Injuries Direct - Personal Injury Claims

A recent report has shown that the number of compensation for injury claims have increased due to escaped livestock.

A Cheshire farmer has said that he believes there is a rising trend in personal injury compensation claims due to horses and cattle being let loose or allowed to roam near public footpaths and public rights of way.

The farmer from Cheshire, Mr Stephen Lawson, who is urging animal keepers to make sure they are fully insured against such claims said:

“Unfortunately, this area of law is so complex that farmers could end up paying hefty compensation awards, even if they are not responsible for the accident that has occurred,”

Even without negligence, a farmer could still be found to blame for an accident involving escaped livestock. Apart from taking steps to prevent escapes, the advice is to be fully insured against claims.

“Litigation is becoming ever more present in rural life and farmers need to be aware of the risks they might be putting themselves and others under.”

“Accidents involving a horse or a cow tend to have catastrophic consequences for human victims and animals alike.”

“In particular, an accident involving a horse or cow escaping on to a public highway and colliding with a car can be exceptionally serious.”

“If an accident occurs as a result of some negligence on the part of the animal keeper, most people would accept that an innocent victim would have the right to make a legal claim,”

A disabled woman has been awarded compensation for injury after she was crushed and hurt at a pop concert.

The woman, who wishes to remain unnamed, suffered serious neck injuries when she attended a charity concert. The concert was organised by the Children’s Hope Foundation at Linden Hall Hotel near Morpeth.

The concert was very badly organised and not wheelchair friendly. The woman’s wheelchair was knocked over by a crowd of people and she became stuck between a chair and a metal panel.

The incident was even more serious due to the fact that the disabled lady suffered from a rare genetic condition, known as Ehlers Danlos. This means the she must avoid sustaining any injuries, as a knock to her head could result in quadriplegia. The lady was put on a neck traction for 5 days after she suffered her accident and luckily made a full recovery.

The disabled lady pursued personal injury compensation against the organisers of the event and the judge found that the facilities were not adequate. The lady was awarded £2,750 at Newcastle County Court.

The disabled lady has commented on what happened and said:

“We had checked ahead to ensure there were adequate disabled facilities in place as I know at events like this it can get extremely busy.”

“I was told there would be a raised platform with a disabled toilet and I agreed to attend, as I believed it would be safe.”

“When we arrived it became apparent that the disabled area was poorly organised. They were not checking tickets and anyone was free to enter the area.”

“The accident has caused me a great deal of pain and worry. Injuries like this one can render me a quadriplegic and I was extremely worried about this.”

“If I had known the arrangements were going to be so badly organised I would not have attended as I have too much to lose from an accident.”

A 61 year old woman has been awarded personal injury compensation last month, when she fell and broke her leg on a train station platform.

Margot Keats, from Derbyshire, was walking along a wet platform at Nottingham Train Station in November 2006. She slipped suddenly and was rushed to hospital, where they determined that she had broken her leg.

Whilst at hospital Margot Keats had to undergo an operation to insert a metal plate in her leg. Due to the time of year, it meant that Margot spent her Christmas on crutches and was unable to finish her Christmas shopping.

Margot Keats pursued a claim for personal injury compensation as she wanted the train station operators to accept liability for her accident and personal injuries and to prevent this from happening to anyone else.

Central Trains finally admitted liability and Margot Keats was awarded an undisclosed sum for personal injury compensation.

Margot Keats has commented on her accident and said:

“The accident has really affected my confidence in wet and cold conditions and I am now much more wary of where I walk.
“The accident meant I had to cancel Christmas because I couldn’t get out to do any shopping. This year however I have been able to get my Christmas shopping completed and everyone should receive their gifts on time.”

A recycling company in Wiltshire have been fined this month after an employee died due to a fatal accident at work in August 2005.

Mr Paul McGuire, aged 33 years old, was working at Kingshill Recycling Centre in Crickdale. He was operating a machine and attempted to remove a blockage without any supervision. He had turned off the conveyor belt, but what is known as the ‘baler’ had been left running. Mr McGuire fell into the machine and suffered severe fatal injuries.

It was heard at the inquest that Mr McGuire had not been given the correct training on unblocking the machinery and that there were procedures in place and documentation available for the safe operation of this machine. A harness also had to be worn when attempting to unblock the machine, but it had been removed for a safety test. This harness could have prevented this fatal accident at work.

The Foreman, Mr Stuart Liddell commented on this fatal accident at work and said:

“The harness was taken away for a safety test.”
“We shut down the machinery and asked Mr Miles to phone Paul, We then checked round the site and eventually commenced a second search.”
“It was then identified there was some blood and Paul was subsequently found.”

The recycling company were fined £180,000 at Swindon Crown Court and ordered to pay £38,000 costs.

A Health and Safety Executive Inspector, Mr Andrew Kingscott said:

“The company failed to ensure that the plant was safe and that written safe working practices were relevant, clear and understood by site staff.”

A HGV driver has been awarded personal injury compensation this month, after he sustained a knee injury due to an accident at work.

Mr Gary Harper, aged 41 years old, from Leicestershire was working in a warehouse in 2005. He was collecting cement when he tripped and fell over a piece of timber that had not been put away correctly.

It was later diagnosed that Mr Harper had tore the ligaments in his knee and could not return to work for almost a year. However, after Mr Harper has returned to work, he continuously suffers long term knee pain.

Mr Harper has commented on his accident at work and said:

“My employers had been warned time and time again about the risks of this type of accident, but they did nothing to make sure our working environment was as safe as it could be.”

“It was a silly accident, but I ended up with intensive surgery, in a lot of pain and off work for a year.”

“Thankfully, now my knee is almost as good as new, however it can still be excruciatingly painful.”

