What to do after a crash, a hit-and-run or a call from the other side's insurer, and which deadlines are yours.
Nobody reads this section by choice. Your car was hit while it sat parked, or the other side's insurer rang before your own had even opened a file. Maybe you're weighing the free claims portal against a solicitor.
In each case the useful thing is knowing which obligations are yours and which belong to someone else. Much of what arrives in the first week carries no duty for you at all. These guides set out what the law asks of you, what it asks of them, and the deadlines that decide both.
Injured in a crash that wasn't your fault? If the injury itself is worth £5,000 or less, your route is the free Official Injury Claim portal rather than a law firm. A solicitor can still run it for you, but on a claim this size they are normally paid out of your compensation.
14 minSomeone has hit your parked car and driven off. The duty to stop was theirs, not yours, and the clock that follows is theirs too. This covers what the police and the Motor Insurers' Bureau will realistically do for damage-only cases, and what claiming on your own policy quietly costs you.
12 minThe other driver's insurer, a claims firm and a recovery truck can all reach you before your own insurer has even opened a file. Almost none of it is anything you have to engage with. This is what UK law actually asks of you after a crash, and what is only pressure.
12 min