Victory highlights the importance of union membership

Thompsons NI Solicitors secured compensation for a Unite member who was involved in a road traffic accident in June 2018. The client suffered whiplash like-injuries, relating particularly to his back.

The client initially took advice from a local solicitor firm in Belfast as he was not aware of the legal services offered by Thompsons NI in association with Unite.

Almost 18 months into his case, liability had not been admitted by the third party’s insurance despite this being a relatively straight forward case. The local solicitor firm in Belfast was at a crossroads and could not progress this case without issuing court proceedings. They required a substantial amount of money from our client to cover this outlay.

Our client was then made aware of the benefits of his Union membership and made contact with Unite Legal Services who in turn referred this case to Thompsons NI. We immediately had the client examined by a Consultant Orthopaedic Surgeon and issued court proceedings. Within one month of issuing proceedings, a settlement agreement was reached - much to the client’s delight.

While a successful outcome was achieved in the end, the client was left with a substantial bill from the local solicitor firm for work carried out by them. This could have been avoided had he utilised the free legal services which are a benefit of Unite membership.

Our client stated: “Thompsons NI did a great job with my case. I regret not coming to them sooner and will definitely be using them in the future if I have any further legal issues.”

Damien Watson, Personal Injury Solicitor, said: “This case highlights the expertise of Thompsons NI in this area of law and demonstrates that we have the resources to ensure that every case is dealt with efficiently and expeditiously. Free legal advice is a benefit of union membership that is there to be utilised by all members.”

Do you need support following a road traffic accident? View our road traffic accident page for more information or call us on 0800 138 6880.