By Cat Stardew. Last Updated 15th March 2023. In this guide, we answer frequently asked questions regarding No Win No Fee solicitors such as “what percentage do No Win No Fee solicitors take?” and “are No Win No Fee solicitors any good?”. In England and Wales, if you are injured or become ill because of negligence by another party, you may be able to make a personal injury claim for compensation. How much you’ll receive if your claim succeeds will depend on the type of injuries sustained and how serious they are.
If you have strong grounds to start a personal injury claim, then you may choose to hire a No Win No Fee solicitor who can support your case. Read on to learn more, including how claiming with a No Win No Fee solicitor works, how payment to a No Win No Fee solicitor is completed and how much No Win No Fee solicitors take for their fees.
Many claimants decide to enter into No Win No Fee Agreements with their solicitor. What does this term mean? A No Win No Fee claim is designed to offer claimants financial protection and the confidence to pursue justice. When a solicitor takes on a claim, they will not ask for any fees upfront or during the case. And if the case is unsuccessful, the claimant will not have to pay any of the fees your solicitor has incurred in pursuing the case. If the claim is successful, the claimant’s solicitor may seek a small contribution from the compensation awarded at the end of the claim to help cover their fees.
In this guide, we will look at how No Win No Fee claims work, what to expect from working with a No Win No Fee solicitor and if there are any disadvantages of No Win No Fee. We will also answer frequently asked questions, such as what percentage do solicitors take for a No Win No Fee case and how the fee is calculated?
To begin your No Win, No Fee claim for an accident that was not your fault, call Legal Helpline today for your free personal injury claims consultation. You can call us on 0161 6969 685 or use our online claims form to contact us. We’re looking forward to hearing from you.
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- No Win No Fee Solicitors – How Much Are Solicitors No Win No Fee Charges?
- What Are The Advantages Of No Win No Fee Claims?
- What Is A Success Fee And When May It Be Charged?
- How Is A Success Fee Calculated?
- Legal Rulings On No Win No Fee In The UK
- How Much Is Taken For The Success Fee?
- Best No Win No Fee Solicitors – How To Find The Best Solicitors For Your Case
- No Win No Fee Compensation Claims Calculator
- Talk To Legal Helpline About Your No Win No Fee Claim
- Resources And References
No Win No Fee Solicitors – How Much Are Solicitors No Win No Fee Charges?
You may have realised the positives of using No Win No Fee solicitors, but still have questions about No Win No Fee charges. If a solicitor offers their services on a No Win No Fee agreement, you may want to know, ‘how does No Win No Fee work?’ and ‘in an agreement such as No Win No Fee, how much do they take?’.
Under normal circumstances without a No Win No Fee arrangement, solicitors or lawyers may charge an upfront fee at the start of the compensation claim for their clients. This fee is either a fixed amount or is charged on a per-hour basis.
No Win No Fee differs from this, as it allows solicitors to work for you without charging an upfront fee. This No Win No Fee funding option could be helpful since legal fees may not be affordable for everyone.
What percentage do no win no fee solicitors take?
In a No Win No Fee claim, No Win No Fee charges will not include upfront legal fees. If your case is not successful, you will not pay legal fees. However, No Win No Fee solicitors will charge a success fee if they win the claim on your behalf.
There are two different types of agreements you can sign up for:
A Conditional Fee Agreement (CFA) is a type of No Win No Fee arrangement. Solicitors who operate under a Conditional Fee Agreement could charge a success fee if they win the claim on your behalf. The success fee that can be charged is capped by law at 25% of your compensation. This will be calculated depending on the compensation you receive.
A Damages-Based Agreement (DBA) is also known as a Contingency Fee Agreement. In a DBA, the charge is a percentage of the compensation awarded to you – this is also capped at 25%. This will be a set amount regardless of the work undertaken by the solicitor.
Many firms charge at the maximum rate, but you may find that our panel of solicitors may charge less than 25% so you keep most of your compensation.
What Are The Advantages Of No Win No Fee Claims?
Some people may ask what the actual meaning of No Win No Fee is and what benefits you can enjoy when claiming under such an agreement. There are multiple benefits to pursuing a case with the support of a No Win No Fee solicitor, such as the following:
- Because legal aid isn’t available for people making a personal injury claim, using a No Win, No Fee lawyer is a viable alternative. Claimants do not need to pay any upfront fees, meaning they have greater access to justice.
