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It was reported in ‘The Guardian‘ today that a Surrey business woman has been awarded over £6 million pounds in compensation due to a botched face lift carried out on her. This left her with extensive nerve damage to the right side of her face, causing her face to appear distorted, and for it to constantly contract, also leaving a constant buzzing sensation around her eye.

In a trial in February, the Claimant not only claimed compensation for her injuries, but also for her injuries causing her financial and IT consultancy firm to go into administration to which she was a 50% shareholder. The Surrey business woman calculated her loss to be at £54 million – a figure she wished to claim a proportion of due to her injuries.

The Judge commented that the Claimant was a highly successful business woman who, prior to the surgery, was confident, happy, and outgoing. He commented that the repercussions of the surgery had affected all areas of her life, including her marriage. He stated that some of the reward also reflected her possible future loss of earnings taking into account her psychiatric symptoms and loss of confidence as a result of the accident; especially when conducting business face to face.
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The state of our roads has become a much talked about topic – not just in passing speech, but also in the media. Only today I have seen on the BBC News that road safety charities have warned that unless councils take a fresh approach to repairing roads, the amount they will have to pay out in compensation to injured claimants will escalate. The Institute of Advanced Motorists claim that Councils need to fully resurface roads rather than just filling in the holes. It has been revealed that the Vale of Glamorgan and Newport Councils have some of the largest pay-out figures on pothole claims over the last four years within Wales – the former being £245, 967, whilst the latter have figures of £203,913.

It seems that councils are having trouble fixing the damage caused to the roads due to the bad weather we had over the winter.  If you have been injured due to the presence of a pothole, you may have a claim for compensation.

Local councils have a duty to maintain the highways, and in doing so, reduce the risks to our health and safety.  However, claims due to potholes can be fairly complex for a number of reasons. Firstly, it can be difficult to ascertain who has the responsibility for maintaining the land, as it could be privately owned, be the responsibility of the local council, or highways agency, or even be a private company used by the council for managing the maintenance. Secondly, in the event the land is the responsibility of the council, it can be difficult to get an admission of fault on your claim.
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The Liverpool Echo reports that a former chip shop employee is seeking £1million in compensation having slipped on a wet surface whilst she was at work. 

It is stated that Sylvia Cheung was at the end of the her shift at the Yang Sing takeaway back in 2008 when she slipped and sustained severe injuries to her head and spinal cord.  Unfortunately, it would appear that Ms Cheung will have to use a wheelchair for the rest of her life, and will subsequently need care and assistance.  At the High Court, Judge John Leighton Williams QC found that Miss Cheung was 15% responsible for the accident as she knew the floor was slippery and ‘should have been aware of the risk’, but found that the chip shop had breached health and safety regulations and was therefore 85% liable for the accident.

If you sustained a particularly serious injury as a result of an accident for which you were not responsible, you may be entitled to compensation in a similar sum to what Miss Cheung is claiming.  When you are dealing with such sums of money, it becomes especially apparent that you need to have a specialist, quality, professional injury lawyer with years of experience on your side.  It could well be the difference between thousands, if not hundreds of thousands of pounds, in compensation for you. 
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BBC News reported on the 9^th May 2011 that a six year old boy had received nearly £5m in compensation after being left disabled at birth. 

It is said that Shane Barrett sustained severe brain injuries and now suffers cerebral palsy after his heart stopped beating whilst he was being born back in 2004.  The Defendant, the Queen Elizabeth Hospital King’s Lynn NHS Trust, did not admit liability, but lawyers for Mr Barrett said that there had been ‘wholly avoidable delays’ at his birth when the midwives considered his mother’s heartbeat to be his, therefore not realising his heartbeat was abnormal, and horrific brain injuries were suffered as a result.

If you have suffered a particularly serious injury whilst you have been in hospital, it is important that from the offset you get quality personal injury lawyers on your side with years and years experience in dealing with medical negligence cases.  Such matters are often complex and require an experienced professional with knowledge in the area to deal with the claim in the right way.  At The Injury Lawyers, we have been dealing with medical negligence cases of varying severity for many years, and we are happy to discuss any potential claim you may have.  Our advice is confidential, and totally free – and does not impose any obligations upon you.  We really are a quick, free, and just an easy telephone call away.
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I read today in the ‘Hartlepool Mail’ that Skanska Rashleigh Weatherfoil have been fined £120,000 and been forced to pay costs of £81,927 having pleaded guilty to breaches of health and safety regulations after a man was paralysed having been involved in an accident at work.  The horrific accident happened in Crawley back in January 2007 when an employee who was installing cable was working on a scissor lift when the trays supporting him collapsed: he fell 24ft.

As a result of the accident, the unfortunate man, who does not wish to be named, was unsurprisingly knocked unconscious and suffered paralysis from the waist downwards, as well as horrendous spinal injuries.  The Health and Safety Executive have since found that Skanska Rashleigh Weatherfoil failed in their duty to ensure the safety of its employees.  In particular, Skanska Rashleigh Weatherfoil admitted breaching section 2(1) and 3(1) of the Health and Safety Act 1974.

The HSE inspector who carried out the investigation had the following to say:
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When you’re in charge of around 10 tonnes worth of metal, seats, and engine, you’d like to think that the driver of the bus you’re in has the passenger’s health and safety at the forefront of their mind. Sadly, this is not always the case.

