£50,000 Settlement
Our client, Mrs Smith, decided to walk to her GP appointment on the day of the accident. She had done the walk many times before without incident.
However, this time whilst walking up to a junction, she noticed a large 4×4 vehicle waiting to pull out. She therefore proceeded to cross behind it, but the driver failed to notice her and reversed backwards, colliding into her and knocking her to the ground.
Injuries sustained after the accident
She sustained multiple injuries resulting in her being admitted to A&E. She was diagnosed with a hip fracture and a soft tissue injury to her lower back. She had recently been diagnosed with arthritis in her back so her pain was compounded by her new injuries.
She was sent for emergency surgery to fix her hip fracture. After 15 days in the hospital, she was discharged with further follow-up treatments at her GP. Her GP prescribed her painkillers to manage the discomfort within her lower back, which was causing major problems.
A drastic change to her life
Mrs Smith struggled with her social and domestic activities and continues to do so now. For the first three weeks, she needed help from her family getting into bed, and once there she struggled to sleep. She also struggled with bathing, dressing and domestic chores.
Fortunately, after the bath chair that was in her property was deemed dangerous, her local council have agreed to build a wet room for her. One of her main hobbies was going on days out with her friends and family as well as holidays abroad, but after the accident, she was unable to enjoy these activities.
Mrs Smith was also affected psychologically, despite having no previous history of any of these problems. She suffered from depression, nightmares, alteration of relationships with family and friends and tearfulness. She was grateful to receive help from a case management company (funded by the third-party insurer), who provided an immediate needs assessment and coordination of treatment for them.
How we helped
Having approached Pryers about her claim, our expert solicitors understood that Mrs Smith would possibly require future care.
Furthermore, there had also been evidence that before the accident and despite her age, she was very agile, following a video of her dancing around in a nightclub whilst on holiday.
However, now that she needed a wheeled walking frame, she has been unable to go and enjoy a holiday. We were, therefore, able to negotiate compensation of £50,000, which was even settled on her birthday!
