Brake’s National Road Victim Service provides specialist emotional and practical support to families who have been bereaved or seriously injured in a road crash. In 2024, the charity supported more than 2,000 families, helping them cope with their grief and navigate the complex, unfamiliar procedures that often follow a road crash, including help with legal and financial issues.
Long-standing Brake supporters Slater and Gordon, Alderstone Solicitors, Horwich Cohen Coghlan (HCC) Solicitors, Hodge Jones & Allen, Irwin Mitchell and Hugh James have all renewed their support and funding for the charity’s legal panel. In 2025, they are joined for the first time by JMW Solicitors.
As well as providing a vital, sustainable source of funding for Brake’s National Road Victim Service, the law firms that comprise the panel can also give expert legal help after a road death or serious injury, across areas such as inquests, wills and probate, as well as claims for compensation. All of the supporting firms specialise in fatal injury cases. They have all also signed up to a Brake code of conduct for supporting road crash victims, meaning they will be able to help in ways that are expert, empathetic and confidential.
Some of the firms on the panel can also provide specialist legal support to people bereaved or seriously injured in a military case (Alderstone Solicitors and JMW Solicitors) or if a crash happened abroad (Hugh James, Irwin Mitchell, Slater and Gordon).
Additional, independent legal panels are available to support road victims in Scotland and Northern Ireland.
We are immensely thankful for the funding support from our new legal panel in England and Wales which enables us to support even more families during their darkest and most difficult times
Ross Moorlock, CEO, Brake
Brake CEO Ross Moorlock said: “We are immensely thankful for the funding support from our new legal panel in England and Wales which brings us further stability, expands our team and enables us to support even more families during their darkest and most difficult times.
“Support from our law firm partners also demonstrates the high level of confidence they have in the work we do. We are proud to deliver the very highest standard of support to every family who seeks help from us.”
The law firms also commented.
Madelene Holdsworth, managing director – Specialist Legal Services at Slater and Gordon, said: “As a key supporter of Brake and the National Road Victim Service, we are pleased that our long-standing relationship continues into 2025. Our partnership enables those who have sustained serious injuries or families who have sadly been bereaved, to access legal experts who fundamentally understand these life-changing circumstances. Our national focus on road safety is complemented by our in-house rehabilitation team and relationships across emergency services, major trauma centres and leading neuro and spinal centres, providing our clients access to wide-ranging support as part of our representation of them in their legal claim.”
Martin James, director at HCC Solicitors, said: “Serious injury specialists, HCC Solicitors, are extremely proud to continue their partnership with Brake, the road safety charity. Given our line of work, we witness the devastation caused by road crashes every day. Because of this, we understand how imperative it is for families who have lost a loved one, and people who have been seriously injured, to receive the invaluable support that Brake’s dedicated caseworkers provide. That is why we are committed to support the continuation of Brake’s vital service and are extremely proud of our partnership.”
Ken Brough, partner at Hodge Jones & Allen, said: "Supporting Brake's vital work through the National Road Victim Service is an important part of our commitment to helping families navigate the devastating aftermath of road crashes. At Hodge Jones & Allen Solicitors, we witness first-hand the immense challenges bereaved and injured families face – emotionally and practically. We are proud to provide expert legal assistance during these challenging times. By partnering with Brake, we can ensure families receive the legal guidance they need and the empathy and support they so deserve."
Angela Bachelor, serious injury partner at Irwin Mitchell, said: “Irwin Mitchell are delighted to continue our support of Brake’s National Road Victim Service. Since the inception of this service, we have seen how Brake has been able to support even more families who have had to go through a bereavement or serious injury because of a road traffic crash. The work they do in providing immediate and vital assistance to victims and their families following road traffic crashes is incredibly important. Supporting Brake helps ensure that those affected receive the help and emotional support they need during such challenging times.”
Clare Stevens, partner at JMW Solicitors, said: “After decades of securing justice for those seriously injured on our roads, we are proud to announce our new partnership with Brake as an integral part of our commitment at JMW. It allows us to not only help clients navigate the legal process, but also connect them with vital support systems to address their wider needs during incredibly difficult times. At JMW, we adopt a holistic approach, acknowledging the profound impact a road crash has on the entire family, and we are proud to be affiliated with Brake, a charity dedicated both to supporting victims and their families and to campaigning to improve road safety.”
Quentin Underhill, partner and head of serious & catastrophic injury at Alderstone Solicitors, said: “Brake’s National Road Victim Service is a critical trauma-informed service. It’s as important to the victims of traffic collisions as the emergency services, NHS treatment and the police investigation. We know this because we’ve supported Brake for more than five years and every week we see the difference it makes to devastated victims and families of road collisions.
“So, we’re very proud to be continuing and increasing our support of Brake. Just like the National Road Victim Service team, we are dedicated to improving life for families after road death and injury. To be a part of Brake’s post-crash response and care is a privilege and a huge responsibility, but we know we have the legal skills and the personal empathy to continue to assist Brake in supporting grieving and injured families in the aftermath of the unthinkable.”
Cari Sowden-Taylor, Partner and Joint Head of the National Serious Injury Team at Hugh James, said: “Hugh James is committed to wrap-around support for bereaved families and people left with life-changing injuries after road crashes, which includes specialist legal advice. Brake’s National Road Victim Service and regional caseworkers ensure that people receive the vital help and support they need at the earliest opportunity, often when they have nowhere else to turn. Given the synergy in our aims, we are delighted to be working together with Brake, to help people move forward at the worst time in their lives.”
In November 2024, Brake launched a new Road Victims’ Charter, calling for respect, support and justice for everyone affected by road death and injury. The Charter includes a call for Government to establish national standards in post-crash response and commit to extending the rights set out in the Victims’ Code to those impacted by road harm, regardless of where they live or whether a crime has occurred. The charity has also announced that a new National Centre of Excellence for Post-Crash Support will provide enhanced professional post-crash support to road victim families. Read more about the Road Victims' Charter here.
Watch a video here to learn more about how Brake supports people following a road death or serious injury.
For more than 30 years our solicitors have supported people who have been bereaved or seriously injured on UK roads. From providing free legal advice and representation for families during inquests and criminal proceedings, to taking on compensation claims, our solicitors have been part of Brake’s legal services since 2019. We’re proud to support such a vital charity.
Our priority is early financial support, rehabilitation whenever possible and to recover maximum compensation to put road victims and their families in the best position possible to move forward and rebuild a future.
This requires us to be more than legal experts. We work with empathy and sensitivity, and we collaborate with post-crash professionals to support your practical and emotional needs.
We understand that a serious or fatal injury can be life-changing for the injured party and devastating for bereaved families. It can be difficult to know where to turn for help. Our experienced specialists will ensure early access to top-tier rehabilitation care and personal support throughout the claims process. We ‘fight for what’s right’ and always place our clients at the heart of everything we do.
We feel privileged to be part of our client’s journey and will dedicate our time to helping you to get the justice you deserve and make the most of your life.
HCC Solicitors is an award-winning law firm that takes a ‘family first’ approach to supporting those who have lost loved ones in a road collision.
We work proactively for justice – and the truth for our clients. We understand that every fatality has a devastating impact on family life. Our experienced team ensures that families are fully supported in every way during what we know is a traumatic time.
We also represent families at Inquests across the UK. We have longstanding relationships with multiple professionals and agencies, including the police and the HSE, who may be involved in the investigation.
Hugh James is a top 100 UK law firm, providing expert legal services to a wide range of business and individual clients. Established over 60 years ago, it has grown to become a full-service firm operating from award-winning offices in Cardiff, London, Southampton, and Plymouth.
Hugh James is well-known for its award-winning claimant teams, who support bereaved families, and seriously injured people, representing them at inquests and in the civil courts. Their English and Welsh-speaking lawyers also advise victims of abuse, catastrophic injury, victims of violent crime, medical negligence and incidents resulting in injury or death overseas.
Irwin Mitchell Solicitors are one of the UK’s most respected and successful law firms, with an independent recognised personal injury team. We help support our clients with their claims after a road traffic collision as well as their families to help them access the best possible medical care, rehabilitation and financial support reaching an outcome that can make a real difference to their lives. Each year our personal injury lawyers also help bereaved families, who rely on us to fight fearlessly to protect their best interests and to try and gain justice for them in the most difficult of situations.
JMW is an award-winning law firm that prides itself in providing outstanding client care and acting as a steady hand during one of the most challenging times of your life. Whilst we can't turn the clock back and undo the harm that has been caused, our dedicated personal injury team will ensure you and your family have everything you need after a road crash, from the best possible medical care and rehabilitation to specialist housing, care and financial security.
Slater and Gordon is one of the UK’s largest consumer law firms with leading experts in local areas across the country. We’re highly specialised in representing individuals who’ve been affected by life-changing injuries, whether they’ve suffered a serious injury themselves, or the loss of a loved one. Many of our experts are considered leaders in their field by independent legal guides and we’ve won awards for our work in this specialised area of law.