Tuesday, 30 Apr 2024

'The doctor basically just wrote all the things I said…'

A man who brought a personal injury claim after a car accident says the medical expert his solicitor referred him to “barely examined him”.

The claimant was involved in a rear-ending accident in 2017 and suffered injuries to his neck and lower back.

He said he was looking for information online about how the accident would affect his insurance when he came across a personal injury website.

The man filled out a free online assessment form on the site, and was immediately contacted by two solicitor firms.

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“I didn’t even realise it was a legal site as it didn’t mention solicitors anywhere, I just thought it was something along the lines of the Citizen’s Information website,” he told the Irish Independent.

He was advised by the two solicitors that he was entitled to compensation and they said they would arrange a medical assessment with “our doctor”.

“I eventually decided to go with the Dublin solicitor and they told me their doctor sees clients of the firm on a regular basis,” he said.

“I never met the solicitor either, everything was done over email and phone.”

He says the consultation with the doctor – who is a qualified orthopaedic surgeon – was “very brief” and he found them to be “very encouraging about taking a claim”.

“The doctor basically just wrote down what I said about my injuries,” the man added.

“I might have been asked to stand up but the doctor didn’t really physically examine me.”

The man was awarded €8,500 after the claim was settled and the solicitor received fees of between €1,000 and €1,500.

He was also assessed by his own GP, and the orthopaedic surgeon referenced this in his report.

“On the basis of the history given and his clinical examination it would appear that he did sustain, on balance of probabilities, musculo-ligamentous injuries to his neck, left trapezius and lower back,” the medico-legal report said.

The orthopaedic surgeon writes medico-legal reports for a number of legal firms at the same time.

A source in the insurance industry revealed how this doctor has been involved in writing reports in dozens of cases being defended by insurance companies.

Source: Read Full Article

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