Councils and highways agency compensation claims

We help severely injured clients claim compensation from councils, highway authorities and other organisations after accidents caused by:

• unsafe smart motorway systems, signs, or errors;
• unsafe bridges, slip roads, roundabouts, road junctions, level crossings (railway lines);
• raised, missing or damaged paving or kerb stones;
• deep pot-holes or dangerous road surfaces;
• uncovered drain or utilities ‘manholes’;
• unlit or unsigned ramps, roadworks, skips, cones, or hazards;
• unguarded holes or drops;
• inadequate or unsafe road repairs;
• dangerous spillages, dropped hazards or water on the roads;
• dangerous overhead cables, cameras, lights, or signs;
• incorrect, dangerous or missing road signs or road markings;
• defective street lighting or traffic lights;
• ungritted icy paths and walkways, pavements and roads;
• falling hazards, such as fencing, trees, scaffolding, masonry.

Road accident injury compensation claims involving unsafe road schemes or conditions, defective signs and equipment or other road hazards can be difficult to prove. It is essential that evidence, including photographs of the road conditions, is gathered immediately to avoid it being lost by the highway authority’s post-accident repairs. Swift action is needed by experienced solicitors to identify and prove liability (fault) against the correct defendant. Expert accident reconstruction evidence may be needed, particularly where the cause of the accident is not immediately clear.

Where someone has suffered severe or catastrophic injury in an accident, it is vital that the correct defendant (person or authority at fault) is identified so that funding for the injured person’s rehabilitation can be secured urgently from their insurers. Our personal injury solicitors are nationally acclaimed experts in handling brain injury and other major trauma accident claims.

Depending on the circumstances of the accident, serious injury claims arising from unsafe highway conditions may be made against:

• the highways agency responsible for major roads and motorways (e.g. Highways England);
• the local highway authority or council responsible for minor roads, pavements, and walkways;
• the building or road maintenance work contractor;
• the government’s Department for Transport (DfT);
• utility companies (low-hanging cables, burst water mains etc);
• drivers or commercial organisations responsible for road hazards or obstructions (skips, spillages, debris, or items dropped from lorries).

Boyes Turner’s personal injury lawyers are specialists in securing rehabilitation and compensation for clients who have suffered severe and catastrophic injury in accidents caused by the negligence of others.

Our clients have suffered one or more of the following serious injuries:

• head injury, brain injury, skull fractures;
• spinal cord injury, spinal fractures;
• major trauma and multiple injuries;
• amputation;
• maxillofacial injuries;
• scarring or degloving injuries (needing skin grafting);
• musculoskeletal injuries;
• severe internal or crushing injuries;
• severe burns and scalds;
• PTSD and psychological injury;
• chronic pain/CRPS;
• fatal injury.

Each client’s entitlement to compensation depends on their individual circumstances. This includes the type of injury and severity of their disability, the reasonable costs of meeting their needs arising from their disability, and the financial impact of the injury on their life. In addition to any compensation claimed, we are often able to secure early rehabilitation, funded directly by the defendant’s insurers.

Depending on our client’s injury and their circumstances, they may receive compensation for:

• pain, suffering and disability;
• costs of rehabilitation;
• costs of care and case management;
• increased costs of suitable or adapted accommodation;
• prosthetics (artificial limbs after amputation);
• specialist vehicles, equipment and assistive technology (IT);
• therapies (occupational therapy (OT), physiotherapy; speech and language therapy);
• psychological treatment and counselling;
• costs of private medical or surgical treatment;
• financial losses, including earnings and pension;
• deputyship costs.

Where the highways agency or council’s negligence caused the injured person’s death, we can help their dependent family claim compensation for the loss of the deceased’s income and ‘services’ (childcare, housework, DIY), as well as reasonable funeral costs and a statutory bereavement payment.

Serious injury claims against the highway authority can be complex, particularly when they arise from ‘one vehicle accidents’, where the driver loses control of a car, bicycle, or motorbike and leaves the road or collides with a hazard.

There may be more than one cause for an accident, but where the highway authority was to blame, the fact that the injured person contributed to the accident or their injury in some way should not usually prevent them from bringing a claim.

We investigate who was legally at fault for each accident, based on evidence, including photographs, dash-cam footage, witness statements, police reports and experts’ reports, to prove that the defendant is wholly or partly liable to compensate our client. In most cases, where the defendant is in fault, but our client was also partly to blame for their own injuries, our client may still be entitled to receive a (proportionally reduced) payment of compensation.

Read more about how we help our severely injured clients in claims involving contributory negligence.