READERS’ SUCCESSFUL WORK ACCIDENT CLAIMS REVISITED!
January 26th, 2010 adminPublished in Truckstop News February 2010.
In this month’s second article Steven Hinchliffe of the specialist Personal Injury Compensation firm Hinchliffes Solicitors returns to consider more “READERS’ SUCCESSFUL WORK ACCIDENT CLAIMS”.
Returning to his review of successfully completed accident injury claims, Steven Hinchliffe looks at various situations experienced by readers of Truckstop News that ultimately lead to an award of personal injury compensation.
All of the accident victims mentioned in this series of articles are clients of my firm, Hinchliffes Solicitors. They have kindly given their permission for the disclosure of their details, and in particular of their real life experiences of incidents resulting in personal injury claims, and the steps taken to make a successful accident compensation claim. All of these clients contacted my firm after seeing our details in Truckstop News - and some of the names referred to may be familiar to you.
In this article I highlight 2 different types of accident at work claims and examine the outcomes. As with the previous articles, the common trend that emerges is the significant effect on each individual’s life. Both of my clients sustained significant injuries and suffered financial losses as a result, including lost income. Although using the established legal processes for making personal injury claims as a means of redress cannot truly compensate for the trauma and inconvenience suffered, it can assist in requiring the guilty party to provide medical treatment and rehabilitation, in addition to financial relief by way of awards of compensation. As previously stressed, the fundamental aim of all accident claims is to try and return the injured party to the position that he or she would otherwise have been in had the accident not happened.
CASE STUDY 1 - ACCIDENT INVOLVING A CAR TRANSPORTER
On 21 April 2005 Mr H S Campbell of Bo’ness, West Lothian, Scotland suffered an accident at the Coventry premises of Peugeot Citroen Automobiles UK Ltd. He was employed as a HGV driver by Whitburn Car Transport Ltd and while loading cars he was required to reverse a second hand Peugeot 307 onto a transporter so that he could park it directly above the cab. While he was doing so the accelerator stuck, causing the car to drive off the front of the vehicle and over the stopper. Once the car hit the ground it continued to reverse, until a collision brought it to a halt. The brakes were also faulty making it impossible for Mr Campbell to bring the car under control prior to the collision.
In September 2005 Mr Campbell contacted my firm and a letter of claim was sent to Peugeot Citroen, as the accident appeared to have been caused by defects with the car. After investigating the matter their legal advisers eventually denied responsibility in October 2006. It was therefore felt appropriate to send a letter of claim to Mr Campbell’s employer on the basis that they had provided him with inappropriate work equipment. Their insurers took a considerable time to respond and felt that Peugeot Citroen should accept blame for the accident. Just at the point when Court proceedings were being contemplated the employer’s insurers came forward with an offer and it was possible to negotiate an acceptable settlement. The matter was further complicated as the employer went into administration during the course of the claim causing Mr Campbell to lose his job. However, they had valid insurance cover, which was utilised to pay the agreed compensation and associated legal costs.
Mr Campbell suffered a fracture of his right shoulder blade, and injuries to his neck and lower back. He had to take 2 months off work and was left with permanent discomfort that would likely cut short his working life. He recovered total compensation of £55,000, comprising £8,500 for his injuries with the balance representing his financial losses, including anticipated future loss of earnings between the time he would probably have to stop working and the normal retirement age.
The circumstances of the case were not straight forward and progress was hampered by both possible defendants to the claim refusing to accept responsibility. This introduced a significant degree of risk that Mr Campbell might not succeed in full or at all if the matter had to be decided by a Judge at trial. This factor was taken into account when negotiating the amount of compensation recovered.
CASE STUDY 2 - ACCIDENT INVOLVING A FORKLIFT TRUCK
Mr J Watson of Wickford in Essex contacted my firm in April 2008 following an accident earlier that month at the premises of Nuweld UK Ltd of Sheerness, Kent. He was working as a HGV driver and during a delivery was stood at the back of his trailer. When the doors were opened some of the load fell out of the trailer and he instinctively stepped backwards, but was unaware that a forklift truck was behind him with partially raised forks, and this caused him to fall.
A Letter of claim was initially sent to Nuweld UK Ltd, whose insurers refused to accept responsibility for the accident, suggesting that the various Regulations that employers have to follow did not apply as Mr Watson was not their employee. Even though their understanding of the law was incorrect, to ensure the case had the best possible chance of succeeding, a letter of claim was also sent to the company who had packed the trailer. However, Nuweld’s insurers were then persuaded to make an offer and after some negotiation an acceptable settlement was reached. They also agreed to provide rehabilitative treatment for Mr Watson’s injuries, which comprised a displaced fracture of his left wrist that required surgery, and which resulted in disruption to his work for some time.
Similar to case study 1 above, as responsibility for the accident remained in dispute Mr Watson’s claim involved a certain degree of risk that he might not be successful at a trial. The settlement offer was less than the full value of the claim, but it was a sum that he was prepared to accept to gain the certainty of success. The compensation he received totalled £9,000, and comprised £6,000 for his injuries and the balance for his financial losses and out of pocket expenses incurred as a direct result of the accident.
Both of these cases highlight the fact that personal injury claims are rarely clear cut and there is a need to balance the risks involved and take a level headed view of all the circumstances.
PERSONAL INJURY CLAIM SOLICITORS:-
If you have suffered any form of accident or contracted an industrial disease contact personal injury claims specialists Hinchliffes Solicitors for immediate legal advice, to find out if you are entitled to make a claim for personal injury compensation. All cases are conducted on a Free No Win No Fee claims basis, where you keep 100% of the compensation recovered.
Call now on 0800 138 1348 to speak direct to one of our specialist claims solicitors or go to our Start Your Claim Now page to submit details of your accident compensation claim online.
Tags: 100% compensation, accident, accident at work, accident at work claim, accident claims, accident compensation claim, accident injury claims, car accident claims, children, claim, claims, claims solicitors, collision, compensation, fatal, financial losses, free, HGV, holiday, Industrial disease, injured, injury, injury compensation, injury compensation claim, legal advice, MIB, No Win No Fee, no win no fee claims, online, personal injury claim, personal injury claims, personal injury compensation, personal injury lawyer, personal injury specialists, road accident, road accident claim, road accident compensation, solicitors, traffic accident, trailer, work accident, work accident claims
