Have you been assaulted at work?

comercrawley

the personal injury lawyers

Your questions answered……

Question:  I was severely assaulted at work recently by a work colleague.  I feel that I didn’t do anything to provoke the assault and the police have told me that they are looking to bring charges against the individual concerned.  Please advise me as to whether I may be able to pursue a claim for compensation.

Answer:  You have several options in terms of seeking to claim compensation for the injuries and associated financial losses and expenses that you have suffered as a result of the assault.

You may be able to puruse a civil claim for damages against your employer.  This is on the basis that an employer will be vicariously liable for the wrongful acts of their employees that occur during the course of their employment.  The courts have held that this may include an assault by an employee.  The claim will be dealt with by the company’s employers liability insurers.

You could also pursue a civil claim for damages against the work colleague that assaulted you.  This is however a less attractive option as the claim will not be covered by an insurance policy. 

Another option is to seek compensation from the Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority.  The CICA basically administers a centrally funded scheme to compensate the victims of crime.  To succeed with a claim you will need to meet the criteria specified under the scheme.  The amount of any compensation awarded is however likely to be less than you would be able to claim via a civil claim for damages plus the CICA will not pay anything in respect of legal fees.

Finally, if a criminal prosecution is pursued against the person that assaulted you, you can seek for a compensation order to be made as part of the sentencing (assuming of course that a conviction results from the prosecution).  The amount of any compensation is likely however to be very low compared to the other options mentioned above plus the compensation order will be payable by the person that assaulted you and will therefore depend on his or her means to pay.  

If you have a question for our legal advice team you can submit it by email: enquiries@comercrawley.co.uk or in writing to:  Chancery House, Victoria Road, Diss, Norfolk IP22 4HZ.

Slipped on fruit...

comercrawley

the personal injury lawyers

Your questions answered ……

Question:  I recently had an accident whilst shopping in a supermarket.  I slipped on a piece of fruit that was on the floor in one of the aisles and fell hurting my back.  The staff at the supermarket were very kind at the time and I have since received some flowers and vouchers from the supermarket.  I am concerned however as my back is still bad.  Could I make a claim for compensation?

Answer:  You may have a claim for compensation against the supermarket.  To succeed with a claim, you would need to show that your accident and injury has been caused by the supermarket’s breach of duty of care under the Occupiers Liability Act 1957 (and also under the general law of negligence).  In essence, the supermarket owes a duty of care to its customers to ensure that they are reasonably safe when using their premises and that they are not exposed to the risk of foreseeable injury.

The fact that you slipped on something on the floor of the supermarket does not automatically mean that they are at fault.  The piece of fruit may only just have been dropped on the floor by another customer.  The supermarket will however be liable if they fail to have an adequate system for checking the floor and cleaning up spillages etc.  If a claim for compensation is pursued, the supermarket will need to provide evidence (such as signed records) that at the time of your accident the floor of the aisle was inspected at frequent and regular intervals and that no hazards were found.  If they are unable to do so, you are likely to succeed with your claim for compensation.  Additionally, the supermarket should have mats on parts of the floor in the fruit and vegetable aisle where spillages are most likely to occur, for example near to the grapes.

Finally, the fact that you have received flowers and vouchers from the supermarket is not necessarily an indication that the supermarket considers that they were at fault for the cause of your accident.  Companies often do so as a good will gesture.  Similarly, you do not need to worry that by spending the vouchers you will have accepted an offer of compensation and will be prevented from pursuing a compensation claim.

If you have a question for our legal advice team you can submit it by email: enquiries@comercrawley.co.uk or in writing to:  Chancery House, Victoria Road, Diss Norfolk, IP22 4HZ.

Potholes...

comercrawley

the personal injury lawyers

Your questions answered ……

Question:  I recently had an accident when the front wheel of my motorbike went into a pothole.  I lost control of my bike and ended up with a broken arm.  Can you please advise me about making a claim for compensation.

Answer:  This is quite a topical subject with the large amount of potholes having developed or become worse following the recent cold and snowy weather conditions.

The starting point in terms of advising you is to establish whether the pothole was on land which is publicly or privately owned (or, more specifically, maintained). 

Most pothole claims arise from accidents that occur on public roads and in such cases the claim is normally made to the local authority who are responsible for maintaining the road at public expense. 

