Personal car accident and work injury compensation claim at Injuries Direct

A Newcastle family have been awarded £9.2million medical negligence compensation after their son was born severely brain damaged.

Lewis Merrigan was starved of oxygen during his birth at Northamptonshire General Hospital in 2002. His family have been fighting a battle for justice ever since.

At a High Court hearing on Wednesday, the responsible NHS Trust finally made the settlement for their liability, and issued a formal apology.

Lewis suffers with daily epileptic fits, and cannot walk, stand or sit without help. He will need 24-hour care for the rest of his life.

The money will be made awarded as a substantial lump sum, followed by tax-free annual, indexed-linked payments.

His parents Liz and Jason, who spoke outside the court, said: “The compensation can never, ever, reverse the damage and pain that Lewis suffered but it will at least ensure he will always have safe and caring environment for the rest of his life.”

A lorry driver has won a claim for compensation after falling and injuring his leg.

David Isitt, 52, was left disabled and nearly lost the limb when a policeman allegedly told him to climb on top of an unstable load that his truck was carrying.

Mr Isitt was driving a Hino 700 tipper lorry to carry hardcore to a recycling centre in Charlton in March 2007 when he was stopped by police, who told him they believed the load was dangerous.

He then claims that the officer told him to climb onto the pile of rubble, as an example of how unsafe it was. This resulted in him falling eight foot from the side of the truck, leading to a break of the tibia, fibula and other associated fractures.

Mr Isitt’s leg was eventually saved by 30 leeches, which were used to stop an infection from surfacing.

A claim for compensation against the police was then made, to help make up for loss of earnings and for the pain and suffering of the injuries. After liability was initially denied, a settlement was finally agreed just before a court hearing was due to begin. It’s believed the payout was six-figure, but the exact amount has remained undisclosed.

Those suffering with the asbestos-related illness pleural plaques are concerned about what a new government means for their compensation claim chances.

Earlier in the year former Justice Secretary Jack Straw ruled that people diagnosed with the condition before 2007 would receive a £5,000 payout.

However, with a new coalition government taking control at the MoJ, victims are starting to worry about whether the decision on these payments will be overturned.

Campaigners have now urged the new Justice Minister, Kenneth Clarke, to look at the issue as soon as possible.

The MoJ has so far refused to comment on the situation. A spokesperson said: “We are in the very early stages of a new government and this is not an issue on which Ministers have yet taken a view.”

Pleural plaques is a scarring of the lungs which, although not immediately dangerous, can develop into a more deadlier form of asbestos-related cancer such as mesothelioma.

A Leeds-based company has been fined £250,000 after a man was crushed to death in an accident at work.

Warehouse manager Alan Fletcher died when he tried to stop a 1.8 tonne case of glass from toppling as it was being unloaded at the warehouse of Roadways Container Logistics.

Leeds Crown Court heard how he had ‘instinctively’ run over to try and prevent the case from falling, but was crushed to death under its intense weight.

The company had no experience in handling such heavy loads, usually dealing with 25kg cardboard boxes of clothing. The glass case had fallen because it had not been properly secured, and employees had not been given appropriate training for the task ahead. No risk assessment or formal planning had been carried out.

Mr Fletcher’s colleague, Peter Bedford, also suffered serious injuries after the incident. He is now permanently disabled and has been left with post-traumatic stress disorder.

Roadways Container Logistics pleaded guilty to Section 2(1) of the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 and face paying the hefty fine and additional legal costs.

A former RAF serviceman is making a personal injury compensation claim against the Ministry of Defence.

Shaun Wood, 52, argues that the MoD exposed him to dangerous chemicals, leaving him with a life-long illness.

Mr Wood, from North Yorkshire, suffers with multiple system atrophy – an incurable illness which affects the body’s nervous system.

He now lives wheelchair-bound and needs to take 50 tablets a day to help control the condition.

Although he is aiming for a substantial damages payout, for the pain and suffering he has been through, as well as his future care, the MoD has launched an appeal to the compensation claim made against them.

Mr Wood said: “I come from a military family and making the decision to pursue compensation went against my instincts. But when I die, my wife will be left without an income because my war pension will be taken away and I have always wanted to ensure that she is provided for in the future.”

He believes that he was exposed to solvents, including trichloreoethylene and dichloromethane for periods sometimes longer than 12 hours a day while working as a painter and finisher at RAF sites in locations all over the world. He was discharged from the military in 1995 because of his developing illness.

Mr Wood added: “I was once an extremely fit and active person and there are times when I get frustrated at the amount of time I waste housebound. I have lived with this condition for 17 years and try not to think too far ahead. We take each day at a time.”

The MoD refused to comment on the case.

The family of a man who was found dead in a public toilet will make a claim for compensation against their local council.

Justin Baker, 36, from Ely in Cambridgeshire had collapsed in one the toilet’s cubicles, and was discovered by a member of the public on the morning of February 7th.

The previous afternoon cleaner Tracey Bye was checking the toilets to make sure they were empty. When going around she heard a groan from one of the cubicles, and noticed a rucksack and a coat on the floor.

Believing that a man had fallen asleep inside the cubicle, she called her boss to ask what to do about the situation and was told to leave the toilets open. The supervisor, Derek Mitchell, assured her that he would come and lock them up later on in the evening.

However, he failed to turn up to check the toilets, claiming that he had been too tired after working a 14-hour shift that day.

Mr Mitchell, an employee for five-and-a-half years with East Cambridgeshire District Council, declared that he wasn’t aware of any policy to deal with the situation. He also added that it wasn’t uncommon for the toilets to be left unlocked all night.

Now, the family are claiming that the council acted negligently in the way they handled the situation.

