The Balearic Islands Car Accident Claims Guide – How To Claim Compensation For A Car Crash Injury In The Balearic Islands
The Balearic Island are a group of islands (or archipelago) in the Mediterranean Sea which have been popular with British tourists for many years, especially the 4 largest islands: Majorca (Mallorca), Menorca, Ibiza and Formentera. Each has its own identity, but they all have a lovely warm climate without an excessively long flight which draws Brits in year after year.
Car accident claims Balearic Islands
More and more tourists drive while on holiday and, unfortunately, some have a car accident in the Balearic Islands which can really have an adverse impact on your holiday and may result in the need to make a personal injury claim for compensation.
Legal Expert are specialists that deal exclusively with personal injury claims and always work on a no win no fee basis. If you’d like to use us to make your claim, then please call us today on 0800 073 8804.
If you’d like to know more before beginning your claim, then please carry on reading this useful guide which will explain all of the steps you should take if you’re involved in an accident while on holiday in the Balearic Islands.
Select A Section
- A Guide To Balearic Islands Car Accident Claims
- Essential Numbers For Emergency Services In The Emergency Islands
- Medical Care For Car Accident Victims In The Balearic Islands
- What Do I Do If Injured In A Car Crash In The Balearic Islands?
- Take These Steps If You Have Had Any Accident Abroad
- Do You Need To Report Your Car Accident To The Police?
- European Holiday Whiplash Injury Claims
- Types Of Compensation In An Accident Or Injury Claim
- Balearic Islands Car Accident Compensation Calculator
- No Win No Fee Claim For Car Accidents Abroad
- Claim Compensation With Our Accident Abroad Experts
- Contact Us
- British Consular Services And More Helpful Guides
A Guide To Balearic Islands Car Accident Claims
The number of British tourists that travel to the Balearic Islands each year surpasses 1 million and, for most, their holiday passes without incident but for some, who choose to drive and are involved in a car accident, their holiday can be ruined and some very serious injuries can be sustained.
This guide aims to help you decide if you want to make a compensation claim and, if so, what you can do to help make the claim easier.
The first, and main point of any compensation claim is, can it be proven that the accident was caused by the other driver. If this is the case, then compensation could be awarded for the injuries and any financial losses that are incurred as a result of the accident.
This guide will explain what you can do in the event of an accident to ensure you adhere to the local regulations, how to contact the emergency services, how to receive free medical care, how to begin your claim using our no win no fee service and what can be included in a compensation claim.
As well as what to do in the event of an accident, there are a number of things you can do to avoid an on the spot fine in the event of a car crash:
- Ensure you have a red warning triangle in your car at all times.
- Ensure you wear a reflective jacket if you get out of your car.
- It’s also a good idea to keep a copy of your driving licence, V5 document (if it’s your own car), passport (as proof of id) and insurance policy with you at all times.
Here at Legal Expert we have been dealing with personal injury claims over many years and always offer no win no fee agreements for cases we take on which means we have to work hard on behalf of our clients, otherwise we don’t get paid.
The Balearic Islands have strict time limits in which you have to make your claim. Any claim that is filed late will be rejected and no compensation can be awarded.
The time limits involved in personal injury claims are:
| How holiday to the Balearic Islands was booked | Time limit |
|---|---|
| Booked with a UK package holiday provider | 3 years This may very |
| Booked independently (non-package holiday) | 1 year (but this can vary) – contact our team to discuss as soon as possible |
We would advise all clients to begin their claim as soon as possible after returning to the UK. The claim could be for injuries you’ve sustained or those of a loved one but the longer you give a personal injury lawyer the better the chance of success as they will be able to prepare all of the supporting evidence to back up any requests for compensation.
Essential Numbers For Emergency Services In The Emergency Islands
When you’re involved in a car accident in the Balearic Islands (any of them) they have a national emergency number that works in a similar way to the UK’s 999 service.
If you call 112, you’ll be connected to an operator who can direct your call to the police, ambulance or fire brigade according to your situation.
Be prepared to give as much information as possible and try to identify your location for the emergency services to be able to find you. Give information about the number of injured parties and vehicles involved.
If there’s a serious injury or fatality in your accident, then the British Embassy will be able to assist you. We’ve listed their contact details at the end of this article for your information.
Medical Care For Car Accident Victims In The Balearic Islands
Following any accident on any of the Balearic Islands, if you require any medical treatment then you may be entitled to free healthcare.
Under European Healthcare Insurance Card (EHIC) agreements between Spain and the UK you are entitled to use a hospital or doctor’s surgery for free if you’ve applied for your EHIC card prior to travelling.
