Personal Injury Solicitors Cornwall
Injury Law Specialists provides access to personal injury solicitors acting for clients across Cornwall, from the clay country and the county's only city in the centre to the working ports and mining towns of the far west and the resorts on both coasts. If you have been injured in an accident that may have been caused by someone else’s negligence, we can review what happened and explain whether you may have grounds to pursue compensation.
Cornwall is unlike any other county in England in two ways that matter to how accidents happen. It has an industrial base of its own that survives from mining and clay, so claims here involve heavy plant, machinery and haul roads of a kind that barely appear elsewhere. And it has no motorway at all, with a single trunk road serving the entire peninsula, so everything crossing the county travels on largely single carriageway routes.
- Free initial claim assessment
- No Win No Fee may be available
- Clients throughout England & Wales
- 30+ years' collective legal experience
Three parts of Cornwall, three claim profiles
- The far west and the old mining districtCamborne, Redruth, Helston and Penzance
- The clay country and the centre of the countySt Austell, Bodmin and Truro
- The deep water harbour and the north coastFalmouth and Newquay
We help clients in Cornwall. We do not have an office in the county and we do not claim to.
Can I make a personal injury claim in Cornwall?
Yes, if you were injured in an accident caused by someone else’s negligence anywhere in Cornwall. Personal injury solicitors acting for Cornwall clients assess whether there are grounds to claim, investigate the evidence, instruct medical experts and negotiate with the insurer on your behalf. Whether a claim can be taken on depends on the circumstances, the evidence and when the accident happened, not on where you live in the county.
What makes Cornwall claims different
Four things account for a large share of the cases we see from Cornwall clients, and each of them arises here more than it does in most counties.
China clay, quarrying and heavy plant
St Austell sits at the centre of the world's principal china clay producing area. The industry involves very large plant, haul roads shared with heavy vehicles, processing works with machinery and rotating equipment, and dust and noise exposure, and it brings claims that arise nowhere else in the country. It also involves a great many self employed and subcontracted hauliers, whose position is different from that of a direct employee.
Commercial fishing, farming and food production
Cornwall is a genuinely agricultural county and Penzance, Newlyn, Falmouth and the north coast ports support commercial fishing. Both sectors involve machinery, livestock or vessels, uneven or moving ground, and physically demanding work, and fishing crew in particular are often engaged as self employed or as workers rather than employees, which changes which insurance applies and how a claim is brought.
One trunk road for the whole county
Cornwall has no motorway and the A30 is the single trunk road serving the entire peninsula, largely as a single carriageway. It carries the full volume of freight, agricultural and seasonal holiday traffic crossing the county, and beyond it the A38, A39, A390 and A394 are narrow, winding routes carrying volumes they were never designed for. Road claims here frequently involve agricultural vehicles, caravans and visitors unfamiliar with the roads.
Coastal towns whose geography creates the hazard
Falmouth, Newquay and Penzance are all built on slopes, headlands or clifftops above the water, with steep streets, steps, clifftop paths and promenades in constant use. Combined with surfaces exposed to salt, storms and tidal water, which deteriorate faster than inland paving, this produces a share of fall claims that a flatter county simply does not see.
How claims differ across Cornwall
The county divides into three recognisably different areas when it comes to how accidents happen.
The far west and the old mining district
Camborne, Redruth, Helston and Penzance
Where mining left behind an engineering base and a landscape, farming continues on the Lizard, and Penzance still works as a port.
This is the part of Cornwall where the county's industrial history is still visible in its economy. Camborne and Redruth form one continuous built up area with a combined population larger than any town in Cornwall, and they retain a genuine concentration of engineering, fabrication, specialist manufacturing and quarrying that grew out of the mining industry and never entirely left. Claims from that work involve machinery, guarding, presses, heavy plant and manual handling. Helston sits at the gateway to the Lizard, one of the most genuinely agricultural parts of the county, so farm and food production injuries are a much larger share of local claims than in the resorts. Penzance is the westernmost major town and still a working port, where commercial fishing and harbour work adds a physically demanding sector of its own. The A30 terminates out here, so all traffic into the far west passes through or close to these towns on largely single carriageway routes.
Towns in this area
The clay country and the centre of the county
St Austell, Bodmin and Truro
China clay extraction, the county's only trunk road and its administrative capital, where heavy plant and institutional employment dominate different parts of the same area.