John Shepherd, Mr Mitchell’s step-father, said: “We felt that we had to take action to ensure that something like this does not happen to anyone else. In our view council staff showed a distinct lack of humanity and care. Anything could have happened that night, it may have been that someone had suffered a heart attack or had an epileptic fit in that toiler and they left him there.

“If they had just phoned ‘999’ Justin may still be alive today.”

An inquest found that Mr Mitchell, who had a history of depression, had died from an overdose of drugs, including, morphine, heroin and other prescription drugs. He was found with two empty syringe packets next to him.

However, the Coroner William Morris said that despite an ‘unfortunate cocktail’ of substances, he could find no evidence that suggested Mr Mitchell wanted to take his own life.

The widow of a man who was killed on his motorbike after he swerved to avoid a skateboarder has had a compensation claim made against her.

Susan Honey is facing the prospect of paying out £25,000 to Devon teenager Lewis Hart, who argues that her husband Tim’s death was caused by him riding his motorcycle too fast.

Mrs Honey had already commenced legal action against Mr Hart for the sum of £300,000, but in a shock turnaround she may now be liable for a claim against her if it is ruled that her husband was to blame for the incident.

Tim Honey, 47, suffered numerous internal injuries when he swerved to avoid Mr Hart who had ran into the road to retrieve a friend’s skateboard.

However, doing so caused Mr Honey to slam into an oncoming car, sustaining a fractured skull and injuries to his chest, liver and heart.

Mr Hart, who was clipped by the motorcyclist which caused a broken collar bone, claims that Mr Honey was travelling at 60mph when the accident happened, rather than the permitted 40mph speed limit of the road.

It’s also believed that a witness saw Mr Honey join the road without looking, despite an oncoming vehicle. He then accelerated away quickly just before the fatal accident.

Mrs Honey is maintaining her stance, claiming that Mr Hart was at fault for running out into the road without checking the way was clear.

A High Court decision is expected soon.

A recycling company has been issued a fine by the Health and Safety Executive following a man’s accident at work death.

SITA UK Ltd was ordered to pay £210,000 after lorry driver Gary Carter, 32, was fatally crushed at a landfill site in Cranford, Northamptonshire in January 2007.

A court heard how Mr Carter had arrived at the site to empty his lorry, but had to be towed to the tipping area by a bulldozer due to the wet weather and soft, slippery ground conditions.

He was able to tip away most of the load, but realised that he would need to move his lorry further forward to empty the remaining waste material.

Bogged down in the soft ground, the driver of a waste compactor radioed Mr Carter to inform him that he would come and help push his lorry from the back. At the same time, a bulldozer had come to assist him from the front of the vehicle.

Mr Carter was attaching a tow rope to the bulldozer when his lorry began to move forward because of the push by the waste compactor. He was subsequently crushed between his lorry and the bulldozer, and died at the scene.

It was found that new working arrangements at the site had not been risk assessed, and the rules on pushing lorries had not been made clear to staff.

The Berkshire-based company pleaded guilty to a breach of Section 2(1) of the Health and Safety at work Act, designed to protect employees from danger or harm in the workplace.

Roy Bush, an inspector for the HSE said: “Employers need to ensure their staff understand their roles and responsibilities in making sure sites like this operate to clear site safety rules. In this case, the prosecution shows that this has not happened and Mr Carter’s family have lost him as a result.”

A pensioner who was rollerblading in the park has been ordered to pay £6,000 injury compensation to a dog walker that he collided with.

90-year-old Oliver Galsworthy crashed into the man, who was out walking his dog in the local park at the time, causing injuries to his neck, back and legs.

Although he admitted that the accident happened, Mr Galsworthy stated that avoiding the collision in the park was impossible, as both the walker and his dog had come straight out into his path.

He argued that it was only by chance that he managed to miss the dog and avoid injuring that as well.

However, a number of eyewitnesses came forward to back up the dog walker, suggesting that Mr Galsworthy was not in control while on the rollerblades. It’s believed that his veering across the track caused him to crash straight into the injured party by and knock him from his feet.

The lawyer for Mr Galsworthy tried to argue that liability should be on a 50/50 basis, and urged the judge to consider the fact that his client was surviving on just a £97 per week state pension.

But the judge ruled that Mr Galsworthy would be liable to pay the victim damages, personal injury and loss of earnings, but said that this could be done on a £5 per week basis due to him having no savings.

Mr Galsworthy plans to make an appeal following the decision.

The widow of a mesothelioma victim has called for a change in the system for those wanting to make compensation claims for asbestos-related illnesses.

Pensioner Caroline Squires was advised by her solicitors that she could be entitled to a six-figure payout following the death of her husband Almer. However, she has so far been unable to make contact with the insurance company of his previous employer.

Now, she is urging the government to push forward with plans for an Employers’ Liability Insurance Bureau (ELIB), which would act as a last resort for those who are looking to claim compensation for asbestos-related illnesses but cannot find the employers’ insurer to claim against.

Many would argue that legislation to implement such a service is long overdue. Victims of road accidents with uninsured drivers already have a dedicated outlet to deal with compensation claims, known as the Motor Insurers’ Bureau.

Currently, around 10% of asbestos victims are unable to find their previous employer, however this number is expected to rise over the next couple of decades due to the time lag of such illnesses taking effect.

After undergoing surgery and radiotherapy treatment, Mr Squires died at the age of 66 in October 2008. It’s believed he was exposed to asbestos during his time at a Guildford heating company between 1962 and 1964.

Mrs Squires said: “It was important to my husband to claim compensation. He was worried about providing for his family following his death. It is difficult to believe that there are no records of who the insurers were. The quicker the ELIB is put in place the better – not just for me but for all victims of asbestos disease.”