Life-changing compensation in brain injury claim

Catherine was driving home after a day out when she had a head-on car collision with another vehicle which was travelling in the opposite direction on the wrong side of the road. The combined speed would have been approximately 100mph. Catherine was trapped in the car for more than 20 minutes and had to be extracted from the vehicle.

In the hospital, she was treated for major trauma and CT scans of the brain showed bi-frontal contusions. In addition, Catherine suffered from a fractured right femur and fractures to her left knee, both of which required extensive surgery. Catherine had no recollection of the incident.

Determining liability

The case of obtaining compensation was made more complex due to the difficulties in determining liability. The forensic officer who attended the road traffic accident failed to examine the underside of both vehicles in order to confirm that the accident happened due to the defendant’s vehicle travelling on the wrong side of the road. As a result, the forensic officer was subject to disciplinary proceedings. The defendant responded to the police reports with an offer of 50/50 liability due to the fact that Catherine could not remember the accident and a lack of evidence compiled by the forensic team.

Jason Brady, Partner and Head of Blackwater Law, who was representing Catherine refused this offer and undertook a number of additional steps in order to determine liability. This included a reconstruction forensic report and an expert who interviewed the Police Officers. As a result, the report determined that the accident happened on the claimant’s (Catherine’s) side of the road.

An initial and significant offer of compensation was made by the defendant, but owing to the fact that no reference to liability had been made by the defendant, this claim was rejected by Blackwater Law.

Evidence gathered by Blackwater Law

During the course of the claim, Catherine emigrated to Australia. However, where necessary Jason Brady arranged for local experts to examine Catherine in order to detail the full extent of her injuries as a result of the road traffic accident. This included:

• The neurologist confirmed Catherine suffered a severe traumatic brain injury (TBI) and as a result, has a significant reduction in the brain processing speed and suffers from fatigue.
• Neuropsychologist and Neuropsychiatrist who confirmed Catherine has suffered a personality change due to the brain injury and agreed that Catherine is disabled for the purposes of the Equality Act 2010.
• Consultant Psychiatrist – confirms Catherine suffers from anxiety as a result of the injuries.

The medical assessments confirmed that such is the extent of Catherine’s injuries that it is unlikely she will be able to return to work as usual and could only be expected to work at half the pace of another employee. She is also likely to require extensive care for the rest of her life including additional care should she have children in the future. A consultant orthopaedic surgeon confirmed that Catherine will, unfortunately, suffer from her injuries permanently.

Jason Brady successfully secured an interim payment of £25,000 from the defendant in order to help Catherine with initial treatment whilst the claim was still ongoing.

Medical negligence claim settlement offer

Jason Brady then issued court proceedings in the High Court. The defendant denied liability but offered to settle the claim for a significant sum and an amount far exceeding the Defendant’s initial offer, originally refused by Jason Brady at Blackwater Law. Utilising his significant experience in dealing with brain injury claims, Jason Brady secured Catherine a significant and life-changing amount of money that properly compensates her for the impact of the injuries she has suffered on her life.

Catherine is pleased with the final offer as she is now able to receive the extensive care that she requires for her injuries and is able to work part-time without the financial constraints she would have had, should she have accepted the initial offer from the Defendants.

Watch the below video to hear Catherine’s own views on the service she received from Jason Brady and Blackwater Law.