Driver’s Duty at a Pedestrian Crossing

The consequences of a collision between a pedestrian and a motor vehicle are often devastating! The fault in these types of accidents depend on the circumstances of the collision and most of the time, the accidents are quite different.  However the law surrounding these types of accidents is very pedestrian friendly. With that, I mean that the law seems to be built around placing the blame, or most of it, on the motorist.

However, pedestrians do still have a duty to be vigilant and also be aware of the traffic conditions etc. There have been several safety campaigns for pedestrians and the most memorable is likely to be the Green Cross Code. Pedestrians should find a safe place to cross and then…

• Stop
• Look
• Listen

So what is the duty of a driver to a pedestrian? The case of Donaghue v Stevenson has been applied to road users to show they owe a duty of care to those that may be affected by their actions or omissions; so a driver owes a duty of care to a pedestrian as a pedestrian is a road user.

Therefore, at pedestrian crossings especially, extra care and caution should be taken as it should be expected by a motorist that pedestrians are crossing or will be crossing and can step out into the road at any time.
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Third Party Capture at Christmas!

The festive season is very much upon us; but unfortunately, just because the decorations are up, doesn’t mean that the amount of accidents occurring goes down. At this time of year the roads can be treacherous and therefore accidents are more likely to occur and unfortunately result in nasty injuries to nurse over the festive period. This of course is the last thing you want to happen at this time of year when you’ve got the office Christmas party coming up or you’re travelling to see family and therefore you may wish to start a claim for compensation.

HOWEVER! Insurance companies know that at this time of year money can be tight and therefore take this opportunity to try and settle many claims for compensation directly and cheaply – for them!

This is known as third party capture and does not fill us with festive cheer here at The Injury Lawyers.

Third party capture is the process of the defendants insurance company contacting you directly to settle a claim. Of course, being offered money straight off is always a nice thing but it is important to properly consider the implications of accepting such a sum.
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Overtaking Motorcyclist While Turning Right

Being a motorcyclist can be fraught with hazards due to other road users. The main reason for this would be that drivers of vans, cars and lorries can fail to check their mirrors and surroundings properly before making a manoeuvre.

The most common of these manoeuvres is a vehicle turning right when a motorcyclist is overtaking.

The Highway Code states that when changing lanes or turning right then the “mirror, signal and manoeuvre” rule applies.

Therefore, drivers should, in these circumstances:

• Check their mirrors for other traffic, especially motorcyclists.
• Signal their intention to change lanes or turn right
• Carry out the manoeuvre in a safe fashion

However, motorcyclists have the same duty of care as other road users so who is at fault in a situation such as this.
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Cow Car Crash Claims

Although this seems quite humorous at first, having a road traffic accident involving a cow can be extremely serious! After all, they are pretty big (and sturdy) animals!

However, they can be very difficult claims as to be able to successfully claim compensation you have to prove that someone has been negligent in allowing the animals to escape onto the public highway, for example. Therefore, if the animal is wild it is going to be extremely difficult as, to be honest, you will face significant difficulties in suing a cow!

So, say the animal does have an owner, which given it’s a cow we shall safely assume it does, you still have to prove that the owner was negligent. Therefore, you would need to establish that the farmer had not taken reasonable steps to make sure the animal does not escape. For example: not locked a gate properly. However, this can become difficult if the farmer has been victim to vandalism as this would  be out of their control and therefore they may have been considered to take all steps necessary such as having appropriate fencing and unfortunately a third party has come and destroyed this. If an employee of the farmer was negligent, the farmer can still be vicariously liable.
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Road Traffic Accident Success Stories

Road Traffic Accidents (RTA’s) are normally quite straight forward in respect of assessing liability and fault for the accident – so claims for personal injury resulting from these accidents are usually also straight forward.

As with any claim the main issue is deciding who was at fault for the accident. In road traffic accidents claims, due to the amount of rules and regulations, traffic signs and road markings which determine how we should drive on the roads, liability is usually easy to resolve.

