We were initially instructed by a woman who had been involved in a road traffic accident. She had suffered serious injuries. When we discussed the circumstances of the accident and its aftermath with her it became clear that her husband was also severely affected by it, even though he was not involved in the accident itself.
He had been telephoned by the Police shortly after the accident. He went to the scene and saw his wife trapped in her car. He then went on to hospital with her. When she went down to surgery, he was warned that they may have to amputate his wife’s left foot due to her injuries. This was extremely distressing for him.
HI wife had extensive surgery and after some months in hospital she was allowed home. Our client was her main carer and he looked after her for 3 months as she was bedridden.
He found this period extremely hard both physically and mentally. He had difficulty dealing with the nature of his wife’s injuries and found it difficult to cope.
We sent a detailed letter of claim to the driver responsible for the accident and their insurers. The insurers accepted liability for the accident but did not initially accept that our client was entitled to bring a claim for his psychiatric injuries as he was not involved in the accident itself.
As the husband of the victim of the accident, our client had a close tie of love and affection with her. As such, he was classed as a “secondary victim” for the purpose of bringing a claim for his injuries.
We obtained a specialist psychiatric report which proved that he had suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder as a result of witnessing his wife’s involvement in the accident in the immediate aftermath. As a result, the insurers accepted our argument that our client was a secondary victim of the accident and was entitled to be compensated for his injuries.
We dealt with his claim on a No Win No Fee basis. We were able to negotiate a settlement of the claim for £6,000, as well as payment of our costs by the insurers.
Claims which involve psychiatric injury as a result of witnessing an injury or immediate aftermath of an injury to another person are complex. If you think that you may have been affected by such a situation, contact us to see whether you may have a claim.
