March 11th, 2010
The Royal Mail postal company has been fined £90,000 after its failure to follow health and safety laws resulted in the death of one of its workers. They are now at risk of being pursued for a work accident compensation claim by the deceased’s family.
Colin Smith was crushed to death during a freak accident at the Heathrow International Distribution Centre near Slough in 2006. He suffered terrible injuries and was killed after he was caught between a reversing lorry and its trailer. The lorry was unfortunately being driven by his colleague and friend Ian Wheeler, who understandably is distraught about the incident. It was proved that Mr Smith was standing in a substantial blind spot for the driver at the time of the incident.
Royal Mail admitted to failing to fulfil the full Health and Safety requirements at the Slough yard. It acknowledged that it had failed to foresee such a danger and done a full risk assessment on the distribution centre. The company was fined £90,000 and ordered to pay £42,500 costs at Reading Crown Court. Mr Wheeler had earlier been cleared of any wrongdoing or recklessness during the incident.
The Royal Mail has since introduced new safety measures to prevent any such accident from happening again.
Tags: work accident compensation
Posted in Accidents at Work
March 11th, 2010
A man who suffered brain damage in a tragic car accident looked set to be awarded £1 million in personal injury compensation. The judge for the case however, has stated that he feels that this amount may be too low.
Phil Parker suffered the injuries in a road traffic accident back in 2005. He was a back seat passenger in a car being driven along the A38. The driver of the car – former policeman James Storie – sadly died instantly after he lost control of the vehicle. Another passenger in the car, Sophie Hill also suffered brain injuries and unfortunately passed away after two years spent in a coma. Mr Parker was thrown from the vehicle into the road during the crash as he was not wearing his seatbelt.
Mr Parker was set to receive the million pound personal injury compensation payout yesterday but his case was dramatically adjourned at the High Court. This happened because the judge presiding over the case expressed his concern over the amount awarded, fearing that it was not enough. This was because the calculation used to determine the loss of future earnings was based on a job earning £20,000 a year that he had only been in for a month before the crash. Before that, he had just been made redundant from a £32,000 a year job. He expressed his belief that Mr Parker would have had the ability to earn the higher figure for the majority of his life if the accident had not taken place.
Tags: fatal car accident, Personal Injury Compensation, road traffic crash brain damage
Posted in Road Traffic Accidents
March 10th, 2010
Hundreds of angry and distraught patients of the Staffordshire Hospital rocked by allegations of inadequate care are launching medical negligence claims against the NHS trust. It is thought up to 200 claims could be made from patients and relatives of patients who have suffered.
Nearly a year ago, the Healthcare Commission released a report into the Hospital which revealed multiple failings in basic care there. A later inquiry revealed that over 900 patients and their families felt routinely ignored and forgotten about by Hospital staff. This has led to the rise in compensation claims, with all being pursued for either clinical negligence or a breach of basic human rights.
Health campaigner and founder of the organisation ‘Cure the NHS’, has stated her views on the situation. She stated that; “I am not in the least surprised at the amount of people who could put in claims. It just shows the extremity of the harm they were doing over the years.”
Unfortunately, the poor standard of care at the hospital has allegedly led to some unnecessary fatalities. One of these is the case of May Ellis. She was given food she was intolerant to and sadly passed away from bacterial peritonitis after suffering from the infection C. Difficile. Although her family report numerous errors in her care, they have yet to decide on whether to make a claim for compensation.
Tags: medical negligence claims, nhs care claim
Posted in Medical negligence
March 10th, 2010
Former Paper Mill workers in Lancashire are to set to bring a work injury compensation claim against their former employer’s insurance company. Hundreds of former workers could be suffering noise induced hearing loss due to the constant noise of the heavy machinery at work. So far, nine of the mills former workers are seeking advice from industrial injury solicitors about their situation.
The East Lancashire Paper Mill shut down in 2001 putting 200 employees out of work. The Mill had been open for 139 years and had employed thousands of people over that time. It is reported that they only introduced hearing protection measures for its workers in the last eight to ten years of operation. Employers are required to provide ear protection by law to protect the hearing of its employees.
One former Paper Mill worker is Albert Isherwood from Whitefield. The 72 year old worked in the Mill from 1954 until his retirement. After spending nearly every working day “exposed to the sound of massive machinery”, he was diagnosed by a GP recently with noise induced hearing loss. He now finds it difficult to distinguish between voices in conversations. He is typical of former employees seeking work injury compensation for his injuries.
It is a common misbelieve that if a company has gone bust then it is impossible to bring a claim against them. In cases like these though, claims can still be made as it is the company’s former insurance company who pay any compensation due to former employees.
Tags: noise induced hearing loss, work injury compensation
Posted in Industrial Disease
March 9th, 2010
Those injured on Britain’s roads are set to get their car accident compensation payments quicker under a new scheme. The new Government system is being put before parliament today and will be introduced from 30 April 2010.
The scheme introduces shorter fixed time periods for each stage of the claims process. Under the current situation, insurers have to accept or deny responsibility for personal injury claims suffered on the roads within 60-90 days. This timeframe will be greatly shortened so that they have to resolve their liability within 15 days. This is introduced to insure that the claimant gets any compensation they are entitled to as soon as possible.
The new scheme will only apply to road and car accident compensation claims for injuries valued between £1,000 and £10,000. However, these types of claims make up the vast majority of claims each year. The new scheme will therefore cover claims for injuries such as whiplash compensation. Such claims will be made even faster by the introduction of an online portal which will allow solicitors to share information quickly and securely.
The Minister for Justice Bridget Prentice stated about the new scheme that; “People do not need any more stress after being involved in a road accident. This scheme will mean that it will be simpler and quicker to complete a claim.”