St Austell sits at the centre of the world's principal china clay producing area, and the industry shapes the claim profile around it. Clay extraction and processing involves very large plant, haul roads shared with heavy vehicles, works with machinery and rotating equipment, and exposures to dust and noise that arise nowhere else in Cornwall, and those claims frequently involve self employed and subcontracted hauliers as well as direct employees. Bodmin sits on the A30 at the middle of the county and functions as a distribution and logistics base for the whole of Cornwall, so depot, loading and vehicle movement injuries feature heavily there, alongside an unusually high concentration of public sector and criminal justice employment for a town of its size. Truro is the only city in Cornwall and its administrative and commercial centre, with the Royal Cornwall Hospital at Treliske, which produces manual handling and institutional slip claims rather than industrial ones. Between them they cover most of what the centre of the county does for a living.
Towns in this area
The deep water harbour and the north coast
Falmouth and Newquay
One of the world's largest natural harbours on the south coast and the county's principal resort and airport on the north, with very different economies and very different claims.
Falmouth sits on one of the deepest natural harbours in the world and has a genuine concentration of boatbuilding, marine engineering and dockyard work alongside a working port and a university campus with a maritime and engineering focus. Claims from that sector involve heavy machinery, lifting operations, working at height on vessels, confined spaces and the water itself, and they turn on risk assessments, safe systems of work and equipment records. Newquay, on the north coast, is the county's principal surfing and holiday resort, with an international airport and a very heavy seasonal visitor economy. Its claims are dominated by seasonal hospitality, accommodation and activity provision rather than by marine industry, and because so much of the work is seasonal, temporary or agency, they often turn on what induction and training was actually provided.
Towns in this area
Who we help in Cornwall
The claimants we act for most often in this county, with the page that explains each in more detail.
All the Cornwall towns we cover
Each page below covers the local accident mix, the roads and the connections that shape it, and how a claim works in that area. Every one includes a map of the area covered.
The Cornwall area we cover
We help clients across the whole of Cornwall. The map below shows the county, and you can open it in Google Maps to explore the towns and roads mentioned on this page.
We help clients in Cornwall. We do not have a physical office in Cornwall and we do not claim to. Our registered address is Unit 16, Titan Court, Laporte Way, Luton, England, LU4 8EF.
Where to find out more
Frequently asked questions about personal injury claims in Cornwall
Do you have an office in Cornwall?
No. We do not have a physical office anywhere in Cornwall, and we do not claim to. Injury Law Specialists is a marketing and advertising platform rather than a law firm, and our registered address is in Luton. We provide access to personal injury solicitors who act for clients across the whole county, and cases are handled by telephone, email, WhatsApp and video call. Where a meeting is genuinely needed, a client can be seen at a convenient location rather than being asked to travel to us.
How long do I have to make a personal injury claim in Cornwall?
For many claims the general limitation period is three years from the date of the accident, or from your later date of knowledge where that applies. Different rules can apply to children, to people who lack mental capacity, and to fatal accident and criminal injury claims. The date of knowledge point matters particularly in Cornwall, because conditions caused by dust or noise exposure at the clay works develop over years, and the three year period may run from when you first knew or should have known rather than from the exposure itself. Because evidence is easier to gather early, it is worth taking advice well before any deadline feels close.
Can I claim if I was injured working in the china clay industry?
Yes, where the injury was caused by unsafe working conditions, inadequate training, defective plant, a failure to control site traffic, unguarded machinery or a failure to provide a safe system of work. St Austell sits at the centre of the world's principal china clay producing area, and the industry involves very large plant, haul roads shared with heavy vehicles and processing works with machinery and rotating equipment. These claims turn on vehicle and plant maintenance records, site traffic management, guarding arrangements and the adequacy of occupational health provision. If you are a self employed or subcontracted haulier rather than a direct employee, different insurance arrangements may apply and your position needs to be looked at separately.
Can I claim if I was injured working on a boat or in a boatyard?
It may be possible, and it is worth taking advice because your position depends on how you were engaged. Cornwall has genuine marine industry at Falmouth, Penzance, Newlyn and the north coast ports, covering boatbuilding, marine engineering, dockyard work and commercial fishing. Crew are often treated as self employed or as workers rather than employees, which affects which insurance applies and how a claim is brought, while boatyard and dockyard claims more usually involve heavy machinery, lifting operations, working at height on vessels and confined spaces. In both cases, report the injury, get medical attention, and keep any crew agreement, contract or pay records you have.
