can’t come to a settlement agreement, we have the option to take your matter to court – this is known as litigation. Your personal injury lawyer will advise you on your options.

Many of our clients’ personal injury claims settle in 9 to 18 months, but some can take longer. The amount of time it takes to settle your claim is determined by:

• How long it takes for your injuries to stabilise so that they can be assessed by medical experts.
• Whether the insurer accepts liability for your injuries.
• Whether we reach an agreed settlement with the insurer quickly.

If we don’t reach a settlement with the insurer and need to litigate the matter, it can take considerably longer than 18 months.

It costs nothing to start your claim with Law Partners, and you only pay us after you receive your compensation.

For many law firms, ‘no win no fee’ means if they don’t win they won’t charge you for the work they’ve done, but they’ll still charge you for the costs they’ve incurred (disbursements) and barrister fees, and this can run into many thousands of dollars.

Our no win no fee, no disbursements guarantee also covers your costs – so you can pursue your claim with peace of mind.

We also put a cap on our fees, so there are no nasty surprises at the end of your successful claim. It’s important that you can speak to your compensation lawyer at any time, without worrying about the cost getting out of control.