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We are happy to help you and ensure a smooth handling of your case. Quickly find out what you are entitled to. Elfi Advocaten also provides assistance on the basis of government-funded legal aid (supplement). If your income and assets are below a certain income threshold, we will submit a request to the Council for Legal Aid, after which the government will in many cases pay your lawyer’s fees (subsidize). However, you will still have to pay a (one-time) own contribution. The amount of this depends on your income. More information and current income and asset norms can be found on www.rvr.org under the heading “Information for those seeking justice”. Please feel free to contact us to discuss your issue in more detail and discuss the treatment. More information and current income and asset norms can be found on www.rvr.org under the heading “Information for those seeking justice”.
An employer has a duty of care to his employees. This means that he must ensure that his employees work in a safe workplace. If an employee nevertheless suffers injury (physical or mental) in the performance of his duties, he can hold the employer liable. An example of physical injury is when an employee falls from scaffolding and breaks his leg as a result. Another example is when an employee gets his finger caught in a machine and has to have that finger amputated as a result. For mental injuries, you should think of burnout, for example.
The employee is first in line when holding the employer liable. The employee only has to prove that he suffered injury, and that it happened in the course of his work. If the employee succeeds, the employer must prove that it took all necessary precautions to ensure that the employee did not suffer injury. The employer can also plead intent or serious recklessness on the part of the employee. It is up to the employer to prove this. It follows from case law that it is almost never ruled that an employee acted intentionally.
The employer’s duty of care also extends to persons who perform work for the employer, but do not have an employment contract with that employer. With the latter category, you should think of temporary workers and self-employed workers, for example. In addition, the employer has a duty of care towards its trainees and volunteers. The employer also has a duty of care towards homeworkers. For more information on this, see the heading “Accidents in and around the home”.
Holding an employer liable can also be done for damages sustained outside the workplace. For example, consider a parcel delivery driver who falls while delivering parcels and breaks his leg. This damage was then also incurred in the course of work. The employer can also be held liable if his employees sustain damage during a company outing.
If you want to know more about other employment law topics, see the “Employment law” section on Elfi’s website.
If you have suffered personal injury as a result of an accident at work, Elfi can help you with your claim for damages against your employer.
A product is defective if it does not provide the safety that can be expected. If you suffer personal injury as a result of using a defective product, you can hold several parties liable for your losses. Among others, you can hold the producer, manufacturer and seller of the product liable.
A number of factors are considered when determining liability. One example of these factors is whether the injured party complied with the product’s instructions for use. Another example is what the producer knew about the safety of the product when he marketed it.
It is important to note that the limitation period in a product liability claim is three years. This limitation period starts to run from the moment the injured party knows who caused his damage, the defect of the product and the identity of the producer. There is also a 10-year limitation period to bring a claim based on a defective product. This begins to run from the time the product was put on the market.
Getting to product liability is tricky. Therefore, it is important to be assisted by an expert personal injury lawyer. Elfi Lawyers is ready to assist you.
If injury is sustained during sports, there may be a right to compensation.
Personal injury resulting from a sports and games situation is a special category, though. Indeed, in sports and game situations, a higher limit applies to establish liability. This is because in such situations, people are aware that there is a higher chance of suffering personal injury due to the nature of the activity. In football, for example, it is not surprising for a footballer to sustain an injury from a kick while playing. One accepts the risk of it. This is very different outside the sports field.
Personal injury sustained while playing sports will only lead to compensation if there is a “gross violation”. We speak of a gross violation when the act causing injury goes beyond the rules of the game. An example is when you are kicked on the football pitch by an opponent after the referee has blown the match off. This is because the sporting situation is over at that point. The victim, the kicked footballer, should not have expected this behaviour.
When determining liability in a sports and game situation, the violation of a rule of play is not sufficient to establish liability. Other factors come into play, such as the presence of intent and the presence of an actual sport and game situation. In case of ambiguity in establishing liability, a judge’s opinion may provide more insight.
A special category within sports and games situations is school gym class. For example, if a pupil breaks his leg during gym class, he can hold both the person who caused his injury and the school liable.
In sports and games situations, it is difficult to establish liability. A specialised personal injury lawyer can make all the difference here. Elfi Lawyers will be happy to help you.
Personal injury can be caused by road accidents. For example, you may suffer a spinal cord injury or whiplash from a road accident. A proper investigation is needed to find out what caused the accident. Often the cause is obvious, but this is not always the case. In cases where the cause is not easy to ascertain, a police report, for instance, will have to be consulted. Witnesses, if any, will also have to be interviewed. If none of this offers a solution, one of the options is to appoint an expert specialising in traffic accidents through the courts.