The first thing that will need to be proven is that the size of the pothole (and most importantly its depth) was such that it constituted a hazard that should have been repaired.  Photographs and measurements of the pothole are therefore important.

The next stage effectively involves proving that the council were either aware of the hazard or should have been aware of the hazard through their system of carrying out regular inspections of the highway.  Thereafter the council should act within a reasonable timescale in terms of arranging for the repairs to the highway to be carried out.  Councils keep records relating to the inspection and maintenance of the highway as well as records of complaints about the condition of the highway.

Every case however is decided on its own individual facts and other relevant considerations include where the pothole was and whether there had been any previous accidents or complaints.

If however the accident occurred on private land, then the claim will instead be made to the individual or organisation who owns or is responsible for maintaining the land.  The law is different to highway claims but, in general terms, such claims can often be easier to prove as a private landowner would be expected to inspect the area more often and can also act sooner in terms of arranging for a pothole to be repaired (or sectioned off) once it has started to form.

If you have a question for our legal advice team you can submit it by email: enquiries@comercrawley.co.uk or in writing to:  Chancery House, Victoria Road, Diss Norfolk, IP22 4HZ.

Supermarket Sweep...

comercrawley

the personal injury lawyers

Your questions answered ……

Question:  I recently had an accident whilst shopping in a supermarket.  I slipped on a piece of fruit that was on the floor in one of the aisles and fell hurting my back.  The staff at the supermarket were very kind at the time and I have since received some flowers and vouchers from the supermarket.  I am concerned however as my back is still bad.  Could I make a claim for compensation?

Answer:  You may have a claim for compensation against the supermarket.  To succeed with a claim, you would need to show that your accident and injury has been caused by the supermarket’s breach of duty of care under the Occupiers Liability Act 1957 (and also under the general law of negligence).  In essence, the supermarket owes a duty of care to its customers to ensure that they are reasonably safe when using their premises and that they are not exposed to the risk of foreseeable injury.

The fact that you slipped on something on the floor of the supermarket does not automatically mean that they are at fault.  The piece of fruit may only just have been dropped on the floor by another customer.  The supermarket will however be liable if they fail to have an adequate system for checking the floor and cleaning up spillages etc.  If a claim for compensation is pursued, the supermarket will need to provide evidence (such as signed records) that at the time of your accident the floor of the aisle was inspected at frequent and regular intervals and that no hazards were found.  If they are unable to do so, you are likely to succeed with your claim for compensation.  Additionally, the supermarket should have mats on parts of the floor in the fruit and vegetable aisle where spillages are most likely to occur, for example near to the grapes.

Finally, the fact that you have received flowers and vouchers from the supermarket is not necessarily an indication that the supermarket considers that they were at fault for the cause of your accident.  

Companies often do so as a good will gesture.  Similarly, you do not need to worry that by spending the vouchers you will have accepted an offer of compensation and will be prevented from pursuing a compensation claim.

If you have a question for our legal advice team you can submit it by email: enquiries@comercrawley.co.uk or in writing to:  Chancery House, Victoria Road, Diss Norfolk, IP22 4HZ.

My husband had a car accident...

comercrawley

the personal injury lawyers

Your questions answered……

Question:  I have been injured in a car accident caused by my husband – can I claim compensation?

Answer:   Yes, a compensation claim can be pursued by, say, an injured passenger in a car even if the accident is the fault of the driver and s/he is a relative.  The other common example is a claim brought by an injured pillion passenger on a motorcycle.

A claim can still be brought even if the injured passenger is also covered by the motor insurance policy.  This would occur where, say, a husband and wife are both insured to driver a vehicle; if the husband is driving and causes an accident that injures his wife who is a passenger in the car, the wife can pursue a claim against her husband which the motor insurance company with deal with.

Therefore, the fact that you are related to or living with the person responsible for the accident does not prevent you from pursuing a claim for compensation against them.  Provided that person is insured to driver the car then the insurers will be responsible for the claim.  If the case when to court, legal proceedings would need to be issued against your partner.  However, the insurance company would be responsible for paying whatever compensation was agreed or awarded.  It is worthwhile mentioning however that the vast majority of personal injury claims settle without the need to start court proceedings.

