No Win No Fee Solicitors

As a general principle the loser of a case will have to pay some of the winner’s costs so even with a CFA it is recommended that you are insured against the risk of you losing and having to pay your opponent’s costs and your own expenses (disbursements) other than our fees. Examples of your disbursement expenses are court fees, expert’s fees such as doctors providing medical reports. You are advised to have legal costs protection insurance in conjunction with the CFA. This is often known as ‘After The Event Insurance’ (ATE). Whilst the CFA exempts you from paying costs to us, you may still be liable to pay some of your opponent’s costs in addition to your own disbursements.

Where you claim damages for personal injury you are likely to have some protection against the risk of paying your opponent’s costs even if you lose. The present rules incorporate a certain degree of costs protection in personal injury actions. This is known as Qualified One-Way Costs Shifting or “QOCS”* for short. Essentially this means you wouldn’t have to pay your opponent’s costs even if you lose your claim, but you will still be liable for your own disbursements.

These disbursements in themselves can add up and there are certain circumstances where you may not get the full benefit of “QOCS”* for example where the opponent makes a formal offer to settle called a Part 36 Offer and you proceed and fail to beat your opponent’s offer. Unless you have adequate pre-existing legal expenses cover, we would usually recommend that you still obtain an ATE policy to give you maximum protection against exposure to any costs.

Where you require an ATE policy, we will arrange this insurance on your behalf. The premium for this insurance cover will not be payable until the end of your claim and only if you win. If you lose, the cost of the premium is usually self-insured i.e., covered and therefore you will not have to pay anything. We will let you know if we are unable to provide you with a policy on these terms and discuss your options with you.

As the case proceeds, it will become necessary for certain expenses to be incurred. For example, we may be charged by your doctor or the hospital for supplying us with copies of your medical notes. If we require an expert’s report such as a medical report from an independent doctor about your medical condition, the doctor will make a charge for this. If we need to commence court proceedings, we will also be charged by the court at various stages and there may be other payments of this nature. These expenses or disbursements as they are called, will remain your responsibility but we will usually pay them out on your behalf. Your opponent will normally refund your disbursements upon the successful conclusion of your claim. However, if you lose, you will still be liable to pay or reimburse us for these disbursements unless you are protected by legal expenses insurance, where your insurer will usually pay these disbursements for you.

The benefit of a CFA with insurance is that if you win your case you will receive compensation at no risk, whereas if you lose, apart from the time that you have spent on your claim, your claim will cost you nothing. You do not have to have a CFA and could decide to accept personal responsibility for our costs, your own expenses and those of your opponent where QOCS protection fails to apply. However, by entering a CFA you will be avoiding that risk. The whole point about a CFA with an insurance policy is that there is little risk to you in pursuing your claim. The risk is ours! We will work hard to achieve the success you deserve. Don’t be afraid to ask us to explain in more detail if you need to, and we will be very happy to do so.

You may already have the benefit of legal expenses insurance or a legal protection policy, either under or as an addition to your motor policy. You may also be covered for legal expenses insurance under a household or contents policy or even with a credit card. You will need to check carefully if you have such protection. If you do, or think you do, you should let us know. We can still undertake your claim for you by arrangement with your legal expense insurance company and if you give us their details, we will contact them to arrange this. If you have legal expenses cover, your legal expense insurer may contact you to arrange your representation by their choice of solicitor, however, you are free to choose your own legal representatives and you should not feel under pressure or obliged to instruct a solicitor chosen by your insurer. You are perfectly entitled to instruct us. If you tell us who your legal expense insurer is, we will contact them for you and arrange for them to cover you with us. Should they refuse cover, we may still be able to act for you on a “No Win, No Fee” in any event.