Boyes Turner’s personal injury lawyers secured a compensation settlement for a client who suffered injuries to her wrist and spine when the car she was driving was hit from the side by the defendant’s vehicle.Our client was the sole occupant of the vehicle she was driving and was wearing seatbelt when the defendant drove without warning into the offside (driver’s side) of her car. The force of the impact lifted her car from the road and its front struck the near side kerb in the impact of the collision.Our client’s injuries included a soft tissue injury to her left wrist and soft tissue injuries to her cervical and lumbar spine. She experienced pain radiating to both feet and was later diagnosed with a disc protrusion. She underwent complex two-stage spinal fusion surgery with a blood transfusion. Our medical expert’s opinion was that the accident accelerated her pre-existing asymptomatic condition (chronic spondylolisthesis) by three years. In the expert’s view, our client would have required the spinal fusion surgery at some point in any event even if the road accident had not occurred.Our client was left with permanent symptoms and was significantly disadvantaged on the open labour market and in her current employment (reducing her job options). After lengthy negotiations we concluded the claim successfully with a settlement out of court.
