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

[MotherOfDragons27]

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.

She's very very lucky to not receive worse injuries or suffer real long term damage.

I don't want to worry you, but I wouldn't necessarily assume there is no real long term damage, OP. I very much hope you are right, but you need to think about pregnancy and childbirth and the effect they have on the muscles, joints and pelvis, and also the possibility of arthritis. That is one reason why people's perception that the injury is all over and done with is just wrong, and why looking into compensation is all the more appropriate.

Yes but also there is breaking distance cars cannot stop instantly . If someone made a mistake and stepped out within the breaking distance a collision can't be avoided.

And drivers are taught about braking distance as an essential part of what they need to know before they pass their tests. Anyone approaching a crossing should know that they need to slow down precisely because they need to give themselves time to brake if necessary. It's not just a question of whether a child may run out, but your view of who is waiting or already on the crossing may not be clear till you get closer. If I'm approaching a school crossing at going home time I'm automatically extra cautious, and so far as I can see other drivers around me at those times normally are as well.

@Zzelda
What speed has zero braking distance then

I think you have 3 years from the accident to claim. I can't understand why this didn't happen 2 years ago.

[quote rwalker]@Zzelda
What speed has zero braking distance then[/quote]
The OP has not said anything that suggests her daughter saw the car and walked out in front of it.

If a car is going slowly enough, it is highly unlikely to cause injury even if it hits a pedestrian. A braking distance of zero is not required. And you have absolutely no evidence whatsoever that the OP's daughter gave the driver no braking distance.

Whatever you think, the fact is that the courts will almost certainly take the view that the driver is at fault. There may be contributory negligence from the OP's daughter but there is nothing in any of her posts that suggests this is the case.

Tentosix I can’t understand why you’ve dropped in with your guess at the law when the thread has several actual lawyers clearly stating the actual law (one more time for those at the back, that’s 3 years from DD’s 18th birthday).

If you want to understand why the OP waited for two years then maybe read her posts in which she explained why she waited two years?

No advice OP but so sorry this happened to your poor daughter!
Any driver passing a school at 3.30pm should be expecting children to walk out into the road.

@tentosix

I think you have 3 years from the accident to claim. I can't understand why this didn't happen 2 years ago.

RTFT. As many people have pointed out, the time limit for claiming is OP's daughter's 21st birthday.

It's normal for there to be a delay in starting a PI claim. In the early stages those involve are understandably prioritising the injury and recovery from it, then it is frequently necessary to wait and see how it heals and what the prognosis for the future might be, as well as getting medical reports and going through the PI pre-action protocol.

[quote rwalker]@Zzelda
What speed has zero braking distance then[/quote]
Irrelevant question. You should approach a school crossing at going-home time cautiously, noting whether children are crossing or preparing to cross, and adjust your speed accordingly.

This driver hit OP's daughter when she was on the crossing and with enough force to cause what was on any interpretation a very serious injury. That doesn't suggest anyone driving at a sensible speed in accordance with the prevailing traffic and other surrounding conditions.

@Zzelda I agree. I hit a child on their way home from school, it wasn’t near a school but it was where the school bus stopped. The speed limit on the road was 40mph, I had slowed right down to around 20mph as I saw the children getting off the bus on the opposite side of the road. I then saw a group of children in the road behind the bus waiting to cross. So I slowed down further. Then the child ran out in front of me. I slammed on my brakes and tried to stop but I still hit her. Fortunately she only suffered bruising. Witnesses including an off-duty police officer all agreed I did everything I could to avoid the accident and the girl was at fault. She didn’t see me because my car was obscured by the bus. Her friends had seen me and yelled for her to stop but she didn’t.

If I had not already slowed down due to the hazards around me I would have undoubtedly hit her with much greater force and I’m sure she would’ve suffered more than bruises - potentially broken bones. Which of course would’ve been my fault. A fractured pelvis is a significant injury.

Op, do it, contact the boys insurance and put in a PI claim.
I had an accident 20 years ago, settled for minimal compensation and I’m still suffering the effects today. The amount I’ve spent on physio etc over the years is crazy.
You don’t know what help your daughter may need in the future for the physical effects and the mental effects. It could go some way to helping towards the cost.

A lot of interesting (and frustratingly inaccurate) commentary about "at fault".

In motor insurance terms, this doesn't mean who is, in blame terms, at fault for the accident. A "fault claim" is one where your insurer accepts responsibility and pays. If someone is declared to be at fault by their insurer, it is that insurer who pays out. A 50/50 fault claim means both insurers agree to share the cost, even if the blame for the accident itself isn't so equally distributed.

So if you've ever hit something and it wasn't your fault, but your insurer has declared it a fault claim, it doesn't mean you are to blame (or can be convicted of an offence). It means, simply, that your insurer cannot reasonably pass the responsibility to pay onto another party (insurer).

It has absolutely nothing to do with the outcome of any police investigation.

OP, if the accident took place in England before august 2019 when the new discount rate came in, the claim is likely worth more given likely future knock on effects of the injury, and definitely worth pursuing. She will potentially need that money for counselling or care or post partum physio.