- The solicitors firm is taking the financial risk rather than the client. In some cases, such as bringing a case to trial for a serious injury potentially worth millions, the legal fees could reach hundreds of thousands of pounds.
- Personal injury solicitors will not take on a No Win, No Fee case that they do not believe has good prospects of success. Therefore, if a solicitor takes on your case, you will know that making a No Win, No Fee claim is likely to pay off.
What Is A Success Fee And When May It Be Charged?
A success fee is a financial charge made by a solicitor when they succeed in a No Win, No Fee claim. The fee is deducted from the compensation awarded. When a CFA has been made, success can be defined in one of two ways.
- Success can be defined according to the remedy. This means that the claim will be considered successful if compensation is awarded.
- Some CFAs will be defined as successful even if the claim is only partially successful. For example, if the client is judged to be partially at fault, so only receives a portion of the compensation they hoped to claim. In such circumstances, the success fee would still be charged.
How Is A Success Fee Calculated?
If you make a damages-based agreement, the No Win No Fee claims success fee is charged as a percentage of the damages that you are awarded. As for what percentage do No Win No Fee solicitors take? They are legally capped at 25% by the Ministry of Justice.
Before 2013, the claimant kept 100% of their compensation when making a No Win, No Fee claim. Instead, the fee was paid by the defendant. This, unfortunately, was abolished in 2013, and it was ruled that the claimant must pay the fee from their compensation award. It was hoped that pushing the fee onto the claimant would make law firms more competitive in the fees that they charge.
Get in touch with our advisors today and we can tell you more about how No Win No Fee lawyers in the UK calculate their success fee.
Legal Rulings On No Win No Fee In The UK
In the case of A & Anor v Royal Mail Group [2015], a law firm charged a success fee of 100% in a standard road traffic accident claim, pursued under a No Win, No Fee Agreement. The prospects of success were virtually certain.
The judge, District Judge Lumb, ruled that the claimant’s solicitors had been unreasonable in charging a 100% success fee given the low risk of the case. DJ Lumb went on to reference another case where the same charges had applied, and it was determined that only a 5% success fee should apply. They then went on to say that the government capping the fee at 25% should have encouraged solicitors firms to be more competitive with how much No Win, No Fee solicitors take.
How Much Is Taken For The Success Fee?
You may be wondering what percentage solicitors take as their success fee if your claim succeeds. The percentage of your compensation that your solicitor can take as their success fee is capped by the Conditional Fee Agreements Order 2013. Under this legislation, the maximum percentage that can be taken as a success fee is 25% if your solicitor is working under a Conditional Fee Agreement, which is a type of No Win No Fee arrangement.
However, it’s possible that a solicitor could take less than 25%, though this can depend on a number of factors. Usually, the No Win No Fee percentage your solicitor intends to take will be discussed with you beforehand.
Under a CFA or No Win No Fee agreement, your solicitor will only take a success fee if your claim succeeds. This fee is taken directly from your compensation, and the legislative cap ensures that you keep the most of what you receive.
To find out more about No Win No Fee charges or to learn how a solicitor from our panel could help you, get in touch with our team today.
Best No Win No Fee Solicitors – How To Find The Best Solicitors For Your Case
When seeking the best No Win No Fee solicitor to assist you with your claim, there are a few things to consider. For example:
- The track record of the law firm
- If the firm specialises in a certain area of law
- Whether they can operate on a No Win No Fee basis
A solicitor being based near you is not a requirement. The processes involved in making a claim can all be handled remotely. When you compare No Win No Fee solicitors, bear this in mind.
If you do wish to have a face-to-face appointment with your solicitor, this is something that can be arranged. To find out more, get in touch with our advisors today.
No Win No Fee Compensation Claims Calculator
If your No Win, No Fee personal injury claim is successful, you will likely be awarded a compensation package made up of two heads of claim: general damages and special damages. Let’s look at these in more detail.
General Damages
General damages are the primary component of a compensation award. They are designed to compensate you for the pain, suffering, and loss of amenity experienced due to their injuries.
Special Damages
Special damages are designed to compensate the claimant for any expenses or financial losses, which may have been incurred in relation to their illness or injuries. Here are some examples of special damages that you could potentially claim for:
- Medical expenses: This can include the cost of medication, physiotherapy, an operation or counselling.
