Why we always advise clients not to exaggerate

There has been a recent story in the news both locally and nationally about a builder from Thornaby, Christopher Clinton, who was involved in a road traffic accident in 2016.

Mr Clinton claimed to have sustained injuries to his back, hips and right shoulder, which he said prevented him from doing his work as a builder because it was a very manual job involving lifting, climbing and crouching.

It would appear that the third party motor insurers, AXA, were suspicious of Mr Clinton’s claims and carried out some investigations.  In an alarming lack of insight, Mr Clinton’s social media posts showed him to be a very physically active individual and he had posted photographs and videos showing him swimming, rock climbing, skiing and ‘stair-surfing’ – sliding down the stairs on a board.  It is evident that he would not have been able to do such things if he was injured to the extent that he had claimed.

Even if a claim is largely legitimate and is backed by evidence, an exaggeration of any part of it could lead to a finding of fundamental dishonesty which would result in the entire claim being dismissed and the Claimant being ordered to pay the Defendant’s costs.  There is unfortunately no such reciprocal penalty for dishonest Defendants, and it is therefore imperative that Claimants are able to properly present and back up their claim with evidence.

Cases as blatant as that of Mr Clinton are of course rare.  However, because a finding of fundamental dishonesty is in effect a windfall for Defendants, they are very keen to exploit any inconsistencies in a Claimant’s evidence and seek such a finding, or to use the threat of it as a bargaining tool to have Claimants accept lower offers than they otherwise would.  This is why here at TBI we always advise clients throughout to ensure that they are able to fully support their claims with evidence and to ensure that they are able to present a consistent picture.