Once the cause of the accident has been established, there are other factors that may play a role in determining liability. For example, what was the age of the victim? Namely, if the victim was under 14 years old, this is more likely to lead to a finding of liability. Also important is whether there was intent, deliberate recklessness or force majeure on the part of the road users. It is also important that weaker road users, such as cyclists and pedestrians, are more protected by the law than stronger road users, such as motorists.
Once liability is established, damages must be determined. This is done by preparing a statement of damages. A statement of damages lists all your material and immaterial damages.
Elfi Advocaten offers you expert legal assistance in personal injury cases.
Animals can behave unpredictably. Think of a horse making an unexpected move, causing the rider to fall off the saddle and break an arm. Another example could be a dog suddenly biting a child’s leg. If an animal causes injury, the victim can get compensation. For this, however, liability must first be established. However, an animal itself cannot be held liable. Therefore, there is strict liability in this case. This means that, in principle, the owner of an animal is liable for the behaviour of his animal. If the animal damages a person or another animal, the possessor of this animal will pay for it. The owner of the animal does not have to be at fault for the injury his animal caused to another person.
Liability may involve fault on the part of the injured party. For example, if the injured party kicked the animal and the animal reacted to that, then the injured party provoked that reaction himself. Another factor may be whether someone other than the owner had authority over the animal at the time of the injury.
Elfi Advocaten has several specialised lawyers who can help you with animal liability.
In accidents in and around the home, also known as “house, garden and kitchen accidents”, damages can be claimed. House, garden and kitchen accidents can occur, for example, in the context of (home) work. In the case of (home) work, the employer can be held liable if the employee suffers damage at home. This must be an unforeseeable accident. Everyday accidents that take place in the employee’s private life are not covered. For example, if the employee cuts himself with a knife while buttering a sandwich while working from home, the employer is not liable for this. If you want to know more about employer liability, you can look under the heading “Accidents at work”.
For accidents that do not occur in the context of (home) work, there are also conceivable situations in which liability can be established. Consider the situation where someone lying in a hammock is injured because the pillar to which the hammock is attached breaks. You can then hold the co-owner or owner of that hammock liable. Other situations are also conceivable in which liability can be established in the event of an accident in and around the house. A child injured by a fall from the trampoline may be able to hold the manufacturer or owner of the trampoline liable. An injury caused by a fire at a barbecue may also be able to hold the producer or owner of the barbecue liable. However, the products must be defective.
To properly handle your claim, it is best to be assisted by a specialist. At Elfi Lawyers, there are several specialists ready to assist you.
Recently, the Court of Justice ruled that a tour operator is liable if something happens to you during your trip. In this case, a holidaymaker had been assaulted and raped by a hotel employee. The hotel employee in question worked at the hotel that was in the holidaymaker’s package deal. For this incident, the holidaymaker was able to hold the tour operator with whom she had entered into the package holiday agreement liable.
In most cases, as the injured party, you have ongoing travel and/or cancellation insurance. You can then rely on this to get compensation. In addition, you can hold the tour operator who arranged your trip liable under the package travel agreement you entered into. A package travel agreement is an agreement consisting of several travel services. Think of accommodation, transport, car rental and so on. You book these different travel services through one travel operator. It therefore also bears responsibility for what happens to these different travel services.
For example, in case you fall down a flight of stairs on a cruise ship because the stairs are faulty, you may be able to hold the tour operator liable. This is because the tour operator has to ensure that you have a safe trip. What matters in holding you liable, among other things, is what precautions the tour operator took to prevent damage.
If you are unsure whether your situation falls under these cases, please contact Elfi Advocaten. We will help you further.
If you suffer damage, you can hold the person causing the damage liable and claim compensation. To calculate the compensation, a statement of damages will be drawn up. A statement of damages expresses the injured party’s damages in amounts. These amounts are determined on the basis of documentary evidence, such as medical data and pay slips.
The statement of damages usually consists of (compensation for immaterial damage), medical costs, assistance with household chores and loss of income (Loss of earning capacity). For loss of income, income from undeclared work may also be included.
Other damages include:
Becoming a victim of a sexual or violent crime has far-reaching consequences. For example, you have been assaulted or injured by another person. Not only may you have suffered physical injury from the crime, but also psychological injury. If the perpetrator has been convicted criminally, this establishes his liability. You can then claim damages.
