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Original poster

Compensation for daughter (hit by car) but who from?

162 replies

MotherOfDragons27 · 11/06/2021 17:58

Hi everyone, I'd appreciate some advice or knowledge please.

Almost two years ago (sept 2019) my eldest daughter started secondary school. In her 2nd week she was leaving school and was hit by a car as she was crossing the road. The driver was a 17 year old boy from her school who had just passed his test. When it happened another mum got out of her car and told the driver to move his car for some unknown reason, so he did. This means the police were unable to gain any evidence from the scene and as there was no proof of wrong doing there were no further charges against the boy and the case was dropped.

My daughter suffered two breaks to her pelvis and obviously scrapes and bruising. She was in hospital for 10 days and had to use crutches for 6 weeks until her pelvis was healed. I was with her the whole time and had to be signed off work with stress to cover myself work wise.

I have been thinking about trying to claim for some sort of compensation for my daughter but I'm unsure if it's possible? Where would I claim, who would I be claiming from and what are the chances of her receiving anything?

Does anyone have any similar experience where someone was injured in a road traffic accident but no fault was established? We have the letter from the police and the incident number etc so there is record of it. I also have her discharge letter from the hospital.

If anyone can shed any light on this for me I'd be very grateful. Thank you.

OP posts:
Original poster
MotherOfDragons27 · 11/06/2021 18:01

Just to add - my daughter has also suffered mentally from this. She was referred to camhs just before Christmas 2019 and because of lockdown everything was delayed. She eventually (a year to the day) got a course of online counselling from Barnardos and is now much better in herself. My point is that it wasn't just a physical affect this had on her. Thanks

OP posts:
Herbie0987 · 11/06/2021 18:02

She would claim from the driver of the vehicle

Mumdiva99 · 11/06/2021 18:08

Sorry ti hear about your daughter.

www.gov.uk/compensation-after-accident-or-injury

The boy moving his car wouldn't have stopped the police investigating or being g able to gather evidence. If the boy was driving too fast and slammed on his breaks for example there would be tyre marks on the road. What did any witness statements say?

DirectionsForUse · 11/06/2021 18:13

You'd sue the boy and his insurance company would deal with it.

It's not as easy as just claiming. She'd have to show what losses or costs she incurred. Insurance companies tend to fight these quite hard nowadays because of all the spurious claims, so it might well go to court. I'm not sure it would be worth the aggravation, for the limited amount of damages she might get if she was only out of action for 6 weeks.

itsgettingwierd · 11/06/2021 18:15

The driver.

His car insurance is for this reason.

He also must have informed his insurer of the accident as it's required by law and also he'd have had to declare it when he renewed.

HmmmmmmInteresting · 11/06/2021 18:16

@DirectionsForUse

You'd sue the boy and his insurance company would deal with it.

It's not as easy as just claiming. She'd have to show what losses or costs she incurred. Insurance companies tend to fight these quite hard nowadays because of all the spurious claims, so it might well go to court. I'm not sure it would be worth the aggravation, for the limited amount of damages she might get if she was only out of action for 6 weeks.

This is crazy talk. Of course you should sue. Do you have the boy's details?
ImbarbaraB · 11/06/2021 18:19

Myself and DH were in an accident caused by another driver and ended up off work for a while due to injuries and the insurance company took care of all the claims for injury compensation.
It wasn’t a lot of money and we had to be assessed medically but it seemed to be done fairly

kerbearr · 11/06/2021 18:23

As others have said you would sue the driver, assuming you have his details, name, reg number, police were called. It's best talking to a solicitor to see where you stand, most places tho will only take a case on in a certain time frame generally 3 years, time is running out so get the ball rolling, your daughter definitely has a case, the only thing now as it's been so long will be evidence. Hopefully the police were called and cctv was secured and witness statements were made.

purplecorkheart · 11/06/2021 18:23

Hi, the claim would be against the driver (his insurance company). I strongly advise you to check the statues of limitation in a Personal Injuries Claim and what it is if your daughter is a minor. If she is not you may need to act quickly as in some countries the statue of limitation is 2 years for personal injuries in adults.

DirectionsForUse · 11/06/2021 18:23

I just don't think it will be much money as she can't show any financial losses and there is no long term injury, but all the no win no fee companies have calculators where you can input injury details and get an estimate of how much you'd win. I wouldn't suggest you use them but you could use their calculator to see if it might be worthwhile.

