Work driving car accident claims

Wherever you are in Sussex, a car accident claim is your legal right if you have sustained injury in road traffic accident that is attributable, at least in part, to the actions of another road user.

Driving for work

According to statistics, more than one-third of all people seriously or fatally injured on Sussex’s roads were driving professionally at the time of the incident. In fact, UK-wide occupational transport accidents are the single biggest cause of work-related fatality, with around 40,000 work-related car accidents occurring each year.

There is a great deal of work-related traffic on Sussex’s roads at any given moment, whether cars, vans, heavy goods vehicles, taxis, motorcycles, or buses. Nationally, 10.3% of the 24.4 million cars licensed for use on the nation’s roads are registered to a company (Department for Transport 2000).

It is interesting to note that according to a 1998 report which was commissioned by the Department for Transport, the drivers of these vehicles have on average a 29-50 percent higher rate of accident liability than the drivers of private vehicles.

It is not known why there is such a markedly higher rate of liability. However, the fact that the risk is known and recognised places extra responsibility on the shoulders of employers and their drivers to ensure extra road safety training and education. Policymakers certainly recognise the risk – speed limits are lower for vans and commercial vehicles than they are for other road-going traffic.

Protecting road users in Sussex

Various initiatives are in place to help ensure that in Sussex, car accident claims caused by work-related crashes are kept to a minimum. These include COSTS (the Company Operator Safer Transport Scheme) Project. This scheme works in a number of ways, and includes free occupational road risk assessments, as well as interactive safety workshops.

George Ide, personal injury specialists on the South Coast

George Ide LLP, an independent law firm, has been serving clients all over Sussex and the South Coast since 1966.

Our personal injury solicitors are leaders in their fields and have achieved national recognition for their excellence.

We provide expertise to bring benefit to all aspects of a claim: from initial legal advice to securing interim payments, helping with any necessary care, securing full settlement, and advising on trusts.

Talk to our Sussex car accident claim team today for more information.