Serious injury solicitors at Irwin Mitchell secured a settlement for the family of a man who died after being struck by a car.
Anthony was crossing the road when he was hit by the vehicle, which had ignored amber lights at the junction. He suffered a very severe traumatic brain injury and required 24-hour nursing care. Tragically, he died eight months later due to complications from the brain injury, namely repeated chest infections.
Before the accident, Anthony lived by himself and was completely independent in all activities of daily living. He looked after his garden and took annual holidays abroad. Between the accident and his death, he was confused and disorientated. He didn’t seem to recognise his children, though he did appear to recognise his grandchildren.
We helped Anthony’s estate make the claim. It was an extremely difficult case in that Anthony had walked into the road away from a pedestrian crossing. There were no independent witnesses to the accident itself and the driver wasn’t prosecuted.
Nevertheless, our personal injury solicitors took on the case and were successful in proving liability against the driver, arguing that he had been negligent in a number of areas. The driver had been driving too fast, failed to heed the presence of Anthony and drove through amber traffic lights when he should have slowed down.
The settlement paid off Anthony’s nursing home fees, his funeral expenses and also went some way to compensate his family for all of the care and assistance provided to him during his time in hospital.
Solicitor Sofie Toft helped Anthony’s family with the claim. She said: “This was a very difficult case in which the police chose not to prosecute the driver on the basis that there was insufficient evidence. Anthony suffered the most serious of consequences as a result of the accident and never recovered sufficiently to give his account of the circumstances.
“With the assistance of Irwin Mitchell’s in-house forensic collision investigator, David Hughes, the police and inquest evidence in this case was reviewed and challenged. In doing so, we found inconsistencies and errors, on the basis of which it was possible to prove that the driver was at fault. I am pleased that by pursuing and being successful in this matter on behalf of Anthony’s family, we have gone some way to provide them with answers about the circumstances of his accident and hopefully to provide some closure.”
If you or a loved one has been injured in car accident, our car accident solicitors could help you claim compensation. Visit our Road Traffic Accident Compensation page for more information.
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