Win for claimant in two vehicle attack
In Farah v Abdullahi and others [2020] EWHC 825 (QB) an uninsured driver of a Ford car drove deliberately at the claimant, forcing him to take evasive action as a result of which he found himself spread-eagled on the bonnet of a Mercedes car, which had just stopped. The Mercedes driver sped up to 28mph before braking hard and dropping the claimant off the bonnet onto the ground. 45 seconds later, the Ford driver came back and drove into and over the claimant, carrying him 33m until the trapped body of the claimant prevented the car moving further forward.
Linden J found that the claimant’s severe traumatic brain injury had been caused by the Ford driver and held that the approach of the defendant’s neurosurgeon expert, who had contended the diffuse axonal brain injury had occurred when the claimant fell from the Mercedes, “as a witness to be careless and partisan in a way which was inconsistent with his role and duties as an expert.”
Linden J also accepted the claimant’s submission that the Ford driver’s tort of battery when driving at the claimant was a legal cause of the claimant’s injuries when he fell from the Mercedes on the basis that there was no break in the chain of causation, even though the actions of the Mercedes driver were deliberate.
The claimant recovered full damages against the Article 75 insurer for the Ford driver even though the court found the Mercedes driver to be unidentified, thereby relieving the insurer of the Mercedes car from any liability.
Read the full judgment here
Robert Weir QC acted for the claimant and was instructed by Chani Dhaliwal of Irwin Mitchell solicitors.
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