Things don’t always go as planned. Whether it’s a dispute with a tradesman, an unexpected injury or even a disagreement with your employer, we can all use a bit of extra assistance every now and then. That’s where Family Legal Protection could help.
What is Family Legal Protection?
Solicitor costs can be expensive, with rates ranging from £100- £300 per hour.
Family Legal Protection covers you for up to £100,000 worth of legal costs per claim for several issues, including Property and Employment Disputes, as well as Personal Injury claims.
It also provides a Legal Helpline available 24 hours a day, 365 days a year for advice on any personal legal matter that affects you or your family.
What can I claim for with Family Legal Protection?
Family Legal Protection will protect you and your family if you find yourselves in a difficult situation and covers common issues such as:
- Consumer disputes - If you have an issue involving goods or services you’ve bought or sold, we may be able to help cover your legal costs
- Personal injury - If you have an injury that wasn’t your fault, we may be able to help cover legal costs to pursue the person or business responsible. Examples include vehicle accidents, slips and dog bites
- Employment disputes - If your employer has breached your employment contract, we may be able to help cover costs if you wish to pursue legal action against them in an Employment Tribunal
Examples of claims
Personal Injury
Our customer was a passenger in a vehicle when they were hit by a falling tree. They suffered head trauma and multiple injuries before being transferred to hospital.
Outcome: Our customer contacted us to claim for compensation for the injuries sustained and loss of salary while they were out of work.
We were able to successfully secure a settlement of £65,000.
Employment Disputes
Our customer was subject to racial harassment at work. They were refused PPE kit, suffered damage and theft from their locker and numerous complaints were made about their agreed working hours by other employees.
Our customer was distressed and considered quitting their job as they didn’t feel supported by their employer.
Outcome: We appointed a solicitor to represent our customer at an Employment Tribunal and negotiated a settlement of £20,000.
Consumer Disputes
During some building work at our customer’s property, an area of exposed roof caused water damage to the internal ceilings of the existing building. Further damage was also caused to carpets and mattresses, and black, damp patches appeared on the walls.
Our customer felt the contractor’s work was poor quality and lacked care. They sought advice from the local council who confirmed the build didn’t comply with building regulations and was a health and safety risk. Our customer had to pay another contractor to complete the unfinished works.
Outcome: We were able to successfully negotiate a settlement of £5,800 for damages.
Your questions, answered
FLP can be complicated, and we get a lot of questions about it.
We’ve listed a few of the most frequent questions below.
Can I claim for dog and other animal bites?
Yes, you can.
Recently, we’ve seen an increase in dog bite claims, and we can cover these under FLP.
FLP is broad, so you may not realise what is and isn’t covered. We recommend reading your policy carefully if you’re ever unsure. Feel free to call our 24-hour legal advice helpline and quote Admiral Insurance Family Legal Protection for further help.
What can’t I claim for with Family Legal Protection?
There are certain situations that aren’t covered under your Family Legal Protection policy:
- where there’s no reasonable prospect of success, due to a lack of evidence or legal obstacles
- for disputes that started before the policy start date
What does ‘reasonable prospect of success’ mean?
A reasonable prospect of success means there must be a 51% or greater chance of winning the case and achieving a positive outcome.
A positive outcome includes: whether the amount of money in dispute is obtainable, whether a favourable judgement is achievable and whether or not there’s a better way to settle in your favour.
What if I don’t agree with the solicitor’s assessment of my claim’s ‘prospect of success’?
If you disagree with your legal representation’s opinion your case file may be reviewed by a senior solicitor, or we may request a barrister’s opinion.
Can I claim for an issue that began before I bought the policy?
You can’t claim for legal disputes that occurred before the start of your policy.
Can I claim for costs incurred before I make a claim?
You’re not able to claim for any costs incurred before your claim was accepted. It’s important to contact us as soon as possible once a dispute arises so we can advise the best way forward.
Can I choose my own solicitor?
Most claims are dealt with by our recommended solicitors unless legal proceedings have already been issued or a conflict of interest arises.
When a non-recommended solicitor is requested and agreed, the costs must be no more than our standard advisor’s costs.
When using a recommended solicitor, all legal costs involved in your claim will be covered by your policy up to the maximum amount payable.
How to make a Family Legal Protection claim
You can call our legal advice team on 0117 927 1852 or start your claim online.
If your claim incident start date is before 31st August 2022, you were insured with our previous supplier Arc Legal, you may be directed to them.
For a claim to be considered, it must be judged to have at least 51% prospect of success and you can’t claim for anything that happened before your policy start date.
If you don’t currently have Family Legal Protection you can take it out with us over the phone. Get in touch and we’ll be happy to help.
You can find the full policy wording in the Home Insurance policy booklet.
