By specialist holiday
and serious injury solicitor Martyn Gwyther, of Thompsons Solicitors.
Holidays
abroad are something we all dream about, plan and spend a lot of time looking
forward to enjoying.
Sadly,
for thousands of holiday makers each year, those dreams and aspirations can end
in disaster due to an injury or illness suffered in resort.
In
the context of spinal cord injuries, just as with domestic occurrences, the
majority arise as a consequence of road traffic accidents. However, there are
other regular causes including:
- Falls from height;
- Sporting accidents (mainly related to diving into swimming pools or
cliff diving);
- Aviation incidents; and
- Violence
Speaking
to survivors of spinal cord injury at Thompsons Solicitors, I have heard
accounts of incidents in each circumstance; some of which may have been
avoidable, others that were clearly not so. In every case, the consequences
have been life changing.
For
example, one of my clients suffered a severe spinal injury in an emergency aircraft
landing that occurred whilst she was in Tanzania during the course of a `once
in a lifetime’ safari holiday. The
injuries left her with a lifetime requirement for care from her husband. Her family
home in Lincolnshire had to be substantially adapted to provide wider doorways,
access ramps, a wet room and accessible worktops amongst other things. The
adaptations were made possible in part by the significant compensation that
came as a result of her personal injury claim against the airline.
In
a road traffic collision that occurred in Spain involving two vehicles (one
driven by an English resident and the other by a Spanish resident) a decision
had to be taken whether it was feasible to run the case in the English courts.
At the time there was some uncertainty about this issue but the English Court
accepted that they had the power to determine the claim; a right that is now
well enshrined into English law.
However,
just because the case can be pursued in England does not necessarily mean that
English law will be used to determine all of the issues that exist in the case.
In this example, the claimant suffered a spinal cord injury leaving him with
permanently impaired movement and sensation in both upper limbs, but with
sufficient functionality to complete most activities of daily living and the
capacity to drive an adapted vehicle. The value of the claim would have varied
significantly according to whether English law or Spanish law was found to
apply.
More recent developments in the law however
mean that in the same set of circumstances the outcome may well have
been different. Under a new law because the injury was in a road traffic
accident in Spain there would be a strong argument that Spanish law would apply
both to the case itself as well as the damages the injured person was entitled
to.
What this case illustrates is how
important it is to work with specialist serious injury lawyers who understands
the full context.
Thompsons
has a wealth of experience involving claims relating to injuries which took
place overseas and can help you with expert advice if your spinal cord injury
was incurred abroad. Visit our website www.seriousinjurysupport.co.uk.
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