Mr Harper pursued his claim for compensation for injury and was awarded £12,000.
If correct risk assessments were carried out in the workplace, then these kinds of accidents at work would not occur and there would be fewer personal injury compensation claims.

A supermarket employee has received compensation for injury this month after he slipped due to an accident at work.

It was heard that the employee, who was in fact a store manager, was on his way to attend a meeting which was being held at another branch. The meeting was being held to complete some paperwork, after the employee had been off work due to an operation.

Whilst entering the other store, the employee suffered an accident at work due to grapes on the floor that had been squashed and cleared away.

The employee fell to the ground and injured both of his knees, his lower back, groin and shoulder. The personal injuries that the employee suffered resulted in his absence from work for a long period. Due to the accident at work and absence, he suffered loss of earnings and other benefits, such as a bonus and share plans.

The injured employee also had to give up his love of golf and due to the accident at work an underlying medical condition was exacerbated. He then required an operation sooner than anticipated.
The employee pursued a personal injury compensation claim for his accident at work, where the major supermarket chain refused to admit liability for the accident. However, after a long court hearing an agreement was met and the injured employee was awarded £35,000 for compensation for injury.

A 61 year old lorry driver has been killed this month due to a fatal accident at work, when he became trapped under a load of coal.

It has been heard that Mr David Bewes, from Cornwall, was loading some coal from a ship at Falmouth Docks, when he was hit on the head and fell. He became trapped under the mass of coal and it took some time for emergency workers to dig him out.

Mr David Bewes was immediately rushed to Cornwall Hospital, but he died later that day of the injuries he sustained due to this fatal accident at work.

A spokesperson from Falmouth Fire Station, Crew Manager Stuart Williams has commented on this tragic accident and said:

“One of the dock workers walked past and saw the lorry reversed and in the tip position, but couldn’t see the man. He went round the back to have a look and realised he was under the coal and started to dig him out.”

The company that manage the docks, A&P Falmouth have also commented on this accident at work and Managing Director, Mr Peter Child said:

“We are all very shocked by this incident and our thoughts are with the man’s family and friends at this time.”
“We are working alongside the relevant authorities to assist them with their investigations so that we can better understand what has happened.”

The Health and Safety Executive are going to carry out a full investigation as to why this accident at work occurred and will be working closely with the police and A&P Falmouth.

An office worker suffered personal injury compensation due to an accident at work and has been successful in his claim for compensation for injury this month.

It was heard that the unnamed man worked for a major corporation and recently moved offices. During the office move, no provisions had been made to assist with the move and the man and his colleagues were requested to complete the move themselves.

Whilst moving offices, the man was carrying boxes, tripped and fell over wires coming from a plug socket. The man sustained multiple personal injuries and was advised after he received treatment that he may need a future operation on his knee.

The office worker was unable to return to work for some time and his employer terminated his employment. This then urged the office worker to pursue a claim for personal injury compensation.
The man’s employer claimed that he had contributed to his accident at work and refused to discuss a fair settlement. Therefore, court proceeding commenced. However, before the trial started, the man’s employer agreed a reasonable settlement and the office worker was awarded £100,000 compensation for injury.

The office workers employer failed to carry out a risk assessment of the workplace, which caused this accident at work to occur. This is a severe breach of Health and Safety Regulations.

A 55 year old woman has been awarded personal injury compensation after she was injured in an airport toilet cubicle.

The unnamed woman from Newcastle was using the toilet facilities when a metal cabinet fell off the wall and hit her on the head. The woman had to have 14 stitches in the back of her head both internal and external and she also suffered injuries to her back, coccyx, neck and thigh.

The woman, who was a member of UNISON, pursued a personal injury compensation claim with their help. She was offered an out of court settlement by the airline of £2,000, even though they have denied liability. However, after further negotiations a sum of £6,500 was awarded as compensation for injury.

The woman has commented on her accident and said:

“The accident really shook me and I haven’t flown long haul since.

“I ended up with 14 stitches in my head and passed out in the aeroplane toilet.”

“As part of my membership UNISON provides free legal services and I knew that they would support me in this claim.”

“Without UNISON and my solicitors help I would not have received the maximum amount of compensation achievable.”

“I would urge all members to use this facility if they are unfortunate to have an accident while they are on holiday.”

A 13 year old school girl from Wigan has been awarded compensation for injury this month after she was hurt at a Blackpool water park.

Meredith Glennon was enjoying herself at Sandcastle Water park in Blackpool when the accident occurred. She was on a water slide, known as the ‘Sidewinder’ when she crashed into a lifeguard, causing her severe concussion.

It was heard that the lifeguard thought the ride had closed down at the end of the day. However, the water park was not closed and Health and Safety rules at the park state that staff must not walk on the rides until all visitors to the park have left the building.

Meredith was immediately taken to Blackpool Victoria Hospital after the accident occurred. The school girl pursued her claim for personal injury compensation and a hearing was held at the Civil Justice Centre in Manchester. An undisclosed amount of compensation was agreed, which is believed to be a 4 figure sum.

Meredith’s Father has spoken of the accident and said:

“Meredith had concussion for around four or five days and it was some time before she was fully active again.”

After the accident occurred at the water park, Mr John Child, who is the Managing Director of the park, apologised for the accident and claims that the water park has an excellent health and safety record.

Mr Child said:

“The lifeguard at the bottom of the slide and had thought the last rider had come down and walked on the surface against all procedures.”

“The person in question was given a final written warning and was very apologetic. It was a one-off accident. In the 22 years I have been here, there has never been an incident like this.”

“I apologised to the family and we sent them some flowers. We accepted liability straight away and are sorry that this happened.”