You can get an EHIC card for all members of your family from here, for free but it takes up to 10 working days to arrive so ensure you’ve applied in time for your holiday.
EHIC doesn’t cover the costs of returning to the UK if you can’t make your originally scheduled flight and it doesn’t include private treatment either. We recommend that you also consider taking out travel insurance with a medical element so that, if you’d prefer private healthcare you have sufficient cover.
Always carry your EHIC card and travel insurance policy to hand in to any medical centre you attend. This should prevent you from having to pay for any treatment.
What Do I Do If Injured In A Car Crash In The Balearic Islands?
Following a car crash on any of the Balearic Islands there are some things that you need to do which you wouldn’t necessarily do in the UK.
If it is possible to do so safely, it is quite important to get a photograph of the accident in situ before any of the vehicles are moved.
Once that’s done you should move your car to the side of the road, if it is driveable, and turn on the hazard warning lights. You should then place the warning triangle around 50 meters away from the scene of the accident (or 100 metres on faster roads) remembering that it is an offence to be out of the car without a reflective jacket (which includes any passengers).
Once that is done you should speak with the other driver, gather their details and fill in a European accident report form with the other driver but do not allow them to do it on your behalf and don’t write anything on it that could incriminate you or be used to make you liable for the accident.
We’ll cover who you should report the accident to in a coming section.
Take These Steps If You Have Had Any Accident Abroad
In the event of any accident abroad there are a number of things you will need to do when thinking of the safety of anybody involved and also when considering that you may want to make a compensation claim at a later date.
To start with you should ensure that anybody who requires treatment, gets it. Take your EHIC card with you to any doctor or hospital that you visit or call the emergency services in the more serious accidents.
Following treatment, the next steps could make a compensation claim much easier:
- Photograph the scene of the accident and try to capture as much detail as possible, especially what you believe to be the cause of the accident.
- Speak to any witnesses and ask them for their contact details (name, email address, mobile number etc). If they are able to, and willing to, ask them to write down a brief summary of what they saw.
- Report the accident where necessary (see the next section for full details).
- If you’re involved in a road traffic accident and any of the vehicles have dashcams fitted, then try to obtain a copy of the video files. If possible, wait around until the files have been emailed to you, otherwise you may never receive them once you’ve returned to the UK.
Your immediate thought, following a car crash, may be that you want to return to enjoy the rest of your holiday but spending the time gathering this evidence can be a massive aid in securing the compensation that you deserve for your injuries.
Do You Need To Report Your Car Accident To The Police?
There are a number of different places that you can report your car crash to after the event. It is not mandatory to report minor accidents to the police, you can simply deal with those with the other driver and insurance companies but if anybody is injured or a criminal act is suspected (drink driving for instance) then you should dial 112.
Other people you may need to report your accident to include:
- Your holiday rep: in the case of package holidays. This is mandatory if you want to be able to make a compensation claim under package holiday regulations. It also gives the tour company the opportunity to help you where possible.
- Your car hire company: If you have hired a car then you’ll need to report the accident to either get the vehicle recovered or for advice on where to take it. They may also have the ability to help you to secure any dashcam footage.
- Your travel insurance company: You should let them know ASAP as some policies have a time limit on reporting and claiming for accidents against them.
- A doctor: reporting your injuries to a doctor will get you an assessment and any necessary treatment but it will also mean there will be medical records, which we can obtain at a later date to help support your claim.
European Holiday Whiplash Injury Claims
Any car crash, in any country, is likely to result in a whiplash injury but it may not be immediately obvious as it can take up to 12 hours to become obvious.
Whiplash occurs when the head is jerked violently in any direction and is very likely following any collision where the rest of the body is secured by a seatbelt.
If you’re suffering with whiplash symptoms following a road traffic accident you should attend a doctor’s surgery as soon as possible so that you can be assessed and treated. It is quite a hard task to gain compensation for whiplash without any medical records to back up this claim.
Common symptoms for whiplash include:
- Pain when moving the head in any direction
- Stiffness, tenderness and soreness of the neck, shoulders or upper arms
- Headaches
Types Of Compensation In An Accident Or Injury Claim
Any personal injury solicitor will know that it’s possible to make up a compensation claim with a number of different elements. It is essential that your claim includes everything in the first claim as, once a settlement has been agreed, you can not go back and ask for more compensation even if you incur more pain or costs.
