Judges, barristers and solicitors all use personal injury case law as a way of determining:

a) Whether or not the circumstances of your accident or injury are such that you could potentially claim

b) The amount of compensation you may be entitled to

The purpose of personal injury compensation is to put you, and those affected by the impact of the accident, back into the position that you and they were in prior to it happening. Obviously in the majority of cases this can't happen and the only way of getting you close to where you were before is to provide you with compensation which will help to make your life easier.

The actual compensation award comprises a number of distinct elements:

1) Solatium - this part of the award is designed to compensate you for the actual pain and suffering caused by the accident. This can include psychological suffering as well as physical suffering.

2) Past wage loss - you may have had to take unpaid time off work as a result of the accident and as such you are financially worse off.

3) Future wage loss - it may be that as a result of your accident your future employment prospects are affected. Certain injuries can result in different types of physical or mental impairment and as a result you may not be able to do what you were doing, or were planning on doing, prior to your accident. As a result it may be that you are likely to end up earning less than you would have done.

4) Services - your family may have provided you with help and services which otherwise you would have had to pay for.

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