Damages recovered following a fatal car crash – 25 years of National Road Victim Month

Today marks the 25^th annual National Road Victim Month running alongside the 25^th anniversary of the tragic death of Princess Diana in a car crash in Paris in 1997. The charity, RoadPeace, coordinates the campaign to mark a month of remembrance for victims of road crashes whilst raising awareness of the importance of road safety, as five people are killed, and 60 people are seriously injured on Britain’s roads every day.

Here at Hatch Brenner Solicitors in Norwich, we support the National Road Victim Month campaign to help raise awareness of road safety. August is one of the most dangerous months on the roads due to the increased volume of traffic on the roads. August is a time when many families are taking advantage of the warmer weather and there are often more cyclists and motorcyclists taking to the roads which can result in more accidents.

Hatch Brenner Solicitors’ Managing Partner, Colin Cook, recently recovered damages for coworkers following a fatal car accident.

The two workers, both employed by the same scaffolding company, each recovered damages following a fatal road traffic accident. During a journey in the work lorry through North Norfolk, a car pulled out into their path causing a head-on collision with another vehicle. Whilst they both survived, unfortunately, one of the other drivers involved in the collision was fatally injured. The driver who was responsible for causing the crash was prosecuted and found guilty of a criminal offence.

Despite this, the guilty driver’s insurer, Admiral, refused to admit liability. They further refused to cooperate in providing much-needed rehabilitation for the psychiatric injuries sustained by the two men. Instead, they embarked upon a commonly used strategy of seeking to make pre-medical offers at an undervalue, a business practice which is frowned upon widely within the industry.

The Claimants held their nerve and ultimately received significantly higher damages awards for the psychological trauma they experienced in being involved in the accident and thereafter seeking to assist the fatally injured driver. Colin Cook was able to recover both five-figure and six-figure sums to reflect the different levels of severity of the injuries and their subsequent effect on each claimant’s working pattern.

What to do if you’ve been in a car crash

If you have been in a road traffic accident or car crash within the last three years and think you have a claim, contact Colin Cook today on 01603 214 220 or email [email protected].