Former Royal Marine awarded over £1million after faultless motorbike accident forces early military retirement

A former Royal Marine has received more than £1 million after a vehicle collided into his motorcycle and his injuries he sustained forced early military retirement.

As a serving member of Her Majesty’s Armed Forces, the claimant, who will be referred to as James, was involved in a road traffic collision whilst travelling from his place of duty on his 30^th birthday in August 2013.

James was riding his motorcycle along a single carriageway when he was unexpectedly hit by a car crossing lanes travelling in the opposite direction.

The initial impact of the collision launched James off his motorcycle and resulted in multiple complex trauma injuries that included:

• A crushed pelvis
• A drop foot condition
• Continual sciatic nerve issues
• An amputated finger
• Anterior Cruciate Ligament (ACL) and Posterior Cruciate Ligament
  (PCL) reconstruction of the knee

Fletchers Solicitor’s Catastrophic Serious Injury Solicitor, Louise Riley, assisted James throughout the entire duration of his rehabilitation and is delighted that the case has now come to a fair and deserved conclusion.

Louise said: “I loved working with James.

“He is quite a remarkable individual and I wish him the very best of luck for the future; I am sure that he will excel at whatever he chooses to do next.”

In the wake of the crash, James sustained a crushed pelvis which required a full pelvic reconstruction.

This then led to the discovery of severe damages to the sciatic nerve.

As a result, James now lives with a drop foot condition with continual sciatic nerve issues.

In addition, James underwent surgery to amputate a finger and required an anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) and posterior cruciate ligament (PCL) reconstruction of the knee.

Due to the level of injury sustained, James had no choice but to undergo a lengthy rehabilitation process.

Having no feeling in one of his feet due to the sciatic nerve injury, severe muscle wastage in the leg and various complex trauma operations meant learning to walk again was a significantly difficult challenge.

As a serving personnel, James was self-motivated, enthusiastic and dedicated in his rehabilitation, applying his military way of life to achieve his goal to walk again.

Ultimately, James desperately hoped he could remain in Her Majesty’s Armed Forces.

After years of hardship, James had no choice but to abandon his dreams of progression within the forces and was forced to leave military service due to his severe injuries.

With the final words, “Thank you for your service”, James was discharged from duty and settled in civilian life. The statements provided by eye witnesses at the time of the incident backed James’ case that he was not his fault.

The defendant also accepted liability for the collision.

James’ case finally came to a conclusion this year when he was awarded a serious injury settlement of £1,227,750.

Speaking in reflection of the service James received from Louise and Fletchers Solicitors, James said: “Within days of being injured whilst still in hospital, I met Louise for the first time. From that day forward Louise and her team has been with me.

“This case has been long and hard, lasting over five years but the level of support received from Fletchers has been nothing but outstanding throughout.

“Being proactive rather than reactive, I was prompted way in advance to produce and/or gather the necessary documentations relating to my case.

“I was also given updates regularly, this was always on point which helped me to better understand the progress of my case.

“Appointments were scheduled in advance with substantial time given for me to deconflict with other appointments and attend at the pre-appointed time.

“Subsequently, specialist reports were completed in adequate time, allowing me to review each report accordingly.

“I was always treated with respect, the professionalism of Louise and her team is impressive.

“With attention to detail, my case has been managed effectively & efficiently leading to a more than acceptable outcome of my settlement.

“I would like to say thank you to Louise, her team and Fletchers Solicitors for all that they have done for me.”