Moore Barlow are pleased to have negotiated settlement for a client who sustained life and limb threatening injuries to his arm in a road traffic collision. The settlement was for a life changing sum which will allow our client to fund the ongoing support he needs and look after his young family. It is absolute testament to the skill of the surgeons who operated on our client at the local major trauma centre that they managed to save our clients arm.
The road traffic collision and catastrophic arm injury
Our client had been out for the evening of his birthday at a house party and his girlfriend at the time was the designated driver. They had not spent a huge amount of time together at the party but it was understood that his girlfriend was intoxicated yet still decided to give our client a lift home. As they were approaching a roundabout, the Defendant driver lost control of the vehicle and collided with a tree. Unfortunately, the part of the car which hit the tree was the passenger’s door where at the time of the impact, our client had his left arm resting against the window.
Limb salvage surgery and disputed liability
As you can imagine, the injuries to our client’s left arm were catastrophic and he underwent limb salvage surgery which consisted of significant orthopaedic and plastic surgery. The defendant Driver was charged with driving whilst unfit through drink and unsurprisingly, the relationship between our client and the Defendant eventually broke down.
Due to potential arguments about whether our client knew or ought to have known the Defendant was under the influence of alcohol and or drugs, the Defendant’s Insurers were only providing limited rehabilitation.
Liability negotiations eventually resulted in the claimant accepting a 20% reduction in his damages.
Rehabilitation and recovery following a serious arm injury
Due to the timing, our client’s rehabilitation was significantly impacted by the Covid 19 and the majority of his community rehabilitation reduced significantly and in some respects, he fell through the gaps of the NHS
In terms of the rehabilitation that was in place, he had limited input from a case manager and occupational therapist and the rehabilitation was funded through interim payments. Payments were also secured in order to enable our client to undergo further surgeries privately as opposed to having to go back through the waiting list on the NHS. Unfortunately for our client, his recovery has been very complicated and despite numerous surgeries, he has been left with limited function in his left arm. That being said, our client has adapted incredibly well and has since gone on to become a father to twin boys and the way he has managed to adapt to looking after them, with the support of his partner, is admirable.
Securing a life-changing personal injury settlement
There were some concerns that amputation of the limb was a real possibility but following some further surgeries, the risk of amputation reduced significantly. This was part of the settlement discussion and whether or not a claim for provisional damages should be included. In the end, the Defendant made a significant offer which essentially factored in a risk of future amputation.
On the face of it, this should have been a straightforward case, but due to the complexities with liability and the recovery and the number of surgeries our client had, the case took almost 7 years to bring to settlement. As his lawyers, we were determined to make sure that the claim was not rushed and we were able to only settle the claim at a point where we felt that the claimant was being adequately compensated for the injuries he sustained.
How Moore Barlow can help
A serious injury can affect every part of your life, from your health and independence to your work and family responsibilities. Our personal injury lawyers handle complex claims involving catastrophic and life-changing injuries. Working alongside our major trauma service, we can help secure early rehabilitation, interim payments and access to specialist treatment while pursuing the compensation needed to support your long-term recovery and future needs. If you or a family member has suffered a serious injury in a road traffic collision, contact our team to discuss how we can help.
