Man severely brain damaged in car crash has been able to move home after four years in care

The wife of a man who sustained severe brain damage in a car crash has thanked Fletchers Solicitors for helping to bring her husband home.

In early 2014, the man was in his stationary vehicle when a car careered into him, leaving him with devastating injuries. He has been in a Minimally Conscious State since the accident.

He had been living in a care home since leaving hospital but it was widely considered that it would have a positive impact on his health if he was able to live at home with his family.

His wife, and their children, were travelling to visit him four or five times a week from their home 15 miles away but their goal was always to be able to bring him to live with them.

However, this meant that they needed a new home suitable for his wheelchair and medical equipment and space for nurses to care for him around the clock.

Fletchers Solicitors have been involved with the case since meeting the family shortly after the accident happened. Caroline Morris and Aimee Moorcroft worked on the case for nearly four years and secured a settlement figure to protect the family’s future and provide his care.

The Court of Protection Department at Fletchers have also been working with the family to help manage his affairs, including assisting in the purchase of the family’s new property and helping manage their day to day finances.

The couple, who have been together for 34 years, were able to move into their new house together in December and he was able to be home in time for Christmas.

The mother of two said: “Since the accident, all I have wanted is to have him back home. We were so close throughout our marriage and we used to do everything together. I can’t put into words the impact that it has had on the whole family not being able to be together.

“The accident turned our lives upside down and things can never be the same again. People ask me how I get through it and I look back and wonder how I have managed, but you just have to. You do it because of love.

“My goal was always to get him back home with me and he is so much better since he has been here. He knows he’s home with his family and there has been such an improvement in his physical health.

“If it wasn’t for Fletchers we wouldn’t have the house and wouldn’t have been able to bring him home yet. They have helped to make a difficult situation easier and helped us get to the end result. Caroline and Aimee always kept us informed of what was happening with the case and they have been a great support to us.

“The Court of Protection Department has been able to help with everything from our financial affairs to changing our address with all the different places. By them taking things like that off me, it has just meant that I have been able to focus on my husband without the worry of everything else.”

Caroline Morris, a senior fee earner in the serious injury department at Fletchers, said: “Our client and his family have endured such a difficult time following this accident. It had always been our aim to get our client home, living with his family again despite strong objection from our opponents. We are delighted to have been able to facilitate this and it was such a pleasure to see him settled in his new home just recently. The settlement obtained will ensure that he is financially secure for the remainder of his life and we wish him all the best for the future”

The Court of Protection Department can be appointed to look after the property and financial affairs of people who lack mental capacity to make decisions for themselves. 

Sarah Charnley, Head of the Court of Protection Department at Fletchers, said: “Seeing our client and his family so relaxed and happy in their new home was simply wonderful. The team worked hard to ensure that they could move in and spend their first Christmas for many years, together, at home. 

“Co-ordinating the building work and care teams to be ready to get him home as soon as the property was ready and within a shorter timescale than had initially been mooted would have been beyond many client’s capabilities but my team manage to make it happen whilst sheltering the family from as much of the stress as possible. Knowing how much happier our client is as a result of the move proves that what we do is truly worthwhile.”