‘I should have got more?’ What you can do about an undervalued case
It is unusual for someone who wins a legal claim to get everything they had hoped for, especially when a claim is settled by negotiation before it comes to court. But in some instances, there will be a genuine complaint that a case has been undervalued and the amount of compensation paid to the claimant is inadequate. In these instances the quality of the legal advice needs to be examined to see whether the solicitor has been negligent.
There are a multitude of explanations for an undervalued case. These include situations where:
- The Solicitor failed to investigate an injury or consider a particular type of loss that was suffered;
- The Solicitor failed to disclose evidence in support of the claim;
- There has been an oversight by the solicitor;
- The solicitor failed to question the opponent’s evidence; and
- The solicitor failed to obtain advice from a suitable expert.
In most cases, there is likely to be a genuine reason why you received less than you had hoped for. Legal cases are rarely black and white, and a solicitor must take into account all the risk factors. After all if a case cannot be settled out of court and you go on to lose at trial then the resulting legal bill can be eye watering. Concessions therefore have to be made and this often means that the claimant will walk away with a compensation package that is less than its full potential value.
However, if there has been a genuine error on the part of your legal team and you believe your claim has been under-settled by more than £10,000, then our professional negligence team will more than happy to talk to you about the case and carry out a free assessment to see if there are grounds for making a claim. And if there is a strong claim, we will be willing to work on a No-Win, No-Fee basis.
If you would like to discuss an undervalued case that you believe has been under-settled as a result of negligence for a sum greater than £10,000, please call us on 0333 888 0404 or email [email protected]