You can claim damages by inserting yourself in the criminal proceedings as an injured party. It is then up to the criminal court to assess your claim. The advantage of this joinder is that a compensation measure can be imposed. The offender is then obliged to pay compensation for the victim to the State. The State ensures that the victim receives the compensation, regardless of whether the offender eventually pays the compensation. The recovery risk therefore lies with the State and not with the victim.
For a claim for compensation to be awarded, the offender must have received punishment and the damage must have been caused by the offence committed by the offender. As a victim, you can further appeal to the Damage Fund for Violent Crimes. This must be done within ten years from the occurrence of the violent crime. In addition, a victim can also initiate civil proceedings to claim compensation.
Elfi Advocaten specialises in compensation claims for sexual and violent crimes and will gladly assist you.
In some cases, a third party can also claim compensation in the event of the death of at loved one. If the injured party died at the hands of another person, the injured party’s next of kin can receive compensation for death damages. Relatives can claim compensation for funeral expenses in any case. In death damages, you can also get compensation for lost living expenses. Think of income lost for living expenses because the injured party died. In addition, consider other things that are lost, such as the care that the injured party provided for his or her partner.
As a result of the death of a loved one, the victim’s loved one may suffer shock damage or affection damage. For a further explanation of these two types of damages, see the headings “Shock damage” and “Affection damage”.
Furthermore, life insurance in death damages is important. With life insurance, an amount is paid out because the person for whom the insurance policy was taken out has died. As a close relative of the deceased, you may then be entitled to compensation for death damages in certain cases.
Elfi Advocaten has specialised lawyers who can help you with this.
Shock damage is a form of damage caused by psychological injury to third parties due to the confrontation with or perception of (the serious consequences of) a shocking event.
For example, you see a loved one hit by a motorist.
There are a number of requirements to qualify for compensation for shock damage. First, that is, the loved one or survivor must have been directly confronted with the accident or its consequences. Second, this confrontation must have resulted in emotional shock. Thirdly, this shock must lead to demonstrable psychological injury, also called a psychiatric syndrome.
Shock damage differs from affection damage. With affection damage, there does not have to be a confrontation with a shocking event. For more information on affection damage, see the heading “Affection damage”.
Elfi Advocaten will be happy to assist you in claiming compensation for shock damage.
Affection damage is a form of third-party intangible damage. Affection damage occurs because people suffer great grief due to the death of or serious injury to a loved one as a result of an accident. The person who caused this damage can be held liable for it and may then have to compensate for the affection damage. This compensation is there to help relatives of the deceased meet their grief. Next of kin include the victim’s partner, his children or parents or others who have a similar relationship with him.
Affection damage has been eligible for compensation since 1 January 2019 with the introduction of the Affection Damage Act.
Before that, this was not the case. The Affection Damage Act does only apply to accidents that took place after 1 January 2019. This law has the lump-sum compensation system. This means that a fixed amount is paid in the case of affection damage.
Affection damage differs from shock damage. For more information on this, see the heading “Shock damage”.
The lawyers at Elfi Lawyers can help you claim compensation for affection damage.
Self-employed workers (zzp’ers) are a special category within liability law. In fact, as a self-employed person, there are fewer rules to protect you in case something goes wrong. If you become involved in an accident as a self-employed person, this can have major consequences for yourself and your business. Besides personal injury, the accident can also lead to economic damage. Namely, you may work less due to the accident, but your expenses remain the same. As a result, your business has less turnover. In addition, as a self-employed person, you do not have, for example, continued payment of wages during illness, which would have been the case if you were employed.
However, as a self-employed person, you can in some cases hold your client liable under employers’ liability. In that case, your damage must have occurred in the performance of the work you did for the client. See the heading “Accidents at work”.
If you are self-employed and have disability insurance, you will receive compensation if you are unable to work due to an accident. However, in some cases, the disability insurer may not want to compensate your full damages. The insurer may start being difficult about which damages are due to the accident and which are not.
Since estimating damages in self-employed cases is tricky, you would do well to seek the assistance of specialists. The lawyers at Elfi Lawyers are committed to looking after your interests.
Elfi Advocaten believes quality comes through specialisation: We specialised in personal injury law and victim law (bodily and fatal injuries), employment law en social security law. Because our focus on this area of law, we can deliver legal assistance of high quality. Our firm is located right in the centre of Rotterdam. We provide assistance to victims and their loved ones from all over the Netherlands.