Almost every personal injury advert in the UK promises 'no win, no fee'. But very few of them actually tell you what it means, what it costs, and what happens if things don't go your way. This guide does. Fifteen minutes from now you'll understand exactly how a no win, no fee agreement works, what percentage of your compensation (if any) you'll part with, and the handful of things worth watching out for before you sign.
Almost every personal injury advert in the UK promises 'no win, no fee'. But very few of them actually tell you what it means, what it costs, and what happens if things don't go your way. This guide does. Fifteen minutes from now you'll understand exactly how a no win, no fee agreement works, what percentage of your compensation (if any) you'll part with, and the handful of things worth watching out for before you sign.
What is 'no win, no fee'?
'No win, no fee' is a marketing phrase for a Conditional Fee Agreement, or CFA. A CFA is a written agreement between you and a solicitor under which their fees are only payable if your claim succeeds. They were introduced by section 58 of the Courts and Legal Services Act 1990 and made available for almost all civil claims — including personal injury — after changes in the Access to Justice Act 1999 and, more recently, the Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act 2012 (LASPO).
In practical terms it means you can instruct a solicitor with no upfront fees, no hourly bills during the case, and no exposure to your own solicitor's costs if you lose. It's the reason personal injury litigation in the UK is accessible to people who couldn't otherwise afford it.
How a no win, no fee agreement actually works
When your solicitor opens your file, you sign a CFA setting out three things:
- The fee basis. If the claim succeeds, the solicitor is paid their base costs (their time at an agreed hourly rate, or in many PI cases via a fixed recoverable costs scheme).
Alongside the CFA, you'll usually be offered an After-the-Event (ATE) insurance policy. ATE covers the other side's costs and disbursements if you lose. In most modern arrangements the premium is self-insured, deferred, or paid out of the settlement so there's nothing for you to pay unless (and until) the claim wins.
The full mechanics are set out in the Conditional Fee Agreements Order 2013 and regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority.
The 25% cap on success fees — what it covers
In a personal injury claim, your solicitor's success fee is capped at 25% of two specific pots combined:
- Your general damages (the award for pain, suffering, and loss of amenity); and
The cap is exclusive of VAT. It does not bite on future losses — so in life-changing injury cases involving large future care claims, the net position to the claimant is significantly better than the headline '25%' suggests. See our breakdown of general vs special damages for the underlying detail.
What happens if I win?
Your solicitor recovers most of their fees from the losing side — either under the Civil Procedure Rules (where costs follow the event) or the fixed recoverable costs scheme that now applies to most PI claims up to £100,000. From your compensation:
- The success fee (up to 25% of general damages and past losses) is deducted.
Everything else — the vast majority of the settlement — is paid to you. We provide a written breakdown of every deduction before settlement is banked.
Worked example — £20,000 settlement
A client's claim settles for £20,000, made up of £12,000 general damages, £5,000 past losses and £3,000 future losses. The cap applies to £12,000 + £5,000 = £17,000. 25% of that is £4,250 — but this is the maximum, and in straightforward cases the success fee is often less.
- Gross settlement: £20,000
In more serious claims where future losses dominate, the cap falls on a proportionally smaller slice of the total — and the net-to-client percentage rises. We run the maths in writing before you sign.
What happens if I lose?
If the claim fails, you don't pay:
- Your own solicitor's time (base costs).
The narrow exceptions are where a claim is found to be 'fundamentally dishonest' under s.57 of the Criminal Justice and Courts Act 2015, or where the claimant breaches their CFA or ATE policy (for example by failing to cooperate or bringing the claim in bad faith). Neither applies to a genuine claim honestly pursued.
What's the catch? Honest answer
There isn't a hidden catch, but there are three things every client should understand before signing:
- You don't keep 100% of the award. A success fee deduction is the price of the solicitor accepting all the risk. The alternative — paying your solicitor hourly whether you win or lose — is much more expensive for the vast majority of claimants.
Red flags — when a 'no win, no fee' offer isn't what it seems
- Success fee charged on the total compensation rather than just general damages + past losses.
If any of these show up in a CFA you've been asked to sign, push back in writing — or switch firms. Changing solicitors mid-claim is usually easier than people think.
What you might still pay for (and how we handle it)
A CFA covers your solicitor's time. It does not automatically cover 'disbursements' — the third-party costs a solicitor pays during your claim on your behalf. These can include:
- Medical report fees (the independent medical expert).
For most Casibus cases these are either funded by the instructed firm on the same 'you only pay if you win' basis, or paid out of the recovered costs and disbursement contribution from the defendant. You'll get the specifics in writing before you sign.
Who no win, no fee suits — and who it doesn't
No win, no fee is the standard funding method for UK personal injury claims. It suits almost everyone, but it's particularly the right fit for:
- People with no personal injury Legal Expenses Insurance on their home or motor policy.
It's a less obvious choice where you already have robust BTE (Before-the-Event) legal expenses insurance through an existing policy; in those cases you may be able to use your insurer's panel firm and sidestep any success fee. Check the policy wording — or ask us and we'll check it with you.