- Travel expenses: This can include reimbursement for the cost of travelling to hospital or doctors appointments for treatment, or if you are temporarily unable to drive because of your injuries, you can claim back the cost of seeking alternative transport.
- Mobility equipment expenses: In the unfortunate circumstances that your injuries have caused you to become disabled, you could be entitled to claim compensation to purchase mobility equipment.
- Home or car adaptation expenses: If you have become disabled due to your accident and need to adapt your home or your car, you can claim funds to do this.
- Loss of earnings: If you had to take time off work because of your injuries and you suffered lost income. As a result, you can reclaim the salary and in-work benefits you missed out on during that time. If the injuries are severe enough to prevent you from returning to work, you may also be able to claim for future loss of earnings too.
How much compensation could your No Win, No Fee claim be worth? You can use our personal injury claims calculator to estimate how much you could claim in general damages. Our calculator does not include special damages, but you can call us and speak to an advisor to discuss how much compensation you might be able to claim in special damages.
| Location Of Injury | Severity | Settlement |
|---|---|---|
| Brain damage | (c) Moderate (i) | £150,110 to £219,070 |
| Brain damage | (a) Less severe | £15,320 to £43,060 |
| Digestive system | (a) Damage from a traumatic injury (i) | £43,010 to £61,910 |
| Back injury | (b) Moderate (i) | £27,760 to £38,780 |
| Hearing loss / tinnitus | (d) Partial hearing loss and/or tinnitus (ii) | £14,900 to £29,710 |
| Shoulder injury | (b)Serious | £12,770 to £19,200 |
| Forearm | Simple fracture | £6,610 to £19,200 |
| Chest injury | (c) Relatively simple | £12,590 to £17,960 |
| Neck injury | (b)Moderate (iii) | £7,890 to £13,740 |
Talk To Legal Helpline About Your No Win, No Fee Claim
If you have become sick or injured because of an accident that was not your fault, speak to Legal Helpline today to see if you are entitled to compensation. If we can see that you could have grounds to claim compensation, we could connect you to an excellent personal injury solicitor who will start working on your case right away.
Why choose to work with Legal Helpline to make a personal injury claim?
- The solicitors we work with have an excellent track record of winning personal injury claims.
- Our panel of solicitors have thirty years of experience handling claims like this, so your claim is bound to be in safe hands.
- The personal injury lawyers that we work with will always push to win you the maximum amount of compensation you could be entitled to claim, so you won’t be short-changed.
Call us today on 0161 6969 685 for your free No Win, No Fee claims consultation, or use our online claims form to reach out to us. If you have legitimate grounds to claim, we would love to represent you.
Resources And References
Beauty Treatment Compensation Claim Specialists
Have you been injured because of poor practice during beauty treatment? Have you been injured because of negligence during laser hair removal treatment, semi-permanent makeup treatment or any other type of treatment? Then you could be entitled to claim compensation for your injuries. Please read our online guide or contact Legal Helpline today to find out more.
Ankle Injury Claims – How Much Compensation Can I Claim?
Have you suffered an ankle injury because of an accident that was not your fault? Maybe you suffered a slip, trip or fall injury because of hazardous flooring or maybe even tripped on a pavement. Whether you have suffered a sprained ankle injury, fractured ankle or broken ankle injury, if the accident was caused by negligence on the part of someone else, you could be eligible for compensation. Please read our guide or contact Legal Helpline today to find out more.
How Much Compensation For An Accident In A Shop Claim?
Have you been injured in a shop because of an accident caused by negligence on the part of the shop’s management? Then you could be entitled to claim compensation. Whether you were an employee or a customer, please read our online guide or call Legal Helpline today to find out more.
A guide to rib injury compensation claims
Here you can learn more about making a claim if you’ve suffered an injury to your ribs
Fatal Workplace Accident Claims
It’s possible that someone may have died as a result of their injuries in the workplace. The No Win No Fee lawyers on our panel may still be able to help you claim on the behalf of a deceased loved one.
Find out about any differences that are involved when claiming on behalf of injured children.
Mental Health Compensation Calculator
A guide on the average payouts for mental health conditions caused by accidents.
Edited by REG
We hope this guide, which has addressed common questions such as “what percentage do No Win No Fee solicitors take?”, has been useful for you. If you would like more advice on No Win No Fee agreements, then you can contact Legal Helpline for help. You are welcome to reach us using the contact details featured within this guide.