Can I claim if I was injured on a farm in Cornwall?
Yes, where the injury was caused by unsafe working conditions, defective equipment, inadequate training or a failure to provide a safe system of work. Cornwall is a genuinely agricultural county, with dairy, livestock and mixed farming particularly across the Lizard, west Cornwall and the north. Farms involve machinery, livestock and uneven ground, so those are the kinds of injury that arise. If you are self employed or a contractor rather than an employee, different insurance arrangements may apply and your position needs to be looked at separately. It is worth taking advice even if you are unsure how you were engaged.
Can I claim for a fall on a promenade, clifftop path or harbour wall in Cornwall?
Yes, where the council, harbour authority, landowner or occupier failed to maintain the surface to a reasonable standard, failed to provide a handrail where one was reasonably required, or failed to deal with a known hazard, and that caused your fall. Cornwall's coastal towns are built on slopes and headlands, and their surfaces are exposed to salt, storms and tidal water, so they deteriorate faster than inland paving. Natural coastal features are not the same as a maintained path or promenade, so these cases are fact specific and depend on who was responsible for the particular stretch of land. Photographs of the specific defect with something for scale, and a precise note of the location and date, are the most valuable evidence.
Can I claim if the other driver was uninsured or I could not identify them?
It may still be possible. Where the driver responsible was uninsured, or where the accident was a hit and run and the driver cannot be traced, a claim can often be pursued through the Motor Insurers' Bureau, which exists specifically to deal with those situations. The rules and the evidence required differ from an ordinary claim against an identified insurer, and there are particular requirements for reporting to the police in untraced driver cases. This comes up more often on Cornwall's trunk roads and narrow coastal routes than people expect, so it is worth asking about.
How much compensation could I receive for an injury in Cornwall?
There is no figure that can be applied to an injury by name, and anyone offering one without seeing your medical evidence is guessing. Compensation has two parts: general damages for the pain, suffering and loss of amenity the injury itself has caused, and special damages for the financial losses it has produced, such as lost earnings, treatment, rehabilitation, care and travel. The total depends on the medical evidence, the effect on your life, your age and circumstances and the losses you have suffered. Our page on personal injury compensation explains how both parts are assessed in more detail.
Will I have to attend court in Cornwall?
Most personal injury claims settle through negotiation without any hearing, so attending court is uncommon. Where proceedings are issued, the case is usually dealt with at a court convenient for where you live, and Cornwall has combined court centres at Truro and Bodmin with county courts at Penzance, Redruth and Camborne. Where a hearing is needed, we explain what is involved and what to expect well in advance.
What evidence should I keep after an accident in Cornwall?
Keep anything that records what happened and what it cost you, and gather it early. Photographs of the scene, the defect, the machinery, the plant or the vehicles, details of any witnesses, the police reference if one was given, medical records, receipts for treatment and travel, and a note of the days you could not work are all useful. If you were working, report the accident in the accident book immediately and ask for a copy of the entry, and keep any maintenance, training or occupational health records you have. CCTV and dash camera footage is the most time sensitive item, because many systems overwrite it within days rather than weeks.
Can I claim on a No Win No Fee basis in Cornwall?
Suitable cases may be accepted under a Conditional Fee Agreement, commonly called No Win No Fee, subject to an assessment of liability, the evidence, the prospects of success and proportionality. If the claim does not succeed you generally do not pay our basic legal fees, and if it does a success fee may be payable. In many personal injury claims the applicable legal cap is 25% of the relevant categories of damages including VAT, although the actual deduction and funding arrangements depend on the agreement and your circumstances. These terms are explained in full before you decide whether to proceed.
Who provides the legal services?
Injury Law Specialists is a marketing and advertising platform and is not a law firm or a provider of regulated legal services. All personal injury legal advice, casework and representation arranged through Injury Law Specialists are provided by MB Solicitors, a trading name of MB Legal Solicitors Ltd, regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority under SRA ID 8000764.
Not sure whether you have a personal injury claim in Cornwall?
You do not need to understand the law before contacting us, and you do not need to travel. Tell us briefly what happened and a member of our team can review the information and explain the possible next steps. There is no charge for an initial assessment and no obligation to proceed.
Free initial assessment. No Win No Fee may be available, subject to assessment.