The most common and successful type of personal injury claims resulting from RTA’s are rear end shunts and pulling out of a side road.
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Passenger in Car Crash But Didn’t Know Car Was Stolen!

Getting into a vehicle that you know is stolen is never a good idea and will likely end up in an accident – and if the police catch up, it is likely to involve being arrested as well.

So what does the law state about being a passenger in a stolen vehicle and being injured as a result of an accident:

“no court will lend its aid to a man who founds his cause of action upon an immoral or illegal act”

In layman’s terms, this means that as you are involved in an illegal act by getting into a vehicle knowing it was stolen, then you may be unable to make a claim for compensation if you are injured as a result of this illegal act. This is known as the “ex turpi causa” rule.
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Office Injury Claims

Many people think that accidents at work only happen on construction sites because of the heavy machinery and dangerous nature of that work. However, accidents also occur in the office environment, something which when compared to a building site seems relatively safe.

One of the major hazards in an office can be slips and trips. If you work in an office and look around it there are potentially a lot of hazards. For example, wires that have not be directed properly, over stacked files which could potentially fall, drawers left open, bags and briefcases not stored properly are all common hazards that may seem unimportant but can potentially cause serious accidents.

So how do you bring a claim for work office accident? Like any other personal injury claim you would have to establish that your employers have been negligent. For example: if they have not ensured that wires are correctly stored and you consequently trip on them they can be considered to have not provided a safe place of work.
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Why accident claim payouts can be different for each case

Compensation is based upon the severity of your injuries and how long the injuries will affect your everyday life. As such, there is not really such a thing as a “standard” payout for any particular injury as everyone can be affected differently.

In law the defendant has to take the claimant as they find them – for example if your injury is an exacerbation of an existing injury this doesn’t mean you don’t have the right to claim as, of-course, if it wasn’t for the injury, your condition would not have been aggravated!

So how is a payout assessed? Well, put simply a payout is always assessed on the particular facts of each individual case. There is no such thing as one payout for this injury and another for something else – each case will have its own individual payout.
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New Laws Proposed to Protect Postal Workers From Dog Bite Attacks

A recent report has been commissioned by the Royal Mail which has concluded that the laws to protect postal workers from dog attacks is inadequate.  According to the report, further laws need to be created to deal with the owners of dogs which attack postal workers while delivering mail.

According to the commissioned report, around 3,000 postal works a year are subject to attacks by dogs when on their rounds. These attacks can be brutal and in certain circumstances ruin people’s lives. As a result of the commissioned report it has come to light of a postal worker who was attacked in Sheffield by two Staffordshire Bullterriers and has been left with visual and mental scars and is now disabled as a result of the attack.

This commissioned report has called for the Government to introduce immediate changes to the law which will help protect postal workers. One of the proposals from the Royal Mail is to suspend deliveries to addresses where there is a threat to a postal worker from being attacked. This pressure has also been increased due to recent changes to the law on dog attacks in Scotland, Northern Ireland and soon to be introduced in Wales, leaving England the only part not to take action.
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Claim Contributory Negligence Passenger Knows Driver is Drunk Under the Influence

Although it is never a good idea to get in a vehicle when the driver has been drinking, if you have been injured as a passenger in a vehicle which is being driven by a drunk driver, it does not mean that you cannot make a claim for personal injury. However, getting into a vehicle when you know the driver is drunk or has been drinking, can affect your claim.

The normal guideline is that, as a passenger, you are an innocent party and cannot be at fault for the accident. This therefore entitles you to receive 100% of any compensation that is awarded. But this changes if you willingly get into the vehicle when you know the driver is drunk.

Contributory negligence for passengers in this situation will almost certainly be claimed by the other side. This is when you have in some way contributed to the injuries sustained in an accident. In this case it means that you have knowingly put yourself at risk from injury by getting into a vehicle with a drunk driver.

In a personal injury claim, the percentage that a passenger would be held liable for their own injuries in these circumstances is on average around 25%, more or less the same for not wearing a seatbelt.
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