Rider wins compensation for injuries following accident caused by untraced driver

HorseSolicitor’s lawyer Hanna Campbell was instructed to pursue damages on behalf of a rider that was injured as a result of a negligent untraced driver.

The Claimant was out hacking in the Vale of Glamorgan, Wales, when a car came past at a speed that was considered unsafe to pass a horse. No attempt was made to reduce speed and a young man threw a plastic bottle out of the car window as they passed which also startled the horse.

The horse spooked and went vertical as it attempted to bolt through a hedge. The rider was thrown from the horse and knocked unconscious despite wearing a riding hat. An ambulance arrived and it was confirmed that her leg was broken. As a result of this our client was unable to care for her horse for eight weeks or work at the riding school.

A claim was made through the Motor Insurers’ Bureau (MIB), an organisation that compensates individuals for accidents that they are involved in as a result of the actions of negligent untraced or uninsured road users. Our client’s friend witnessed the accident and provided a statement to the police. The police report was obtained by the Motor Insurers’ Bureau and liability was admitted.

We claimed compensation for the physical injuries and loss of amenity sustained as a result of the accident, care for both the horse and our client, loss of earnings and travel. We were unable to claim for the damaged hat and jodhpurs because at the date of the accident the MIB did not compensate for this head of claim. The law has recently changed and damaged clothing, safety gear and tack can now be included in such claims where a significant injury has been sustained which the Motor Insurers’ Bureau defines as one requiring hospital inpatient stay of 4 or more consecutive nights.

The claim settled for £15,000.