£528,000 awarded to bereaved family

Our client's husband was killed when he lost control of his Land Rover Defender due to sheet ice on the road and collided with a tree. He was 25 years old and had a 4-week-old baby at the time of his death. The drains and ditches along the lane where the accident occurred, had been blocked for some time.

The claim was initially submitted to the council, who later involved two further potential defendants; their maintenance contractors who were responsible for clearing the drains and ditches on the road, and the owners of the land adjacent to the road, which also contained blocked ditches from which water emanated. The council’s maintenance contractor has also introduced further potential defendants, who were their subcontractors. Accordingly, the claim was rather complex in terms of liability. In addition, there were issues as to whether the deceased was wearing a seatbelt and, if not, whether this would have made a difference to the outcome. The claim consisted of bereavement damages, funeral expenses, financial dependency, loss of services, loss of a husband/parent, and vehicle damage.

The claim settled for £528,000.