If you’re reading this, I’m going to assume you are already aware of what foot drop, or drop foot (as it is also referred to) is. But just in case…
What is Foot Drop?
As a brief description, as I am lucky enough to have this deceptively simple sounding condition, foot drop is the inability to raise your foot up and move it left due to some form of problem a peripheral nerve; in my case, the Common Peroneal Nerve. It may sound like something small – but unfortunately, with this condition, you cannot walk properly without a corrective splint.
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Case Law Bouncy Castle Accident Claims
Bouncy castle accident claims may be more common than you think. Unfortunately many accidents on bouncy castles can and do cause severe injuries – and these injuries are often to children or minors. Of course, bouncy castles can be a good source of entertainment for children but they are not as safe as we may suspect them to be.
One major issue seems to be with the variety of age groups that use bouncy castles. The danger here is that young children (such as at the ages of 2 to 10) are using the same bouncy castle at the same time as young teenagers (aged 13 to 16) for example. This is a recipe for disaster.
As we are all aware, children grow up at different speeds and some children aged 13 to 16 can be as heavy and as big as adults. This in turn causes a big danger to the younger more vulnerable children as they could be crushed or injured quite easily. Despite this danger being very clear and obvious, some children are still put into this dangerous situation.
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When will I get my compensation claim cheque?
This is a question that we get asked time and time again. It is not always an easy question to answer. We always try to move a case forward as quickly as possible but at times we are relying on other parties (such as insurance companies and the Courts) to do this. We have policies in place to ensure that we move the case forward as quickly as possible at our end.
When a claim is formally taken on, that is when we have entered into an agreement (such as a Conditional No Win No Fee Agreement) with a client; we can start to prepare a formal Letter of Claim. The agreement is simply confirmation that we as a Firm of Solicitors agree to act on your behalf to pursue your claim.
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Please note that the information below is provided as a rough guide to how much whiplash injury claimss can be worth. Settlements should always be based on medical evidence to avoid the risk of under settling. Please do not take the below information as a definite value for your claim – always speak with a solicitor.
The JSB (Judicial Studies Board) whiplash guidelines provide rough estimates to what you could expect to receive when suffering from a whiplash type injury. As you will see, the brackets are rather wide ranging- this is because, realistically, nobody can EVER know how much your claim is worth prior to medical evidence. This is to avoid what is known as “under settling”.
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Passenger in a Vehicle Driven by a Drunk Driver Can I Claim?
Although it is never a good idea to get in a vehicle when the driver has been drinking, it does not mean that you cannot make a claim for personal injury if the trip ends in an accident – and let’s be honest, this is more likely than not.
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.
However, getting into a vehicle knowing the driver has been drinking does have consequences for a claim for personal injury. The insurers of the driver of the vehicle will more than likely argue contributory negligence for passengers making a claim for personal injury in these types of circumstances.
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Claiming Against the Council for Potholes
With the lovely weather we have here in the United Kingdom, it is not surprising the amount of potholes that have appeared on the roads and pavements. As someone who commutes to and from work on a daily basis, I have experienced the far from smooth ride which often involves my car dipping down unexpectedly and rattling my very bones. However, potholes, although annoying, can be dealt with rather easily when in a car and usually do not pose an immediate risk of injury.
This is definitely not the case when you are not in the car, but on foot or a bicycle. Here at The Injury Lawyers we deal with a high volume of personal injury claims that have been caused by someone either tripping over a pothole, or alternatively, riding a bike when the front wheel gets caught and consequently results in the cyclist being thrown from the bike.
It is important to stress that these are not straightforward cases and therefore should not be approached lightly. One of the first things we require to assess is whether we are able to pursue your claim, are photographs are extremely important for this.
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Hit from behind car accident claims
Slowing down, stopping and emergency braking can be hazardous to road users, simply because of the fact that the driver behind could be following too closely or not paying enough attention to what is in front of their vehicle.
The gap between vehicles travelling in average conditions should be at least 2 seconds according to guidelines. This should be enough time for the driver behind to see the brake lights and begin to slow and stop themselves.
The amount of road accident claims that we receive here at The Injury Lawyers involving vehicles being hit from behind, tells us that a very significant number of drivers do NOT follow the two-second rule!
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Mitigating and Minimising Your Losses
In a claim for personal injury you can recover damages for the injury itself (this is known as General Damages) and you can recover damages for any losses that you have incurred as a result of the accident (this is known as Special Damages).
In all personal injury claims you are under a duty to mitigate or minimise your losses. I will attempt to explain just what this means for you as a Claimant.
Say for example that you sustained injury due to a pothole in the pavement, you stepped in the pothole and unfortunately twisted your ankle and fell to the floor. You can recover General Damages for your injury (twisted ankle, bruising, cuts etc) and you can recover Special Damages for any losses that you may have incurred (damaged/torn clothing, unable to use your gym membership for a few months, lost earnings etc). With Special Damages it will often require some form of proof that you have suffered the loss – so where possible you should retain receipts and records.
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Claims against the hospital – commonly medical negligence claims – are bound to be more sensitive that most personal injury claims.
We are fortunate in our country that we have access to the National Health Service (NHS) but we are still entitled to make a claim if we have sustained injury or have been adversely affected as a result of medical negligence. A first thought is that it can seem harsh to sue the NHS, given that it provides medical treatment free of charge and in theory it is only there to help people who need treatment.
On the other hand people pay taxes and in effect it is these taxes which run the NHS – so ultimately it is a debate in itself whether it is a free service. Another point is that the NHS, as with a private company, has insurance in place for the sole purpose of paying out compensation to injured victims. The fact is that there is no shame in making a compensation claim; if you have sustained a genuine injury as a result of medical negligence then it is your right to claim. The insurance the NHS has is actually more of a self insured department called the NHS Litigation Authority.
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Can I still work with Whiplash?
To begin with, it may be best to consider what a whiplash injury actually is. Whiplash is an injury to the soft tissue in the neck, back and shoulders area where the tissue is stretched and strained after the body is thrown or jerked in a sudden, forceful movement. This is most common in car accidents.
The symptoms of whiplash commonly include pain in the neck, back, shoulders and arms. Other effects include dizziness, nausea and more often headaches. Although whiplash can be quite minor and resolve after a few weeks, more serious circumstances mean that you could be suffering for up to a year.
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