At the end of October the clocks go back, sunset occurs earlier in the day and unfortunately, the number of road traffic accidents rise. In 2019, pedestrian deaths rose from 33 in September and 36 in October to 54 in November and 57 in December....
Danielle Callaway, associate solicitor, recently settled a case for a client who sustained injury as a result of an accident at work.
Our client commenced his shift and was collecting his lorry from a bay in order to proceed with his duties. Our client was required to walk between 2 lorries in order to get to his parked lorry. As he stepped between the 2 lorries from the path, he fell into a pit (used for inspecting underneath the lorries) which was approximately 5 feet deep.
As a result of the accident, our client sustained a fracture to his lower vertebrae and a significant strain to the ligaments, muscles and discs of his lower spine. The accident accelerated a pre-existing degenerative disc disease by a period of 5 years, causing ongoing nerve root irritation which exacerbated his back and left leg pain. Symptoms related to the fracture were expected to have resolved within 6 months of the accident. His ongoing symptoms were consistent with someone with constitutional back pain which had been brought forward by the accident.
Our client was absent from work for 9 months following the accident, as a result of the injuries. He was restricted with day-to-day tasks for a period of 6-8 months, following the accident, and required assistance with personal care and domestic chores. He continued to suffer from some restrictions for a period of up to 2 years, which included gardening.
Our client received £65,000.00 in compensation, following an out of court settlement.
