SLIPPING AND TRIPPING ACCIDENT CLAIMS

Continuing his review of successfully completed accident injury claims, Steven Hinchliffe looks at more situations experienced by clients of his firm that resulted in an award of personal injury compensation.

All of the accident victims mentioned in these articles are actual 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.

In this article I highlight 2 cases where truck drivers were injured because of dangerous premises.  As with previous articles I have written, the common trend remains the effect on each individual’s life.  Both men had similar accidents, but sustained quite different degrees of injury and financial loss.  Although using the process of law to make 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 indicated, the basic aim of an accident claim 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 - Defective flooring

In November 2007 Mr K went to collect a load of concrete pipes and parked his truck and trailer in the designated loading area.  Once the pipes were loaded he had to secure them to the trailer and as he stepped forward to throw a strap over the top of the load, his foot went down onto a circular grid a couple of inches lower than the ground surface level.  This caused him to go over on his ankle and he suffered an injury that kept him off work for 3 weeks.  He continued to have pain, swelling and restricted movement for a considerable time.  The medical consultant instructed in the case recommended 12 sessions of physiotherapy by way of rehabilitation to help with the recovery process.

Mr K contacted my firm in July 2008 and after initial enquiries were completed a letter of claim was sent to the occupiers of the site where the accident happened.  Their insurers tried to suggest that Mr K’s employers were at fault, but this was clearly inappropriate and by November 2008 they had admitted responsibility for what had happened.  We arranged for Mr K to be examined by a medical consultant, whose report and details of Mr K’s financial losses were sent to the insurers and the claim was settled by December 2008.  He recovered £3,500 for his injury and £2,500 for his financial losses, which included over £1,500 for lost wages while he was off work.

A few days after the accident the company repaired the defective grid, making it flush with the surface of the yard.  Had they kept the yard well maintained the accident could have been avoided, saving Mr K the pain and inconvenience of his injury, and removing the need for their insurers to pay compensation and legal costs, in a case that took only 5 months to complete.

CASE STUDY 2 - Defective gantry

Mr C contacted my firm in November 2007 following an accident the previous month.  At that time he was on the weighbridge at a quarry.  He got out of his lorry and stepped onto a gantry, and as he stepped backwards to close the cab door he caught his foot on the edge of a metal plate that was standing significantly proud of the other plates.  Mr C lost his balance and fell into the gantry railings, suffering chest injuries.

A letter of claim was sent to the company at the end of November 2007, alleging that the gantry was defective as the metal plate was a potential tripping hazard and was dangerous.  It proved necessary to press the company’s insurers for a response on liability and in March 2008 they denied responsibility for the accident.  Their position was that the gantry was neither defective nor dangerous and the actual cause of the accident was Mr C's lack of attention.

My firm arranged for a specialist medical consultant to prepare a report on Mr C's injuries and we also gathered details of his financial losses.  This evidence was then sent to the insurers, but they refused to alter their position.  Full details of the case were then considered by a Barrister, who felt that the risk of Mr C not succeeding before a Judge at trial were too high and it was not appropriate to issue Court proceedings.  Nevertheless, my firm continued to negotiate hard with the insurers, highlighting factual issues that supported the claim and also exploring the possibility of a commercial resolution in which Mr C might be prepared to accept a smaller financial sum than he would otherwise be entitled to if responsibility for the accident was admitted.  After much hard work it was possible to settle the claim, with Mr C receiving £1,100 for his injuries and £400 towards his financial losses, representing about 60% of the claim’s full value.  Never give up!  Some solicitors might have been tempted to withdraw the claim after receiving the Barrister’s advice, leaving Mr C with no personal injury compensation at all.

The outcomes in these cases were quite different, but each man kept 100% of the compensation recovered, as their legal costs were paid by the relevant defendant’s insurers.  It is not unusual for insurers to fight claims strongly, but if my firm feels there is a chance of the client succeeding we will do our utmost to obtain justice for them.

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.

Steven Hinchliffe established Hinchliffes Solicitors in 1999, after many years as the Managing Partner of a renowned Malvern practice. He has experience in many areas of law, but has concentrated on general civil litigation and Personal Injury. He is the owner and sole Principal of the firm, with overall responsibility for its management, administration and marketing. He is also responsible for overseeing the handling of all the firm’s Personal Injury files, together with specific responsibility for the recovery of costs.

Steven is a Fellow of the Association of Personal Injury Lawyers and spent 12 years as a Deputy District Judge.