Submitting an accident claim
To register an accident claim with the Injuries Board , the Law Society of Ireland recommends that the following documents are sent by registered post:
1. Injuries Board Form A correctly completed, signed and dated;
2. Payment of €45;
3. Copy medical report;
4. Authorisation on behalf of the claimant authorising the Injuries Board to deal with the solicitor directly.
When the Board receives the application, it sends the Respondent a notice requesting them to consent to an assessment. If the Respondent consents and pays the fee, the Board will access the claim. If the Respondent fails to respond to the notice within 90 days or responds refusing consent, the Board shall issue an authorisation. The case then proceeds to court.
Time frame for assessing the claim
The Board is under a duty to access the claim as expeditiously as possible and in within nine months of the consent to assessment. The Board can serve a notice that it is not possible to assess the claim within nine months and can give a further date within a period of six months, after the initial nine months, to have the claim assessed. If the assessment is not completed within this time, then unless you consent to further time to do so, the Board shall authorise the claim. This means the claim will then progress through the Courts.
Assessment by the Board
The Board can request further information from you and order you to undergo a medical examination for the purposes of enabling its assessors to quantify the claim. If you refuse the request for further information or refuse to undergo an examination, the assessors will quantify the claim as best they can in the absence of this information.
The assessors can request information for the purposes of the claim from a person, including a public body. The assessors can apply to the District Court for an order that a person furnishes them with the information sought. The application to the Board is deemed, under law, to be a consent to disclosure by the Revenue Commissioners to the assessors of any records that they have relating to you.
If you have a query about an accident please contact us.
Costs
The assessment by the Board can include costs and fee which were reasonably incurred by the Claimant in making the application. Normally legal fees are not included and will have to be paid out of the award by the Claimant to his or her solicitor.
Decision of the Board
The Board will serve a notice on the Claimant and Respondent of the amount that the Board assesses the claim to be worth. If both the Claimant and the Respondent accept the decision of the Board within a period of 28 days, the decision becomes legally binding on both parties. If either the Claimant or the Respondent do not accept the assessment, then the Board will issue, and authorisation and the case will proceed through the Courts.
Time Frame
Within one month of both parties accepting the assessment, the Board will issue and “Order to Pay” in the amount of the award. This document has the same legal status as a Court Judgment and interest will accrue at 8% per annum.