The elements of any claim can include:
- General damages which is the compensation paid for your actual injury and the pain and suffering that was caused by it. There is a pre-defined set of compensation amounts which includes a range of compensation that is dependent on the severity of your injury. The right personal injury lawyer will be able to provide evidence that supports their claim about how severe an injury was and therefore secure a higher compensation amount.
- Loss of earnings can be claimed if you’ve had to have unpaid or reduced-paid time off of work because of your injuries. Furthermore, if you have to change jobs or are going to lose out on time at work because of your injuries then you can claim for future loss of earnings. Depending on your age at the time of the accident this could be a substantial amount of compensation.
- The costs of repairing or replacing any damage to personal property during your accident can be claimed back such as damaged clothing, jewellery, mobile phones or anything else that was damaged at the time of the accident.
- Transport costs can also be claimed back if they were incurred as a direct result of your accident such as the cost of returning to the UK because you had to delay your original flight due to being unfit to travel.
- Care costs are another element that can be included in your claim if, because of your car crash, you need to have somebody support you with tasks that you’d usually complete yourself.
With any of the financial parts of the claim it’d be best if you could provide receipts, credit card or bank statements as evidence of your expenditure.
Balearic Islands Car Accident Compensation Calculator
The table below outlines what amounts can be paid out for certain injuries under the general damage’s element of a claim (see above). Remember, this is only a guide and also only one element of a claim – we can provide a better estimate for you once we’ve spoken with you and fully understand your particular accident.
| Part of body injured (and severity) | Range of compensation | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Severe – neck | £39,870 – £130,060 | This covers a very severe injury with long term damage |
| Minor – neck | Up to – £2,150 | This is usually the category that whiplash |
| Moderate – back | £10,970 – £34,000 | Such as muscle damage, injuries and damage affecting the back. |
| Minor – back | Up to £10,970 | Very minor injuries to the back with no permanent or lasting injuries. |
| Moderate – foot | £12,050 – £21,910 | More serious than the category above. Greater extent of injury and a longer recovery. |
| Serious – foot | £21,910 – £34,370 | May include injuries up to and including the loss of use of the foot but not requiring amputation (a serious disability) |
| Severe – foot | £36,800 – £61,410 | The victim will likely have a permanent disability in this foot. |
| Very Severe – foot | £73,620 – £96,150 | More severe forms of injury than the above with a greater extent of injury. |
| Amputation – one foot | £73,620 – £96,150 | This the range of compensation following a complete amputation of one foot. |
| Amputation – two feet | £148,540 – £176,660 | This is the range of compensation covering total amputation of both feet. |
Remember, this is only a sample of all of the injuries than can be incurred, so if your injury isn’t listed then please give us a call to discuss what your claim might be worth.
No Win No Fee Claim For Car Accidents Abroad
No win no fee solicitors operate in a way that makes any claim a lot more stress free as you never actually have to send them an upfront payment.
If your no win no fee solicitor wins the case and you get paid compensation, then they retain an agreed percentage and send the rest straight to you.
If they lose the case, then you don’t have to pay any fees for their service whatsoever. There are no initial fees or hourly rates to pay which makes this type of claim risk free.
Claim Compensation With Our Accident Abroad Experts
Legal Expert only deal with personal injury claims and have successfully helped many clients over many years. We only operate on a no win no fee basis and would love to help you with your claim.
Largest towns and cities in the Balearic Islands
For your information, here are the largest areas in the Balearic Islands:
Palma de Mallorca
Calvia
Ibiza
Manacor
Santa Eularia des Riu
Marrratxi
Llucmajor
Cirutadella de Menorca
Mahon
Sant Antoni de Portmany
Contact Us
Now that you’ve read this guide about claiming compensation for a car accident in the Balearic Islands, we hope you’re ready to use Legal Expert as your personal injury solicitor. If so, you can contact us by:
- Telephone: Call us free on 0800 073 8804
- Live Chat: Available 7 days a week to answer any queries you may have
- Email: Send a message to info@legalexpert.co.uk
- Online: Use our easy online form to begin you claim
British Consular Services And More Helpful Guides
Here are some useful contact details and resources that you may find useful:
British Consulate Palma de Mallorca
Carrer Convent dels Caputxins, 4
Edificio Orisiba B4oD
Spain
Tel: +34 93 366 6200
Web: https://www.gov.uk/world/organisations/british-consulate-palma-de-mallorca
Balearic Island Accident Claims – a comprehensive guide about claims on the islands, not just for car accidents.
Majorca Holiday Accident Claims – another guide on holiday accidents, this time regarding the island of Majorca.
Further Helpful Articles:
