The UK may not have the ‘compensation culture’ that so many commentators claim, new research has suggested.

A study conducted by the website personalinjurylawyers.co.uk has found that almost half of respondents who had been the victim of an accident never went on to claim compensation.

Most of those people did not claim for their injuries because they weren’t sure how, while a quarter were concerned about finding a reputable firm and a further 18% feared they would not win their case.

Almost two-thirds who had suffered an injury as a result of their accident were forced to take time off work.

Nicholas Tate, founder of the website, said: ‘It was interesting to see that so many people do not claim after being the victim of personal injury, particularly given common belief we live in somewhat of a "blame" culture.

‘Of course, claiming compensation in no way translates as blame, and people should remember that compensation claims should be made as a means of recompensing financial or physical damages cause by the accident in question.’

Of the 1,211 men and women surveyed, 39% claimed to have been the victim of an accident for which they could have claimed compensation.

Of those, more than a third suffered their injury at work, with a quarter injured in a motor accident and 22% hurt by a trip or fall.