In the event that you or a person you care for is involved in a car or motor cycle accident, the following is the process that you need to follow to make a claim for compensation for the personal injuries suffered:-
- If possible, gather as much information from the accident scene as may be possible including taking pictures of the damaged vehicle and the general scene.
- Obtain treatment from a suitable hospital and ensure you keep a record of the medical documents including Hospital card, treatment notes, invoices issued, receipt of payments made, X rays, discharge summaries, medical report if any.
- Report the accident immediately to the police in charge of the area where the accident occurred and obtain an OB (Occurrence Book) number and get a P3 (Medical Report) form from the Police which you will take to the government hospital the police will refer you or to the Police Doctor for filling.
- Return the filled P3 Form to the Police Station and in turn, get a Police Abstract (the Abstract will have the necessary details of the incident including date, time, road, vehicles involved, names of vehicle owner or driver, name of victim and nature of injury).
- Get a private doctor to prepare a medical legal report. This report is more comprehensive than a P3 form and indicates whether the injuries have healed completely, percentage of incapacitation if any, whether any further treatment is required and at what costs.
- Either through an Advocate or by yourself, Issue a demand letter to the vehicle owner & driver and copy it to their insurance Company noting to indicate that in the event they don’t meet the claim within 14 days, you will file a claim in court.
- If payment is not made within 14 day, file a case in court against the owner and driver of the vehicle. Please note than you do not sue the insurer at this stage. In the event of minor injuries, file in a small claims court but in the event that the compensation sought is between 1 million and 20 Million shillings, file in a magistrate’s court and High Court if the amount sought exceeds 2o million shillings:-
- In the Small Claims Court, use the forms and format provided for that court. An internet search will reveal them.
- In any other Court, prepare the Plaint, Verifying Affidavit, List of Witnesses, Witness Statement, List of Documents and Summons to Enter Appearance. NB the documents to be listed must include a Police Abstract, P3, Medical Legal Report, Official Motor Vehicle search, receipts of amounts paid etc.
- Upon filing of the case, file the documents online in court and once the same is responded to, undertake what is called a pretrial to ensure the matter is ready for trial.
- Take a hearing date.
- On the hearing date, give testimony in court by adopting your witness statement and producing your bundle of documents.
- Upon conclusion of the hearing, do written submissions to summarise the case, the evidence and the law. indicate how much you wish to be paid. The Defendants will do the same.
- Attend court to take the judgment.
- Write to the registry to issue you with a Decree and Certificate of Costs.
- Forward a copy of the Decree to the Defendant or his lawyer for payment.
- If no payment is made, use any of the permitted methods of collecting money (sending auctioneers, having the owner or driver committed to Civil jail, attaching the salary or attaching the bank account of the owner or driver).
- If payment is not realized using the above method, you can file a declaratory suit against the Insurance Company of the vehicle that caused the accident and once judgment is given, collect the funds from the insurance company directly.
Where death is involved
- Obtain a Post Mortem report, Death Certificate and a Police Abstract.
- File a succession case to obtain a temporary grant of Letters of administration (Grant ad Litem).
- With the Grant, you will have been put in the shoes of the deceased and can follow the steps above to claim compensation.
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