Tags: car accident compensation, whiplash compensation
Posted in Road Traffic Accidents
March 9th, 2010
The family of a teenage cancer sufferer tragically given an overdose of radiation during her treatment have vowed to continue their compensation claim fight.
Lisa Norris sadly passed away at the age of 16 after battling hard against a brain tumour. Her family believe that her life could have been extended had it not been for a medical error during her treatment. She was given an overdose of radiation that led her to suffer immeasurable pain and suffering. It is thought that the error occurred after a poorly trained junior member of staff made a mistake filling in a form about the patient. This mistake led to her having 19 radiation overdoses, and these doses left Lisa with burns to her head and neck.
An inquest into her death ended yesterday after medical experts successfully argued that a direct link between the overdose and Ms Norris’s death in 2006 could not be proved. Speaking in a television interview however, her father Ken admitted that the family “still believe that the radiation killed her.” The family had previously been given a report which stated that with the correct treatment, Lisa could have lived for approximately a further 5 years. However, after the inquest, the compensation claim the family are making will be based on the fact that the negligent treatment caused Lisa undue pain and suffering before her death.
Tags: compensation claim, Medical negligence
Posted in Medical negligence
March 8th, 2010
A worker who suffered severe brain injury in a rare industrial accident looks set to receive millions in work accident compensation.
Christopher Kaye was hit in the face by a large metal fixing bar which sprang loose from an excavator as he was changing the large grabbing attachment. He needed emergency surgery but unfortunately suffered severe brain damage in the incident. He spent months in the Keresforth neuro-rehabilitation unit trying to recover from his severe injuries back in 2008. Despite this, Mr Kaye requires constant care as he cannot walk or care for himself anymore. He also struggles to talk.
The company Mr Kaye was working for, Euro Dismantling Services in Sheffield have admitted liability for the accident and have provided him with an interim payment of £500,000. This payment is to cover any expenses he occurs from the accident – such as not being able to work again – until the full amount of work accident compensation can be decided. According to his legal team, this is expected to be several millions of pounds.
His team successfully argued that instructions and training at the firm for using the heavy machinery were inadequate. While they admitted responsibility, the company still maintain that Mr Kaye was partially to blame. The family deny this but both sides have agreed that Mr Kaye will receive 90% of his full damages in return for not going to court.
Tags: industrial accident claim, work accident compensation
Posted in Industrial Disease
March 8th, 2010
A mum whose son and husband were killed after being hit by an uninsured driver has received nearly half a million pounds as an accident compensation payout.
Kerry Pethig has had to live with the death of her husband and seven year old son after Alan Oliver smashed into them at a known accident black-spot in Kent. The father and son were parked on the side of the road following a breakdown in 2005. Mr Oliver’s car veered violently before smashing into the side of them. Unfortunately Mr Pethig passed away at the scene while the seven year old boy was rushed to hospital, where he later sadly died.
Mr Oliver was sentenced to nine years in jail for causing death by dangerous driving. The uninsured driver from Pontefract pleaded guilty in court to the charge put before him.
Last week, the Motor Insurance Bureau agreed to award Mrs Pethig £425,000 in accident compensation. The Motor Insurance Bureau is an organisation made up of all car insurance bodies to pay claims against uninsured and untraced drivers. The money awarded could be used by Mrs Pethig to help raise her four surviving children. They will each receive a part of the compensation as part of the settlement terms.
Tags: accident compensation
Posted in Uncategorized
March 5th, 2010
An accident compensation claim has been started on behalf of a hit and run victim who is still fighting for his life.
Chris Corder was struck by a hit and run driver back in September 2009 and suffered severe injuries. He has been diagnosed with serious brain injuries and will need round the clock care for the rest of his life. He is still in a coma at Norwich Coleman Hospital some five months later.
The driver of the vehicle – Andrew Boyd – was sentenced to 12 months in jail for the incident at Ipswich Crown Court last week. Mr Boyd is coincidentally the manager of rock ‘n’ roll star Pete Doherty, and was driving his car at the time of the accident. He admitted failing to stop at the scene of an accident, dangerous driving and failing to report an injury collision.
A legal team working on behalf of Mr Corder has launched an accident compensation claim through the Motor Insurance Bureau. The Motor Insurance Bureau is funded by all motor insurance companies and provides compensation to victims of uninsured and untraced motorists in the UK.
Previous payouts to victims with injuries as serious as Mr Corder’s, have tended to be of a high value, to pay for their ongoing care.
Tags: accident compensation claim, motor insurance bureau claim
Posted in Road Traffic Accidents
March 5th, 2010
A Police Officer from Hampshire has launched a medical negligence claim for compensation after his leg amputation could have been prevented.
PC Wilson was on duty and answering a call for assistance when he hurt his knee back in November of last year. He was taken to Southampton General Hospital to have his injury treated.
His legal team then allege that his diagnosis was “inadequate” and complain that he had to wait 5 days for an MRI scan. The doctor examining him reportedly stated that he was “unable to give further diagnosis until he has seen the results of scans.” PC Wilson claims that he told medical staff that he was having problems with movement in his feet and that his toes were feeling very stiff. However they failed to diagnoses the artery blockage immediately.
He then developed a serious infection in the interim period. Nearly a week later, PC Wilson saw a different doctor who after expressing his concern got him an MRI scan within an hour.
Southampton University Hospitals NHS Trust has expressed its sympathy to PC Wilson and his family, and is launching a review into his care.
PC Wilson admits that “It is very hard to think that the need for amputation might have been avoided.” He is launching his claim for compensation to help him adjust to his condition.
Tags: amputation, claim for compensation
Posted in Medical negligence