Injury Prevention Week 2021
At Fieldfisher we specialise in recovering compensation for clients who have been seriously injured in road traffic collisions, avoidable incidents at work and elsewhere. The common thread between all of the claims that we deal with, which vary widely from each other in almost every other way, is that the injuries were primarily caused by the negligence of someone other than our client.
This Injury Prevention Week, APIL are keen to highlight that personal injury claims compensate people who were injured by others in circumstances where that injury could have been avoided. This is the key difference between an incident that is simply an accident and an incident that gives rise to a personal injury claim. There are no grounds for a personal injury claim if it is a genuine accident where no one is at fault, where a person is injured in circumstances where no one could have foreseen the incident which caused the injuries.
As a personal injury solicitor, I deal every day with the consequences of injury and suffering caused by negligence and, because at Fieldfisher we specialise in high value and complex claims, these injuries are usually life changing for the injured party, their family and friends.
Someone who suffers a brain injury or spinal injury, multiple orthopaedic injuries or an injury leading to amputation when, for example, they are hit by a car travelling at excessive speed or injured at work because safety procedures have not been followed, may not be able to work again in their chosen job or at all. They may require medical treatment and/or care and assistance at home for life. Their family may have previously relied on them as the main breadwinner, or as the primary carer for children. They may have had hobbies that they were passionate about that they are no longer able to enjoy.
I also regularly deal with fatal cases, where a family have lost a loved one due to the negligence of another driver, an employer or other third party. These are incredibly sad cases. Not only have do the family have to deal with this tragic loss – their future financially may also now look uncertain.
Personal injury claims allow the injured person and their family to recover compensation for the financial losses they have sustained due to the injuries. This means that on top of dealing with life changing injuries, they will not also be burdened with the significant ongoing medical and care costs that they are now incurring through no fault of their own. It means that because they are no longer able to earn the salary that they were once able to, they can recover the money that they would have been able to earn had they not been injured and have some financial security.
Personal injury claims help injured people and their families put shattered lives back together. As a solicitor, it is incredibly rewarding to be able to help clients recover the funds they need to help them achieve optimal recovery and to get the care, assistance and equipment they need to ease the challenges of living with life-changing injuries.
New research for Injury Prevention Week reveals that more than half the UK population regularly fail to consider the safety of others as they go about their daily activities e.g. driving, running their business or maintaining their property.
YouGov research commissioned by APIL found that only 44 per cent of people “always” or “often” think about their impact on the safety of others when undertaking regular activities.
While accidents will always happen, last year hundreds of thousands of personal injury claims were registered in Britain, enough to fill more than six Wembley stadiums! These people all suffered avoidable injuries, which have an impact not only on them and their families, but also the NHS and the economy.
At Fieldfisher we join with APIL and urge everyone to consider their role in reducing needless injuries. The COVID-19 pandemic has shown how we can all look out for each other and change the way we behave to reduce the risks to those around us. We can all play our part in reducing avoidable and potentially life-changing injury to others. Let's keep looking out for each other.