I am in no way slating all bus drivers – but even when I was learning to drive I was warned about taking extra care around them as the drivers can, on occasions, be a little unpredictable. In all honesty, we have taken on a huge number of claims involving buses that we have successfully won thousands of pounds in compensation for our clients.

So – did it come as any surprise when I myself ended up in a bus incident? Not particularly…
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The Evening Gazette has reported that a lady from Redcar has received £6,000 in compensation having almost been killed in a road traffic accident when her car was negligently hit by an ambulance car at a speed of over 50mph.  In a recent court case, the North East Ambulance Service was found vicariously liable for their employee ambulance car driver’s negligence in colliding with Ms Lake’s car. 

It was heard that the ambulance car driver incorrectly thought that Ms Lake was going to pull in to the left hand side so as to allow the ambulance car to pass; this was despite Ms Lake’s indicating right.  As a result, the ambulance car ran into Ms Lake’s vehicle, causing her to sustain injuries to her back, and leaving her suffering from anxiety attacks.

Making the situation worse, Ms Lake’s daughter witnessed the whole episode.  She states that she thought that her mother had been ‘killed in front of her eyes’ having seen the ambulance car drive into her mum’s car.  Ms Lake had been making the car journey to pick her daughter up from work and her daughter witnessed the accident as she stood in the background.  All in all it would seem that Ms Lake had a lucky escape as she herself recognises, telling the Evening Gazette, ‘The car hit mine inches from the driver’s door and all the front of the car was wiped out and was halfway down the road.  If it had hit me, there’s no way I would have survived that at more than 50 miles per hour’.
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The Exeter Express & Echo has reported that a 54 year old employee of the Dolphin Fish Bar in Exeter has been injured whilst at work having slipped on some oil which had seeped out of the container it was in.  The unfortunate victim, Ms Susan Risk, suffered burns to 20% of her body.  As a result of the accident, the owner of the fish and chip shop, Ding Choy Yau, was fined £10,000 having been found to be in breach of health and safety regulations that are in place to stop this kind of accident from happening. 

It was found at court that the container holding the oil was not fit for purpose, and that Ms Risk had not been provided with any training, as is required by law, so that she knew how to properly handle emptying the oil from the fryer.  Furthermore, it was found that the Dolphin Fish Bar had failed to provide Ms Risk with work equipment and clothing for the role – again something employers are required to provide by law.

It is important and well worth knowing that your employer is under several strict legal duties to ensure that when you go to work you are fully and properly prepared for any tasks you are required to carry out.  This means that you must be fully trained in your tasks and that you must be supplied with the right work equipment where necessary.  Your employer is also required to ensure you work environment is safe.  This means carrying out risk assessments and making sure that any defects highlighted are remedied as soon as possible.
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The Daily Mail has today reported that an elderly lady, Audrey King, of 70 years, is seeking compensation having sustained injuries having been involved in a collision with a mobility scooter.  It is stated that Ms King was out shopping with a friend when a mobility scooter drover into her.  As a result of this accident, Ms King suffered a broken hip and a serious fracture to her thigh bone.  According to the Daily Mail, the negligent driver of the mobility scooter got her coat stuck in the mobility, she lost focus, and subsequently drove into Ms King. 

One of the interesting points of this case is that mobility scooters do not require insurance as they are not considered ‘motor vehicles’.  As such, Ms King could not pursue compensation against the negligent driver’s insurance; something she would have been able to do had she have been in a road traffic accident. Instead, she has had to pursue the negligent driver who may not be worth suing.  It is not surprising therefore that Ms King has called for the law to be changed in respect of mobility scooters and their lack of need for insurance.

Ms King states that she was in ‘agonising pain’ after the accident.  She had to stay in hospital for almost an entire week, has had to have an operation on her hip to ensure that she was able to return home, and now requires a walking aid, and has had to use painkillers for approximately six weeks.  Ms King now requires care and assistance around her home.  Should a claim for compensation be successful, it is expected that the compensation would cover her injuries and any other losses that Ms King sustained subsequent to the accident.  That is, because she has needed care and assistance and may continue to do so for some time, a compensatory award could take this into account.  This would be to cover any expenditure she has incurred in having to get this help in.
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I read today in The Shields Gazette that a police offer is seeking compensation from the Northumbria police after it was alleged that a faulty police vehicle caused Pc Christopher Pearson to be involved in a serious road traffic accident back in August 2006. 

It is reported that Pc Pearson lost control of his police car which caused him to hit a kerb and a barrier which caused the police car to roll over a staggering six times.  As a result of this major accident, Pc Pearson was lucky to only escape with whiplash, an injury to his back, and his knee.  Unfortunately, Pc Pearson was not the only person to be caught up in this incident.  His partner, Pc Emma Wilkinson, a passenger in the vehicle, also suffered injuries.  Pc Wilkinson has yet to return to work – and, approaching five years after the accident, Pc Pearson has only returned on limited duties.

Pc Pearson contends that a bald tyre and some loose fittings around one of the police cars’ wheels caused him to lose control of the vehicle.  The police officers, who were pursuing a suspect at the time, came off the road at a bend.  Pc Pearson states that ‘As we started to leave the bend I could see the road straightening up, and at that point in time the vehicle should have been moving in that straight line, but the vehicle itself, rather than going straight, seemed to be going.  The front near side at that point then hit the kerb…I could not understand why the vehicle was going in that direction.’  In essence, Pc Pearson suggests that the car was defective, and as such this caused the crash.  Northumbria police have so far denied liability.
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