Teenage girl hit by a car on her way to school bus stop resulted in a serious head injury and her very substantial award has just been approved by the High Court in Manchester.
Melissa was 14 years old and on her way to school when she was struck by a car. She was crossing a busy road with her friends, in her school uniform, to get to the bus stop on the other side.
She suffered severe injuries, including a serious head injury which left her with both physical and cognitive deficits that will affect all aspects of her day-to-day functioning.
The driver strongly denied any liability. She said it wasn’t her fault as she was driving well within the speed limit at only 30mph, that Melissa stepped out in front of her path without warning and that she couldn’t avoid the collision.
Previous solicitors who had looked at Melissa’s case had told her that she would not succeed and her case was declined by other firms before Hugh James were able to help.
We were convinced that Melissa had a strong argument. One of our main contentions was that the presence of a group of children, all in school uniform close to a bus stop, should have alerted the driver to the risk that one of them might step out into the road.
The Judge agreed with us and two years ago ruled that the driver was 50% to blame.
Now, as a result of the recent change in the discount rate, a settlement figure of just under £13 million was agreed and this has been approved by the court. This will help provide the future care and support that Melissa and her family so badly need.
The change in the discount rate means at last Claimants like Melissa are receiving the sums they really need for the future.
The names and identifying details of the client have been changed to protect the privacy of individuals involved.