If you’ve had an accident in the UK but you have only lived in the UK for a year, the good news is that you’re legally entitled to make a claim for financial compensation because you were domiciled in the UK at the time of your accident. This means that you can make a claim against the party at fault, whether they be an individual, private business or Local Authority or Council in a process that’ll be as simple as a regular compensation claim.
Generally speaking, in order to proceed with such an accident claim, you’ll have to have been domiciled in the UK for a minimum of six months.
However, things get a little more complicated if the party at fault is a foreign national themselves. This is because a County Court Judgement can only be legally obtained against a UK resident. Under the circumstances, only specialist lawyers, such as uk claims lawyers would be able to help you. It’s important to also consider under such circumstances that the odds of receiving a payout are lesser than if that person was a UK resident.
Also consider that because such a case will have a high risk element, not all lawyers will agree to take it on with a no win, no fee agreement. In which case, you’ll need the services of a specialist lawyer. So before taking any legal action under the circumstances, you should consider whether or not it’s likely to be worth it.
I’m not a British citizen. Can I still make a claim?
As long as you were domiciled in the United Kingdom at the time of your accident, you can make a claim for compensation whether you are a British Citizen or not. The claims process will be much the same as if you had been living in the UK for a lot longer. Additional proof may be required to show your living arrangements at the time of your accident, but aside from that the claims process will be a swift and efficient one.
I’m a foreign national being sued. I have no money. What can I do?
On the other side of the coin, if you are a foreign national whom caused an accident and you are now being sued for financial compensation, you can petition for your own bankruptcy through the UK courts. However, in order to do so, you need to be domiciled or have been domiciled in the UK for a minimum of six months. You should also be aware that if you are declared bankrupt, this may affect any applications for British residency in the future.
Leave a Reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.