Young female pedestrian killed in road accident

Sam Collard, an Associate in the Osbornes serious injury team, recently settled a fatal accident claim brought on behalf of the family of an 18-year-old Romanian girl who was tragically killed in a road traffic accident in East London in 2017.

Sam brought a claim against the Defendant driver’s insurer under the Fatal Accidents Act 1976 and the Law Reform (Miscellaneous Provision) Act 1934.  Liability was disputed between the parties and initially, the Defendant’s insurer offered to pay no more than £4,000 to cover repatriation and the funeral expenses.  Despite the inherent injustices of fatal accident claims, which prevent the father of an 18-year-old from claiming the statutory bereavement award because his daughter has reached the age of majority, Sam was able to reach an agreement in relation to liability and secure a net settlement of close to £50,000 for the family.  This also avoided inflicting the unpleasant prospect of a trial on the grieving family.

The Fatal Accidents Act 1976 is an act of Parliament that enables relatives of people killed due to the fault of others to recover damages. The claim is limited to the spouse or civil partner, parents in respect of the death of an unmarried minor child and more recently, since after 6 October 2020, cohabitees. The bereavement award must be divided between the eligible claimants. The award is fixed and at the date of publication is £15,120.

To speak to a member of the Personal Injury team at Osbornes Law call 0207 485 8811 or complete an online enquiry form.