Devon motorbike accident claim victim receives £169,000 in out of court settlement after we advised him to reject an initial offer of £80,000
We are experienced in dealing with motorbike accident claims. For a free assessment of your claim contact our free legal helpline on 0808 139 1594 or send an email to [email protected]
We specialise in motorbike accident claims and were approached by MC who was involved in a serious motorbike accident between Barnstaple and Bideford.
MC was on his motorbike heading home from work. He was following a car and about to overtake when the car suddenly turned right without indicating, colliding with MC’s motorbike and causing him to fall off. An ambulance was called and paramedics attended the scene. He was taken to North Devon District Hospital.
MC suffered multiple injuries as a result of the accident. He had several fractured ribs, a fractured collarbone and a collapsed lung. While in hospital immediately after the accident he suffered a catastrophic bleed from his spleen which had to be removed in emergency surgery. MC was placed in an induced coma and remained in intensive care for over a week.
As a self-employed builder and bricklayer MC was unable to work and was understandably very concerned about his income. He therefore contacted us to help him with a motorbike accident claim. We agreed to deal with his compensation claim on a No Win, No Fee basis.
We sent a formal ‘letter of claim’ to the car driver’s insurance company informing them that we were making a motorbike accident claim.
The driver appeared in the local magistrates court and was found guilty of driving without due care and attention. Shortly after this, his insurers accepted legal responsibility for the accident.
Given MC’s extensive injuries, we obtained expert medical evidence from an orthopaedic surgeon, a thoracic surgeon, a general surgeon and a psychiatrist.
We also gathered evidence about MC’s lost earnings. At the time of the accident he had been about to start a new contract with a developer who had offered to pay him a very attractive package in view of his experience. We therefore arranged for a specialist accountant to calculate what his financial losses would amount to.
An interim payment was then obtained from the insurance company to enable MC to get by while he was unable to work.
The general surgeon said that MC would remain vulnerable to infection for the rest of his life due to the loss of his spleen. He would need to take antibiotics for the rest of his life and be vulnerable to infection following dental treatment or other surgery.
Because of the risk of infection MC was particularly badly impacted by the coronavirus pandemic. He was on the “shielding” list and unable to work, even after the point when other bricklayers on his site were able to return. He had to distance from his partner and young child and do extra cleaning around the house in line with government advice. We took account of all these additional losses and impacts on MC’s life.
The insurance company made an offer of just over £80,000 to settle his motorbike accident claim. We felt this was too low and arranged for a specialist barrister to review the case. The barrister agreed with our assessment and the offer was rejected. We pressed on with obtaining further evidence about the problems MC was suffering as a result of the accident and obtained a further interim payment to help him manage his financial situation.
Further negotiations with the insurance company took place. An increased offer of £130,000 was made and this too was rejected on our recommendation. An out of court settlement was eventually reached with MC agreeing to accept £169,000 in compensation.