What Is A Conditional Fee Agreement?

A CFA is an agreement between you and a legal representative that provides cover for the legal costs in the event that the claim succeeds. In this section, we’ll look at them in more detail, as well as a similar type of agreement called Damages Based Agreements.

What is a CFA solicitor?

A CFA solicitor is someone who operates on a No Win No Fee basis. They only take a success fee if they win the claim for you. This means that they are taking the risk that they won’t be paid at all if your claim isn’t successful.

They’re also accepting that there will be a delay in them receiving payment when representing you in this way. Whereas usually a solicitor would be paid throughout the claims process, a CFA solicitor will not receive payment until the end of a successful case.

What is a Damages Based Agreement?

A Damages Based Agreement or Contingency Fee Agreement is where the solicitor and the client agree on an amount that needs to be achieved in order for the solicitor to receive payment.

When And How Did Conditional Fee Agreements Change?

Prior to 2013, when making a personal injury claim under a CFA, the defendant would be the one to pay the claimant solicitor’s legal fees and compensation. However, the changes made as per the Conditional Fee Agreements Order 2013 (CFAO) meant that the defendant was no longer responsible for paying all the legal costs for the claimant. The claimant now has to make up some of their solicitor’s fee in respect to a success fee.

The problem for solicitors is there is no guarantee of being paid and facing costs they have paid out on the case.

How Does A Conditional Fee Agreement Work?

The payment of a success fee in a CFA is dependant on whether the claim is successful. If the claim is unsuccessful, you won’t have to pay the success fee.

Law firms will often charge 25%, which is the maximum they can deduct from your compensation. However, here at UK Law, we have a panel of solicitors that can offer terms lower depending on your personal injury claim.

For more information on this, you can speak to our team on the number above about making a claim with a solicitor from our panel today.

Could I Pull Out Of Making My Claim?

It is possible to withdraw your claim before it settles. However, in doing so, you may be expected to pay for any work done up to that point. This is because, when you pull out of the claim, you remove the solicitor’s chance of covering their costs.

However, if you’re working with a No Win No Fee solicitor, all the terms and conditions will be explained within the Conditional Fee Agreement you will sign before you begin your case.

Conditional Fee Agreement Compensation Calculator

Now that we’ve discussed what a CFA agreement is, you might want to know what compensation you could be awarded. There are two heads of claim to consider:

Any pain or suffering resulting from your injuries are covered by general damages. This includes a loss of amenity, which is when you are unable to partake in activities you typically enjoy.
Financial harm, such as out-of-pocket expenses or losses, are included in special damages. For example, your injury might require you to take time off work meaning you endure a loss of earnings.

Although special damages are unique to each claimant, we are able to offer you some insight into what general damages you could be awarded using the Judicial College Guidelines (JCG). Legal professionals are known to use the JCG to estimate the value of personal injury claims.

Using the 16th edition of the JCG, we have created the table below. Please only use the figures as guidelines.

Edit
Claimant Injury	Other details	Compensation Amount
Shoulder (b)	Serious shoulder dislocation alongside other symptoms such as damage to the brachial plexus which causes shoulder and neck pain.	£12,770 to £19,200
Shoulder (c)	Moderate shoulder injury such as frozen shoulder which affects movement and causes discomfort.	£7,890 to £12,770
Wrist (e)	A simple colles’ fracture	In the region of £7,430
Wrist (f)	A minor undisplaced wrist fracture	£3,530 to £4,740
Chest (g)	Fractured ribs resulting in serious pain	Up to £3,950
Severe Hip Injury (iii)	Fractured hip that results in a hip replacement that may need future surgery.	£39,170 to £52,500
Lesser Hip Injury (ii)	Lesser injuries: (ii) A minor soft tissue injury that results in a full recovery.	Up to £3,950
Foot (d)	Severe fracture of both heels or both feet that need ongoing treatment.	£41,970 to £70,030
Modest Foot (g)	A ruptured ligament in the foot that causes ongoing symptoms.	Up to £13,740

Get in touch if you would like a personal injury lawyer from our panel to assess your claim and determine how much you might be compensated. They can also answer any questions about a Conditional Fee Agreement in the UK.

What evidence do I need?

In order to support your claim, you will need to provide evidence to support your claim. For instance:

CCTV footage, witness details, police reports, pictures of the accident and traffic camera footage could all be used to show that you were not at fault for the accident.
Medical records showing the injuries you sustained, the severity of them, the diagnosis you were given, the medication or treatment plan prescribed and actioned.
Receipts to show any care costs, travel expenses, medical bills or payslips to show any loss of earnings, loss of attendance bonus, loss of pension.

For more information on how much you could be owed in compensation, speak to a member of our team today. You could receive a free, no-obligation valuation of your claim.

What Happens If Your Claim Is Successful?

If you have used a No Win No Fee solicitor and your claim is successful, you’ll be required to pay a success fee. However, this is capped at 25%, which is the maximum amount that a solicitor can take. It will be deducted from your compensation settlement. The defendant’s insurer will pay the rest of the legal fees of your solicitor.

