Latest News Articles from Balindaandco.com

Seven figure sum compensation to be awarded to a child in Wrexham after a doctor’s mistake

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It has taken six years, but Kate Pierce, from Wrexham, is a step closer to receiving compensation for a misdiagnosis which left her severely brain damaged.

The parents of Kate Pierce, now aged six, who was left severely brain damaged due to medical negligence, have won their claim against a Hospital board.

Kate was just nine months old in 2006 when she developed a life-threatening infection which was wrongly diagnosed as viral tonsillitis when she was taken to Wrexham Maelor Hospital.

A junior doctor at the hospital told the family that Kate was well enough to go home. When her parents asked for a second opinion the junior doctor claimed he had sought the advice of a more senior doctor, when he had not.

They took Kate home, but when her condition deteriorated she went back to hospital and was correctly diagnosed with meningitis.

She was then transferred to Alder Hey children's hospital in Liverpool, but had suffered severe brain damage, and now needs 24-hour care. She is registered deaf and blind, has chronic lung disease and severe epilepsy, among other conditions.

Kate’s Parents Mark and Diane Pierce heard a judge at Mold County Court accept a compromise agreement reached between their legal team and Hospital bosses.

A hearing to decide the damages is yet to be held, but their solicitor said after the hearing it would be in "seven figures".

Kate’s father said his daughter’s life expectancy has been severely reduced and that they have had to spend six years of that precious time with her battling with the health board.

Hospital bosses have now accepted 75% responsibility for the claim, approved by a judge at Mold County Court.

Lorry driver receives compensation from Waste management firm after he was injured by fridge

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Alan Snook, 61, from Frome, Somerset who damaged his shoulder while at work, has received compensation.

The lorry driver was working as a shunter for Wincanton Logistics on the firm’s Comet contract when the accident happened in July 2009.

His job involved moving and unloading lorries full of scrap from Comet’s home delivery depots, and often the 40ft articulated lorries were full of discarded household appliances.

On the day of the accident Mr Snook opened the back of the lorry and without warning a fridge fell out hitting him. He suffered injuries to his chest, neck and shoulder, which meant he had to take four months off work.

For two months after the accident he was unable to drive. Shortly after the accident he was made redundant from Wincanton but has since found a job as a long distance lorry driver which doesn’t involve any manual handling.

Mr Snook had previously complained to his bosses many times about the dangerous way the lorries were loaded. He said he had lost count of the times he spoke to bosses about the way the lorries were being loaded. Everything was just thrown in together and as a result many of his colleagues suffered injury. Mr Snook said that his complaints were seen as ‘just moans’ and ignored.

He said items were often thrown in one top of one another and there had been several injuries to other employees in the past.

Wincanton admitted liability and settled the claim out of court.

Woman to claim compensation after tripping over a bollard

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A 39 year old care worker is to make a personal injury compensation claim after she tripped over a bollard last year and broke her left knee.

The Scottish care worker said the accident happened around 7:30pm in the evening. She added that she didn’t see the broken bollard because it was already getting dark. She said, she only got to know of the bollard’s existence when she fell and broke her left knee. She went on to say that she would need to be in a plaster for around six weeks and could not put any weight on her left leg.

Apparently the local council were already aware that the bollard posed a hazard and therefore the 39 year old believes she is perfectly within her rights to a make a personal injury claim against the local council.

It was reported that a passer-by who helped the care also confirmed that the council knew about the broken bollard. He said he had previously reported the broken bollard to the council. He also confirmed that the council told him they would come and inspect it and as an interim safety measure placed a cone over the broken bollard. However, people kept removing the cones and so the accidents continued to happen.

The passer-by also said he phoned the council on a second occasion after an elderly lady tripped over the bollard and received a nasty injury to her head.

Driver Sentenced to 8 Years in Jail for Causing Fatal Car Accident

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David Rushbrook has been jailed for eight years after he caused a fatal road collision when he drove his car the wrong way along the A30 dual carriageway in October 2010.

A court heard how Mr Rushbrook, 27, of King's Lynn, Norfolk, performed a U-turn in order to return to a garage he had passed before the crash in Cornwall.

The incident occurred between Highgate Hill and Victoria near Bodmin, and both carriageways of the stretch of road were closed for 13 hours whilst emergency services cleared the scene and police carried out their investigations at the scene.

Mr Rushbrook collided with a Mercedes car being driven by Nicholas Rowles, seriously injuring Mr Rowles and killing his partner Margaret Connelly, who was a front-seat passenger. Mr Rowles remained in hospital for three weeks after the incident

Others, who were seriously injured in the collision, included Mr Rushbrook’s own passenger and a couple in a Nissan Micra. The court heard how the combined impact speed between the two vehicles was between 130 and 140mph.

The Personal Injury solicitors representing Mr Rowles said, the court in Truro heard how Mr Rushbrook had taken a drug called ketamine, ordinarily used as a horse tranquiliser.

Mr Rushbrook was given credit by the Judge for his late guilty plea to having caused death by dangerous driving. The Judge said Mr Rushbrook's judgement must have been impaired by tiredness - either because he worked before embarking on a long journey, or as a result of the drug ketamine. Mr Rushbrook was banned from driving for 10 years and until he passes an extended driving test.

Mr Rowles’ solicitors said that While no court decisions can undo the tragic loss he had suffered, he hoped that the verdict would help bring some sense of justice to all those affected.

Man burnt by faulty shower awarded compensation

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Portsmouth Magistrates’ Court has awarded compensation to a man who was badly burnt by a shower while at a Gouldings’ respite home.

In 2009, Brian Leek, 76, suffered severe burns to thirteen percent of his body after extremely hot water emerged from the respite home’s shower. He required treatment from a specialist burns hospital. Mr Leek’s injuries will not heal completely and he is therefore unable to return home to live with his wife.