If you have a question for our legal advice team you can submit it by email: enquiries@comercrawley.co.uk or in writing to:  Chancery House, Victoria Road, Diss, Norfolk IP22 4HZ.

Car accident claims....

comercrawley

the personal injury lawyers

Your questions answered …

Question:  I was involved in a collision with another car whilst driving along Victoria Road in Diss.  The other driver stopped and appeared to accept that the accident was his fault.  He refused however to give me his insurance details.  Can I still pursue a claim for compensation for my whiplash injury?  I did manage to make a note of the other car’s registration number.

Answer:  The other driver should have provided you with his insurance details upon your request.  Under the Road Traffic Act 1988, if you have been involved in a road traffic collision, no matter how minor, you must stop, give your name and address (and the name and address of the owner of the vehicle, if different) and your vehicle registration number.  If someone has been injured in the accident, you must also provide evidence of your insurance details if someone has reasonable grounds for requesting them.

To fail to do any of the above, is a criminal offence.  You could therefore report the incident to the police and seek for them to take action.

In practical terms however, in order for you to pursue a claim for compensation we need to establish either the name and address of the driver/owner or details of the vehicle’s insurance cover.  A lot of motor insurance policies are now recorded on a database, the Motor Insurance Database.  We have access to the database and are therefore able to search the database in respect of a client’s claim.  If the insurance policy is recorded on the database, we will be able to find out the name of the insurance company and policy number which will enable the claim for compensation to be made.

If a search of the database is unsuccessful, another option is for your solicitor to write to the DVLA requesting the name and address of the registered owner of the vehicle.  It will then be possible to write to the owner of the vehicle setting out details of the claim to be forwarded on to the insurance company.  If no response is received, a formal request can be made for the insurance details under section 154 of the Road Traffic Act 1988 stating that, if the person fails to do so, they may be liable to be prosecuted for a criminal offence.  If a reply is still not received, a report can then be made to the police seeking for them to take action against the owner/driver for failing to provide insurance details upon request.

In summary therefore, having the vehicle registration number should be sufficient to enable you to pursue a claim for compensation.  It may however take a little longer and therefore it is always preferable to seek to obtain the other driver’s details and insurance details wherever possible.    

If it transpires that the other vehicle is uninsured, you can still pursue a claim.  This would instead be through the Motor Insurers’ Bureau, an organisation set up to compensate the victims of uninsured drivers.

If you have a question for our legal advice team you can submit it by email: enquiries@comercrawley.co.uk or in writing to:  Chancery House, Victoria Road, Diss Norfolk, IP22 4HZ.

Injured Playing Football?

comercrawley

the personal injury lawyers

Your questions answered……

Question:  I injured my knee badly a few months ago whilst playing football.  The injury was caused by a player from the other team going in for a tackle badly (the player was sent off following the tackle).  Would I have any claim for compensation against the other player or his team?

Answer:   It is possible to claim compensation for sporting injuries such as the one that you describe.  Whether or not the claim is successful will depend on the circumstances.

As with the majority of personal injury claims, to succeed with the claim it will be necessary to prove negligence.  Participants in sporting activities owe a duty of care to those that they are playing with and against.  Whether or not there has been a breach of that duty of care will depend on the act carried out.

It is helpful that the player was sent off by the referee following the incident but more would need to be proved.  In sporting injury claims, it is not merely sufficient to show that the Defendant was in breach of the rules of the game (this compares with road traffic accident claims where breach of the Highway Code is indicative of negligence). 

It will be necessary to prove that the foul was such that a reasonable player (at the level of football that you were playing) would have realised that their actions carried a significant risk of serious injury.  Additionally, when taking part in sport, you are said to consent to the ordinary risks of the game and thus it will need to be shown that the tackle by the other player went beyond this.

Therefore, if it can be proved that your injury resulted from an intentional foul then you may be able to pursue a claim for compensation; if however it was merely the case of a late and clumsy tackle by the other player, your claim is unlikely to be successful.

Finally, in practical terms, it will need to be investigated whether the player’s actions are covered by an insurance policy.

If you have a question for our legal advice team you can submit it by email: enquiries@comercrawley.co.uk or in writing to:  Chancery House, Victoria Road, Diss, Norfolk IP22 4HZ.