The unsuccessful party in the claim will usually pay any expenses that your solicitor has incurred in pursuing your claim. Things that could be paid back by the losing party include:

Barrister fees
The cost of an independent medical examination to assess your injuries
Travel expenses

What Happens If Your Claim Is Unsuccessful?

If your claim is unsuccessful and you’re working with a No Win No Fee solicitor, you won’t be asked to pay the success fees. Furthermore, the defendant’s insurer will not pay any of the claimant’s solicitors fees either in unsuccessful cases.

However, there are some specific circumstances where you might be asked to pay legal fees. For instance:

If your claim was found to be fraudulent, or you had no grounds to claim.
If your claim exploited the court and its procedures
You acted dishonestly during the process of the claim
You only made a claim to financially benefit someone else.

Is There Anything You Can Do If The Defendant Does Not Pay?

In some cases, the defendant may fail or refuse to pay your compensation.

If this happens, you could ask the court to take further action. This is called enforcing the judgement and can include a:

Warrant of control– this is where enforcement agents try to collect the money the defendant owes you. They can also take goods from the defendant’s home and business to sell at auction to recover your funds.
Attachment of earnings order- this is where the defendant’s employer deducts an amount from their earnings and sends it to a collections office. This money is then sent to you.
Third-party debt order- this is where the defendant’s bank account or building society is frozen, and you’re paid the money you’re owed from the account.
Charging order- this is an order which prevents the defendant from selling any of their assets without paying you what you’re owed.

You must ask the court to take this action; they will not do so without being instructed by you.

What Is The Difference Between A Damages Based Agreement And A Conditional Fee Agreement?

A Damages Based Agreement or Contingency Fee Agreement and a Conditional Fee Agreement CFA are similar in that you pay a success fee should your solicitor win your claim.

There are differences in the nature of the success fee between a Damages Fee Agreement and a Conditional Fee Agreement. For instance, the maximum success fee you’ll pay when making a personal injury claim under a Conditional Fee Agreement is 25%. However, with a Damages Based Agreement the higher the amount recovered the higher the fee the solicitor is able to take.

How Long Do You Have To Start A Personal Injury Claim?

For personal injury claims, you generally have three years to start your claim. This time limit may either start from:

The date you were in the accident
The date you gained knowledge of someone else’s failing leading or contributing to the accident (referred to as the “date of knowledge”.

However, there are certain claims where this time limit may differ. For instance, if you were under the age of 18 when you were injured, you would still have three years to claim. However, the limitation period would not start until you turn 18. Furthermore, as an alternative to claiming for themselves, a parent, guardian or solicitor could act on their behalf if they successfully applied to be a litigation friend. A litigation friend can claim on your behalf at any point until you turn 18.

Additionally, those who lack the mental capacity to claim can also be represented by a litigation friend. While they’re unable to pursue their own claim, the time limit is suspended. The three-year limitation period starts again in the event that they regain their mental capacity.

We understand that it can be difficult to know if you’re still within the time limit to claim, as there are several exceptions to the general claims time limit. If so, you can speak to our team to find out how long you have left to claim. They’ll be able to let you know if any of the exceptions apply to your specific situation.

Conditional Fee Agreements And No Win No Fee Claims

If you’d like to make a personal injury claim using a No Win No Fee solicitor, you could work with a solicitor from our panel. They all handle claims on this basis, meaning if they are unsuccessful with your claim, you won’t be asked to pay your solicitor.

If they are successful, you will pay the success fee from your compensation settlement. However, the fee is capped, and your solicitor will make you aware of the fee before going ahead with your claim. Additionally, you can avoid upfront costs and any ongoing costs that build up while your claim is being processed.

If this is something you’d be interested in, you can enquire with our team. Firstly, they can assess whether you have a valid claim. If you do, they can connect you with a solicitor from our panel. They can then guide you through the next steps of the claims process.

Alternatively, if you’re not ready to make a claim, they can simply provide more information. So why not get in touch with us? You can do so on the following:

Call us on 020 3870 4868
Speak to an advisor at a time convenient to you by requesting a call-back
Chat with an advisor now and get instant advice using the live chat feature below

Useful Pages

See the Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act (LASPO) 2012 for further details on the costs associated with legal representation.

See how the Whiplash Reform Programme might affect your compensation for road traffic accident claims.

Visit the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents for more details on accident prevention.

For more information on personal injury compensation, our guide could help.

See our guide on getting more money from an injury claim.

Visit our guide for more information on what to do if your whiplash claim is refused.

FAQs

In this section, we have provided further details on the success fee involved in conditional fee agreements.

Who pays the success fee?

A success fee is paid to a No Win No Fee solicitor if the case is won. The success fee will come out of your compensation should your claim be successful. Before 2013, a success fee may have been paid by the defendant’s insurer.

What are collective conditional fee agreements?

A collective conditional fee agreement has the same principles as a typical CFA. However, it may be taken out on behalf of multiple clients, such as a class action.

We hope our guide provided you with an answer to the question ‘what is a conditional fee agreement?’. Thank you for taking the time to read.

Writer AC

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