We need to have as much evidence as possible to support every aspect of a claim, so we ask you to keep a record of everything relevant. We describe what we need below and if we need anything further, we will inform you when appropriate.
You should keep everything relating to the incident itself including any letters, emails and photographs. As the case progresses we may need to send relevant documents and evidence to your opponent. When claiming for financial losses, retain all details and receipts of your losses and attempt to minimise these where possible. The examples on this page are a guide of what we often see included in a claim. Click on the headings to learn how you can record supporting evidence.
Please keep each receipt for medication needed as a result of the accident, whether they were purchased over the counter or by prescription (also let us know if you buy a prescription prepayment certificate). If you pay for any treatment related to the accident (for example physiotherapy) or buy any equipment, please keep the receipts and a record of treatments so we can look to recover your losses.
However, you must remember to minimise your losses where possible, such as seeking treatment through the NHS.
We can recover travel expenses that are reasonably incurred. This can be when travelling to treatment sessions or to visit someone in hospital. Please keep a log of all your journeys and the mileage travelled. Please also retain all car park or toll receipts. If you travel by public transport or taxi, please keep tickets and/or receipts.
You can ask your driver for a receipt before exiting the vehicle. Uber transactions can also be found in your account under “trips”. Select the trip you want to claim for and then select receipt. This will allow you to download as a PDF or send the receipt to your email.
If you have needed help from family members or friends (even if you haven’t paid them) or had to pay for assistance as a result of any injury, ongoing disability or bereavement, we may be able to claim for this if supported by the medical evidence. It’s often helpful to start a log of the help you have received and the time taken. The more detail you provide, the more likely we will be able to recover it. This could include cleaning, gardening, DIY, cooking, washing, childcare and help with personal care. You should ensure that you take notes of the above when discussing with the medical expert at your appointment.
If you have lost earnings, bonus, overtime or paid holiday as a result of an injury or ongoing disability, we will ask your employer to confirm. Some employers require any sick pay paid to you be included in the claim on top of your losses. To help us collect the evidence, we need the name and address of your employer. If you don’t already do so, please keep your wage slips as we will need copies. We often require wage slips going back three months. So if your accident was in May you should provide us with your May payslip, as well as April, March and February.
If you are self-employed, calculating your loss of income is likely to be complicated. We will need:
1) The dates you couldn’t work.
2) Copies of your final accounts and tax returns for the 3 years prior to the incident. (If you have been trading for less than 3 years, please provide the documentation that you have available).
3) Details of anyone you employed to replace you while you were off.
4) Details of any contracts that may have been lost and the contractors contact details.
If any of your clothes or belongings were lost or damaged at the time of the accident, we will claim for their current value or the cost of repair. Please keep any damaged items as the insurer may wish to inspect them. If an item is old an insurer may reduce the cost due to natural wear and tear however, we will discuss any reductions with you should this occur. It helps if you can take and send us photos of whatever has been damaged. If you have the original receipts, they will help enormously in arriving at a proper value or repair cost.
If you have fully comprehensive insurance cover, your insurance company will deal with the vehicle damage. You will need to tell them what has happened. Whether your vehicle is repaired or written off, your insurance company is likely to ask you pay a policy excess. Please send us any written confirmation you have of this.
If you have third party fire and theft cover only, please let us know as we may need to arrange for an independent engineer to inspect the damage to your vehicle.
If you have to pay for removing your vehicle from any accident scene and putting it in storage, we will recover this for you provided the charges are reasonable. It is important you get the vehicle out of paid storage as quickly as possible to minimise the charges.
If you are driving a replacement vehicle, you may be charged for the cost of hire. Although hire companies often don’t ask you to pay the hire charges immediately, you may have signed a credit agreement which means you are personally liable for the hire charges.
If you’ve hired a vehicle privately, please keep the receipted invoices to evidence your payments.
You are not entitled to recover the cost of hiring a vehicle from the date of your accident through to the conclusion of your claim. You must demonstrate both that you needed to hire a vehicle and that the period of hire was reasonable.
If you have had to use other transport, we can usually recover whatever this costs you over and above your normal travel costs subject to evidence
Whether you’re a customer, acting on a customer’s behalf, or just wanting to find out more - check out Minster Law's help and advice. Our frequently asked questions, claims journey, and glossary will get you started.
