Why I want to shoot the legal eagle

NSM's mate was not hurt in the making of this poster, and incase you want to know, it was supposed to look like he had fallen down stairs, not passed out drunk... there again though knowing him.
I have been thinking about litigation recently. No, I am not getting sued (yet!) but there have been two insurance claims which got me thinking about this. The first involves my now elderly grandparents. Last year, they were run over by a car. They were not seriously hurt but enough to warrant a few days in hospital and some light treatment. Anyway, they have still yet to here anything off the various departments they went through to finally finish everything. The second is one of my oldest mates (in terms of how long I know him, not his age). A few months back, he was driving home from work when he crested a brow of a steep humped bridge and to his consternation saw a Mazda sports car which had suddenly braked in front of him. He was doing about 20-25mph when he did an emergency brake. He was still braking when there was a small impact at a speed of about 5 mph. The net result was a small dent in the other car in the boot lid which was about 5 mm deep and 15 cm across. The owner was out (I kid ye not) looking at the damage saying “I’ll need a new rear spoiler” [not damaged], was checking the wheels because “they could be out of alignment” and concluded that “the car was still drivable” in a manner which more suggested he had been in an 80mph smash or rolled the damn thing as opposed to getting a small dent. Now, my mate being the sort that he is was mortified by the immediate few seconds, and was anxious to know that the driver was OK. He was assured that he was, and insurance details were exchanged and that was that. Then, he got a letter months later saying that the other driver was claiming compensation for injuries occurred in an accident despite the fact that a) the driver was unhurt, b) was OK to drive to another UK country, and c) go on a Skiing holiday 2 weeks after. What injuries? Being a twat? Hey ho, what did my mate’s insurers do? Did they demand a medical, reports from doctors and a new medical to be done? Nope, they handed cash straight over.

Yes, I know it’s easy to get annoyed. My suggestion of taking some hospital headed notepaper and writing a letter to the persons address stating they had to come to the hospital’s GUM clinic because they had been identified as being the carrier in several STD cases reported on the week of the accident had to be vetoed after I realised that was slightly illegal (PS FOR THOSE OF YOU WITHOUT A SENSE OF HUMOR I AM JOKING!).

But, supposing that was a nurse who did that. Supposing I was a patient who claimed all sorts which could not be proved or disproved either way? There would be a great gulf in what we experience. One could be the long, drawn out and properly conducted sort, the other being the one where a mouthing patient automatically wins’s without question. There are problems out there, I know, but seeing as the definition of “bad care” was re-written 2 weeks ago in Kent, I wish there was less of a blame culture in this country so that Doctor’s, Nurses, Paramedics, Physiotherapists and all other health professions could do what they do best and thing “What’s best for me to do to this patient?” rather then “Now, what would I be sued for IF I do this?”. For example, years ago (1996), a first aider if he/she saw an injured child (say, laceration to the upper leg), they would go over, elevate the leg, apply direct pressure and put on a dressing with a triangular bandage. Now, they would be done for battery, sexual harassment and end up on a register. Don’t believe me? Think about this then: In 1996, if a man was walking down a street and he tripped and fell flat on his face and two people laughed at him, what would be the difference to today?
Well, in the former he would simply stand up, brush himself down, throw a dark look at the onlookers, then continue walking.
Today, he would lay out the ground, demand an ambulance and claim he has neck pain, end up (guess where) in an NHS hospital (so ambulance =£150, Basic 2 day stay in hospital £1500, charges for follow up appointment’s £800 total cost to the NHS = £2450 that would not have happed 11 years ago). Then he would try and sue the hospital (for anything), then sue the council for the injury, and claim for psychological damage against the two people who laughed at him. Which considering all he needed to do was to look where he was going and pick his feet up seems excessive. What do you think?