(Photo : Tingey Injury Law Firm on Unsplash)

Lawyers cost a lot of money, at least that's usually the case. For example, if you need a personal injury lawyer (Dutch: letselschade advocaat), you will have to pay the costs of this personal injury lawyer in almost all countries. This is only different in the Netherlands. If you need a personal injury lawyer after a dog bite (Dutch: hondenbeet) or traffic accident, you will not pay any costs if someone else is liable for your injury.

How does this work, free personal injury after an accident in the Netherlands? And is this really as great as it seems at first? Or are there pitfalls and is free help with personal injury actually not a good idea at all?

How can free legal assistance be obtained in case of personal injury?

In almost all countries you pay your personal injury lawyer yourself. How is it possible that you can be entitled to a free personal injury lawyer in the Netherlands? A lawyer must be paid, right?

The right to a free personal injury lawyer is included in the law in the Netherlands. This states that if someone else is liable for your injury, the costs of legal assistance form part of your personal injury compensation. In other words, the other party must reimburse your personal injury and the costs of a personal injury lawyer. If your personal injury is the result of a traffic accident, then compulsory insurance applies. The costs of a personal injury specialist are then paid by personal injury insurance.

What is the disadvantage of free legal assistance in case of personal injury?

A beautiful system at first glance, free assistance in case of injury as a result of a collision, industrial accident or dog bite. Unfortunately, there are also disadvantages to this system. The law does not state that you are entitled to free assistance from a personal injury lawyer, but that the costs of legal assistance are part of the compensation. This makes it possible for others besides personal injury lawyers to be involved in personal injury claims.

Because legal assistance in the event of personal injury is often ultimately paid for by the personal injury insurer, many entrepreneurs have started to deal with personal injury claims. The result is a deluge of personal injury agencies that are engaged in offering legal assistance for personal injury claims. This is at the expense of the quality of legal assistance in the Netherlands.

Personal injury lawyers and legitimate personal injury agencies do everything they can to promote the quality of legal assistance and to ensure that people choose a personal injury lawyer or recognized personal injury lawyer. They do this, among other things, by creating quality marks. For example, the association of personal injury lawyers has a quality mark, and this also applies to a group of recognized personal injury lawyers. But despite everything, the number of personal injury bureaus is still growing, and this is a great danger for the quality of the legal assistance of personal injury victims in the Netherlands.

So, the system in the Netherlands is nice, but it also has a downside. Unfortunately, politicians in the Netherlands do nothing about these bad practices. Insurers, who generally pay the costs of legal assistance to victims, are also doing nothing so that the situation will not change for the time being.