“I thought there wasn’t a cat in hell’s chance of getting anything. I was shocked when I got paid just a few days before the court hearing. JK Lawyers did a marvellous job and they never gave up. Halfway through I was ready to give up myself, but JK Lawyers told me not to and kept fighting my case. I’ve never had money in my life and now I’ve got more money than I know what to do with. I might even go on a cruise!”
The accident
Our 79-year-old client was travelling through Doncaster railway station when he needed to use the lifts connecting the platforms with the station subway.
After taking a lift down to the subway, he walked through the station and approached a second lift. The lift doors were already open, giving him every reason to believe it was safe to step inside.
However, unbeknown to him, the lift had not stopped level with the station floor. There was a drop of approximately six inches between the floor and the lift.
Expecting the two surfaces to be flush, our client stepped forward and suddenly dropped down into the lift. The unexpected change in level caused him to wrench his right knee and sent him stumbling into the opposite wall.
There were no cones, barriers or tape preventing passengers from entering the lift and nothing to warn him that it was not level with the floor.
Despite being in pain and shock, he made his way upstairs to report what had happened. At the ticket office, he was told that the lifts were not working. When he returned, an engineer was at the lift and apologised.
Our client also took a photograph of the scene, but he had not taken the names of the people he spoke to and there was no CCTV footage or formal accident report available to support his account.
The injuries
The sudden drop into the lift caused immediate pain and shock, with our client suffering an injury to his right knee.
JK Lawyers arranged for him to be medically examined and an independent medical report was obtained. The medical evidence confirmed that he had suffered ligament damage to his knee as a result of the accident.
Thankfully, he has since made a full recovery.
However, the physical injury was only part of the experience. Our client was particularly upset that the other side refused to accept that the accident had happened at all.
For him, pursuing the claim became as much about the principle of what had happened as it was about receiving compensation.
The claim
After the accident, our client searched Google for a solicitor and found JK Lawyers.
The claim proved far from straightforward. Liability was denied and the other side disputed our client’s version of events, effectively alleging that the accident had never happened.
There was no CCTV footage and our client hadn’t taken the names of the station staff or engineer he spoke to on the day. Despite these difficulties, JK Lawyers believed in his account and continued to pursue the case.
At times, our client felt that there was little chance of succeeding. Friends and others had told him that he was unlikely to receive compensation and, halfway through the process, he considered giving up.
We encouraged him to continue.
The other side maintained its position and allowed the case to progress all the way towards trial. JK Lawyers continued preparing the case and remained ready to fight it in court.
Then, just days before the hearing, the other side finally backed down.
The outcome
After approximately 18 months of fighting the claim, JK Lawyers secured a £1,500 settlement for our client without him having to go through the final court hearing.
While this was not a high-value personal injury claim, it was an extremely satisfying result because liability had been so strongly contested.
Our client had been told that he had little chance of succeeding and had almost abandoned his claim. Instead, JK Lawyers continued fighting his corner right up until the other side conceded at the eleventh hour.
For our client, the result was about more than the £1,500 compensation. It was vindication after his account of the accident had been denied from the outset.
And as for what he’ll do with his compensation?
At 79, he thinks a cruise might be in order.