Isle of Wight Council was ordered to pay a £12,000 fine after they pleaded guilty to breaching health and safety laws.

An investigation by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) into the shower system at the respite home found that it had not been fitted with a mixing valve which would have kept the temperature at a safe level.

Steve Beynon, Isle of Wight Council’s chief executive, was interviewed under caution after the HSE found two other respite homes, Ryde and Westminster House, and the Adelaide, also lacked mixing valves in their shower systems.

The HSE also found there were no systems in place for inspecting or maintaining valves in the shower system or checking water temperature.

Joanna Woodcock of the HSE said it was vital that controls were fitted to showers and baths to ensure they operated at the correct temperature.

Isle of Wight Council was fined £12,000 and was also ordered to pay legal costs of £5,133. In addition to this, the council paid an undisclosed amount of compensation to Mr Leek.

Pensioner Suffers Metatarsal Injury After A slip and fall Accident in Tesco

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Ronald Fryer, 79, suffered an injury after he slipped in St Peter’s Drive Tesco in Worcester. Mr Fryer had previously sustained a similar right ankle injury from his football playing days that was suffered back in 1971.

Mr Fryer suffered the injury as he slipped and fell at the entrance just inside the store. He was in agony immediately afterwards. He said the pain was unbearable and that he hoped nobody else slips in the store and gets the same injury.

Following his injury, an X-Ray at the Royal Worcester Hospital provided confirmation that he had a fractured metatarsal bone in his foot, an incredibly painful injury for any person to deal with.

Supermarket giant Tesco was at fault by not providing suitable care for its customers. This left Mr Fryer to enter a hazardous environment with no warning as to the state of the walkways. It was their duty to provide a level of service and care in order to prevent any of its staff or customers suffering illness or injury within one of its stores.

£4.2 million personal injury compensation awarded to Brain damaged man

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Christopher Kaye, 57, has recently received a £4.2 million payout after he suffered personal injury in a work accident.

At the time of the incident, Mr Kaye was working as a demolition worker for Euro Dismantling Services Ltd. He was replacing an excavator attachment when he was hit in the face by a metal bar that had become dislodged.

Following the accident, Mr Kaye was rushed to Sheffield Hospital where he underwent a life saving operation, but the injuries to his brain were so severe that he now has severe brain damage.

Mr Kaye’s solicitors claimed that he had not received adequate training and that the company only brought in safety equipment after the accident had occurred. His solicitors said that the accident could easily have been avoided if better training and safety equipment had been in place.

Euro Dismantling Services Ltd accepted 90% liability for the incident and Mr Kaye will now receive a £1.75 million lump sum payment as well as £135,000 annual personal injury compensation payments to pay for continuing round the clock care.

Sue Kaye, the wife of the victim, said that her husband will never fully recover from the accident and no amount of money can bring back the loving husband she has had for 32 years.

Pothole Claim For Compensation By A Mum After Daughter Tripped And Suffered Injuries On Road

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Donna Taylor is pursuing a pothole claim for compensation after her daughter sustained injuries when she tripped on the road. Ms Taylor’s daughter suffered bruising and swelling as a result of the fall caused by a pothole in the road.

Ms Taylor insisted that South Tyneside Council had been previously warned about the danger of up to eight potholes in the road, but had failed to do anything about it.

Ms Taylor is now launching a legal action against the council on behalf of her daughter Levy. She said her daughter luckily escaped with only bruising to her left hip and swelling to her right knee but it could have been much worse. She expressed her concern about the impact that a fall could have on elderly people.

A local resident, who helped Ms Taylor’s daughter Levy, said the potholes had been reported to the council weeks earlier. It’s clear they were a danger and should have been filled in.

Ms Taylor’s daughter received treatment from an ambulance after the incident and she will now pursue a claim for compensation against South Tyneside Council.

The potholes have since been filled in and South Tyneside Council have confirmed that the claim is now in the hands of the insurance team.

Doctor’s Negligence: Couple awarded five figure compensation after doctor’s mistake

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A couple have been awarded a five-figure medical negligence payout after surgeons forgot to remove a breathing tube which was inserted into their new born baby son.

When Owen Thomas was born in February 2007, one of his shoulders became stuck during his birth, and he wasn’t breathing. As a result surgeons inserted a breathing tube to save his life.

A week later, the baby coughed up the tube which had been left inside him following the oversight by hospital staff.

The couple won their compensation claim against Mid-Staffordshire NHS Foundation Trust and has been awarded compensation.

Owen, who is now 5, was not permanently injured by the incident. However, his mother believes he would have died if she had not been there at the time.

Mrs Thomas said when Owen was 10 days old, her husband and a friend were visiting her in the specialist care unit at Stafford Hospital, Owen turned blue and looked like he was choking. So she slapped him on the back and a tube came out.

“The nurse took him off me and gave him oxygen as well as checking him over.”

£7,500 personal injury compensation following a golf ball injury

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A 40-year-old woman golfer has been awarded £7,500 in personal injury compensation after sustaining severe injuries whilst leaving a golf course in Staffordshire.

Burton-upon-Trent Magistrates' Court heard how the woman was walking along a footpath towards the car park of the golf club when she was hit in the face by a golf ball which had been hit from the club's driving range.

The accident left the woman with several broken teeth, serious facial lacerations and bruising. She was taken to hospital for treatment and was forced to take a week off work to recover from her injuries.

An investigation into the incident found that the fence surrounding the driving range was not high enough and contained holes large enough for a golf ball to get through.

In court, the golf club admitted to breaching Health and Safety laws. As a result of the accident the Golf club was fined over £5,000 and ordered to pay the injured woman £7,500 in personal injury compensation.