The Benefits of Legal Assistance in Personal Injury

Once liability is established, the liable party's insurer must pay the reasonable costs of establishing the claim and obtaining payment out of court (Article 6:96(2) of the Dutch Civil Code). In practice this means a personal injury victim can often be assisted at no cost, because those legal costs are recovered from the liable party.

For additional general information, see Victim Support Netherlands information for victims.

When you are injured in an accident, a lot comes at you at once: recovery, costs, work, the future. That is exactly when legal assistance in a personal injury claim matters. A specialist makes sure your loss is claimed volledig en onderbouwd, that you receive sneller voorschotten and that you get what you are entitled to — without having to fight the legal battle yourself.

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Types of accident that can lead to a personal injury claim

A personal injury claim arises where someone else causes you physical or psychological harm. Common situations are:

• Verkeersongevallen (cyclist, pedestrian, driver, motorcyclist; also e-bike, scooter and public transport). See also: Step by step: claiming after an accident.

• Bedrijfsongevallen (falls from height, machinery injuries, building sites). uitzendkrachten en zzp’ers can be victims too. Read more: Arbeidsongevallen en uitzendkrachten.

• Work-related situations away from the workplace (bedrijfsuitje, stage, dienstreis).

• Accidents caused by animals (bijv. hondenbeet).

• Incidents in everyday life (slipping in a supermarket, sport and games) where another party is wholly or partly liable.

In all these cases there may be a right to schadevergoeding where someone else is wholly or partly responsible. More context: How does a personal injury claim work?

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Zelf letselschade claimen of juridische hulp inschakelen?

In theory you can hold the other party liable yourself. In practice it often goes wrong:

• Heads of loss get forgotten (toekomstig inkomensverlies, pensioenopbouw, huishoudelijke hulp).

• Te lage regeling under pressure from the insurer.

• Onvoldoende bewijs (medische onderbouwing, rapportages, prognoses).

• Termijnen en juridische eisen are overlooked.

The result: you do not receive the volledige compensation. A specialist avoids these pitfalls and builds dossieropbouw that stands up.

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Do you always need a lawyer for a personal injury claim?

Usually not. Most cases are resolved buitengerechtelijk with the insurer. A lawyer is only required once court proceedings become unavoidable.
At Arslan Advocaten we then make sure your file is handled by a gespecialiseerde huisadvocaat — so you always have expert assistance.

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What forms of legal assistance are there?

1) Legal assistance through your insurer

Do you have rechtsbijstandsverzekering (for example DAS, ARAG or Univé)? An in-house lawyer will often handle it. The drawback can be: wisselende behandelaars, minder persoonlijk contact of langere doorlooptijden.

2) Onafhankelijke letselschadeadvocaat of -jurist

Without legal expenses insurance — or if you want independent advice — you can go to a gespecialiseerde letselschadeadvocaat. In the Netherlands, where liability is established, the reasonable costs of legal assistance are as a rule recovered from the other party’s insurer. Resultaat: kosteloze rechtsbijstand for you.

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The advantages of legal assistance

1. You get what you are entitled to

We map out alle schadeposten in kaart — nu én toekomstig:

• Medische kosten en revalidatie

• Inkomensschade en gemiste pensioenopbouw

• Huishoudelijke hulp en mantelzorg

• Reiskosten en overige onkosten

• Smartengeld

• Aanpassingen thuis/werk en re-integratiesteun

Zie achtergrond: Liability in personal injury: what you need to know.

2. Kosteloze rechtsbijstand

For clients our assistance is kosteloos in most cases, because once liability is established we recover our reasonable costs from the liable party or insurer under Article 6:96 of the Dutch Civil Code. Where liability is disputed or not established, that does not apply, and we will say so at the outset. (Note: we do not use the term no cure no pay; your costs are recovered from the other party.)

3. Deskundige ondersteuning (juridisch + medisch)

We work with NIVRE-register experts and medical advisers, so that your file is inhoudelijk sterk en medisch goed onderbouwd.

4. Sneller resultaat en voorschotten

Through tight file-building and direct contact with insurers we often arrange early in the process an voorschot, zodat u financiële lucht krijgt.

5. You are not on your own

We take the communicatie, bewijsvoering en onderhandelingen entirely off your hands. You focus on recovery; we focus on your rights.

6. A specialist near you

Arslan Advocaten werkt landelijk en persoonlijk — and we can come to you if you prefer.

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Veelvoorkomende begrippen kort uitgelegd

• Aansprakelijkheid – who is responsible for the accident and the loss?

• Schadevergoeding – compensation for all financial and non-material loss.

• Smartengeld – compensation for pain, distress and loss of quality of life.

• Medische expertise – an independent medical opinion on the injury and the prognosis.

• Voorschot – an interim payment by the insurer.

• Arbeidsdeskundige – an expert who assesses the impact on work and income.

• Verjaringstermijn – the statutory period within which you must claim.

• Eigen schuld – any contribution by the victim can affect the amount of compensation.

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How we help you — from start to finish

1. Contact & intake – you fill in the form and we contact you.

2. Vrijblijvend advies – we assess straight away whether you have a claim.

3. Aansprakelijk stellen – we write to the other party or the insurer.

4. Voorschot – we request an appropriate advance as soon as possible.

5. Volledige afwikkeling – full calculation of the loss and negotiation through to maximale compensatie.

More about the process: How does a personal injury claim work? and the practical Stappenplan.

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Veelgestelde vragen (FAQ)

Is juridische hulp écht kosteloos?
Yes. Where liability is established, Arslan Advocaten recovers the reasonable costs from the other party’s insurer, so you do not pay us yourself.

I already have legal expenses insurance. Can I switch?
Yes. You are free to choose your own representative. We can dossier kosteloos overnemen if that is in your interest.

How quickly will I get an advance?
Once liability is accepted in whole or in part, we request an advance straight away. How long that takes differs per case, but we press hard for snelle liquiditeit.

What if the insurer disputes liability?
Then we bring in alle juridische en medische middelen (experts, witnesses, additional reports). We litigate only where that is genuinely necessary — and with a specialist lawyer in-house.

Is ‘no cure no pay’ verstandig?
In letselschade meestal not necessary. Because the other party must reimburse your reasonable legal costs where liability is established, our assistance is kosteloos without you having to hand over part of your compensation.

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Why choose Arslan Advocaten?

• Gespecialiseerde letselschadeadvocaten with many years of experience

• NIVRE-register experts: juridische én verzekeringskundige expertise

• Kosteloze rechtsbijstand: we recover our costs from the other party where liability is established

• Persoonlijke aanpak: snelle bereikbaarheid, heldere uitleg, maatwerk

• Resultaatgericht: we know how insurers operate and we press for optimale compensatie

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Get in touch for a free assessment

Would you like your case assessed, or to start recovering your loss straight away?
Contact Arslan Advocaten. We assess your file free of charge and guide you step by step towards the right compensation.

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Related Legal Services

• Learn more about Personal Injury
• Learn more about Insurance Law