A multimillion-pound compensation package was reached for our client who sustained serious life changing injuries when he was injured in the Croydon tram crash.
The background to this case
On 9 November 2016, our Client was a passenger on a tram travelling from his home in South Croydon to his work in London. In the accident that has become known as the “Croydon Tram Disaster”, the tram attempted to take a sharp bend near to Sandilands station at excessive speed. The tram derailed and turned over. 7 people were killed in the crash and many, including the Client sustained life changing injuries.
In the accident, the Client lost consciousness for a time and awoke to find himself sitting on the tracks with his right arm trapped in the door of the tram. The Client was freed from the wreckage and taken to St George’s Hospital in Tooting which is where He chose to instruct Moore Barlow via the Major Trauma Signposting Partnership (MTSP). There he was diagnosed with extensive fractures to his right forearm and right distal humerus. In addition he had fractures to his right scapular, right L2 transverse process and his left little finger.
Unfortunately it was not possible to salvage the right arm and the Client underwent right trans humeral surgical amputation. After some time in intensive care the Client was transferred back to the ward on 10 November 2017. On 14 November he underwent surgical fixation of the fracture in the left little finger before being discharged home on 25 November 2017.
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Hear from our client, Ben Dodds
Support and rehabilitation
Our specialist team of lawyers met the client in the hospital within days of the accident. Liability for the accident was fairly quickly established and the Defendants Insurers were cooperative from the outset. A case manager was very quickly appointed to assist the client with his rehabilitation.
Throughout the case, a collaborative approach was taken with the Insurers. They were invited to attend the very first rehabilitation prosthetic assessment at PACE Rehabilitation at an early stage of the claim and they were impressed by the Client’s positivity and his sportsmanship – so much so that they agreed to fund some of the latest cutting edge technology which includes the new pattern recognition system in the field of upper limb prosthetics.
The settlement
In order to value the claim, expert evidence was obtained in the fields of orthopaedics, rehabilitation, prosthetics, psychiatry, care, occupational therapy, accommodation and physiotherapy. A settlement meeting took place which unfortunately was unsuccessful but following further negotiations, all of the client’s claim expert for the issue of future prosthetics was settled. The main issue for the Defendants being how many limbs the client would require.
Due to the impasse on this important head of loss, Court Proceedings were issued and we obtained a witness statement from the client highlighting the fact that his claim for a second high functioning limb was not a spare limb claim but was in fact a secondary limb which would enable him to continue life as close to pre-accident as possible. The statement was served along with the proceedings and further negotiations ensued culminating in settlement for a figure which was a vast improvement on the Defendant’s previous offers.
The Moore Barlow team included Caroline Flashman (now retired), Helen Goatley, Tim Kirfield and representation by Mr Giles Mooney KC of Deka Chambers.
I would like to wholeheartedly thank Helen, Tim and the team at Moore Barlow for the support, assistance and advice that they provided throughout my claim. Through the settlement achieved, I have been able to access the best prosthetics and finally put that awful day behind me.
Benn Dodds, Client
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How Moore Barlow can help
If you suffer major trauma, such as multiple fractures, severe wounds, head or brain injuries or loss of limbs, it can have devastating consequences for you and your family, so you need to start your rehabilitation as soon as possible. We are one of the very few major trauma teams to provide comprehensive legal support and arrange specialist health and social care. We will help you access the very best rehabilitation services, to start your return home or to work.