Imnothereforthedrama · 11/06/2021 18:26

His insurance that’s what he has insurance for and tbh I’m suprised he’s still driving as no insurance will touch him now after a accident at that age it’s sky high as it is for young new drivers.
See a solicitor for legal advice but you definitely should be able to claim .
Hope your daughter is ok .

BingBongToTheMoon · 11/06/2021 18:29

Sorry, but why have you waited almost 2 years to want to claim?

GonnaBeYoniThisChristmas · 11/06/2021 18:31

Your poor daughter! I’m so sorry to hear that. Of course you can claim via the drivers insurance.

Sometimesfraught82 · 11/06/2021 18:33

Insurance here.
You don’t have any claim UNLESS the bot was convicted of driving without due care and diligence

Imnothereforthedrama · 11/06/2021 18:34

Oh 2 years can you still claim after that long ? That might be not as easy , seek legal advice anyway.

Hellocatshome · 11/06/2021 18:34

I'm confused as to why you didn't get his insurance details from him at the time? It seems like he didn't deny it was him who hit her.

Sometimesfraught82 · 11/06/2021 18:35

If the police suspected wrongdoing they wouldn’t not pursue on basis that the boy moved the car.

What do you think about hit and run?!

Sometimesfraught82 · 11/06/2021 18:35

@Imnothereforthedrama

Oh 2 years can you still claim after that long ? That might be not as easy , seek legal advice anyway.
Yes you can Within time frame But no claim
Hellocatshome · 11/06/2021 18:36

Insurance here.
You don’t have any claim UNLESS the bot was convicted of driving without due care and diligence

Really? I have never been hit as a pedestrian but both times I have been in a car accident I have claimed personal injury without anyone being convicted of anything?

CovidCorvid · 11/06/2021 18:36

You say there was no evidence of any wrong doing…so I assume the driver said your Dd ran across the road without looking? What did the police say? Because certainly there can be times when a driver wouldn’t be found at fault for hitting a pedestrian in the road.

I ran a girl over about 30 years ago. She was only 7yo and ran out from behind a high hedge without looking and she actually hit the side of my car rather than me hitting her if that makes sense. Both the police and the girl’s dad who saw it happen both said it wasn’t my fault. I was only doing 20mph but it still wasn’t enough stopping space. The police said that in such a case the blame would be placed on the pedestrian. In fact they gave me the impression I could sue the girl’s dad for damage to my car (I didn’t). Obviously if I’d been speeding it would have been different.

But if you have any evidence it was his fault then get a personal injury solicitor. Broken pelvis is a serious injury and could result in problems such as arthritis down the line?

Sometimesfraught82 · 11/06/2021 18:45

@Hellocatshome

*Insurance here. You don’t have any claim UNLESS the bot was convicted of driving without due care and diligence*

Really? I have never been hit as a pedestrian but both times I have been in a car accident I have claimed personal injury without anyone being convicted of anything?

On what grounds?

If there is a liability claim, then yes to compensation. But there needs to be proven negligence.

prh47bridge · 11/06/2021 18:46

@Sometimesfraught82

Insurance here. You don’t have any claim UNLESS the bot was convicted of driving without due care and diligence
Rubbish. A conviction is not required. If the driver is at fault for the injuries the driver is liable regardless of whether the police choose to prosecute.
FeistySheep · 11/06/2021 18:49

This happened to the daughter of a friend of mine. The daughter had some physical injuries and mental trauma, all dealt with by the NHS, so they didn't incur any financial costs. Friend discussed it with me before they went ahead with suing the driver, and I gave my honest opinion that I didn't think it was worth seeking money for non-financial losses - what money could ever make it better? And the additional stress of legal action would just add to the pain/trauma.
They decided to go ahead and sue. Months later, with a large settlement looking unlikely, they decided to drop the case, as the stress involved was hideous. Friend said she wished she'd decided not to do it, because it had made things much worse for her daughter.

I think if your daughter had incurred serious financial loss, or was likely to in future (such as if her injuries meant she needed long-term care not provided on the NHS, or significant loss of earnings) it's worth doing - that's what insurance is for. If that's not the case, I'd prioritise your daughter's mental health (and your own sanity) over financial gain.

Sometimesfraught82 · 11/06/2021 18:50

Are you thinking of insurance?

If you’re thinking Of insurance then you don’t need a legal conviction but the other party needs to be “at fault” in the insurance claim

If you are after compensation then you need a conviction

Sometimesfraught82 · 11/06/2021 18:50

Give it a go Op
You won’t get anywhere