What happened

Sonia Woodward suffered a deep wound after the brakes failed on the scooter she had hired to help her elderly father get round the island during their break. Realising it was going to career into a group of people while she was testing the scooter in the grounds of her hotel, Sonia was forced to steer away and collided with a signpost.

As a result of the accident, Sonia sustained a serious laceration to the lower left leg and nerve damage, which resulted in her paying for emergency surgery to undergo a debridement operation at a local hospital in Tenerife. The surgery left her with significant scarring, and she has also suffered from back pain, depression and flashbacks since the accident.

Upon returning to the UK, Sonia – a complex case manager and owner of Sonia Woodward Ltd, a business which supports seriously injured people to rebuild their lives – was warned the severity of her laceration and nerve damage may mean she would face amputation.

Thankfully, her leg was saved, thanks to the expertise of the surgeons Sonia turned to, who she works with in her role as a case manager. But even now, more than ten years on from the incident in October 2015, she continues to live with consequences including muscle and ankle weakness, significant scarring, hypersensitivity of the skin and pins and needles in her toes.

The traumatic injury is also linked to her subsequent diagnosis of fibromyalgia, a condition which affects muscles and soft tissue.

“My leg looks like I have suffered a shark bite. Even now, all these years later, I am living with the consequences of what happened,” says Sonia, from Cambridge.

“The whole ordeal has been absolutely horrendous, and it has taken almost ten years to get this settled – me and my family have even had to appear in court – but I am a strong person who is well used to fighting on behalf of my clients, so I was not going to give in to these insurers and was determined to fight.”

What we did

After contacting Slater and Gordon, Sonia began working with Nicholas Lukacs, a senior litigation executive in our specialist accidents abroad team. Nicholas has been specialising in travel accident claims for over 15 years and specialises in foreign accidents, including hotel and excursion claims, road traffic accidents abroad, airline claims, and cruise ship claims.

While law firm Slater and Gordon were appointed shortly after Sonia’s injury to pursue a claim, the defendant – Mapfre, the scooter company’s insurers - denied any liability and twice appealed the level of damages awarded, with the Court of Appeal making the final ruling in Sonia’s favour.

Our strategy

• Nicholas worked hard to ensure Sonia’s claim covered every aspect of her injury, obtaining initial medical evidence from experts in plastic surgery, vascular surgery and psychology.
• Further expert evidence was then sought from a Spanish lawyer to determine the value of the claim under Spanish law. This is crucial to ensure the expert evidence gathered in our clients’ claims accurately represents the extent of their injuries and their losses, to ensure that any claim valuations are 100% accurate.
• The defendant (the scooter company’s insurer) initially raised objections around both the coverage of the insurance policy and a territorial scope clause, however Nicholas challenged these and secured an admission of liability.
• While settlement offers were made on both sides, parties were unable to reach an agreement, which meant the claim proceeded to trial. Nicholas represented Sonia’s interests throughout, fighting to secure the best possible outcome.

Results

Sonia was very pleased to receive a considerable settlement sum which included interest on the damages assessed. The interest alone was substantial, eclipsing the general and special damages awarded for the injury, loss of amenity, and financial losses incurred.

Nicholas said: “This was an absolutely horrific incident for Sonia, who went from enjoying a holiday with family and friends to facing the very real prospect of having to lose her leg due to the severity of the injury she suffered on this defective scooter.

“We have supported Sonia through what proved a very extensive process to finalise a settlement, successfully winning two appeals brought by the defendant along the way. She has shown huge resilience and determination, and we are glad to have secured a positive outcome.”

Hear from Sonia

After undergoing surgery, Sonia had to have her leg elevated for several months and relied on the help of a wheelchair to get around. Her family and friends supported her in daily tasks, but she was determined to return to work.

“My clients have complex needs, and I will always be there for them. I went back to work three weeks after my injury and I redesigned my office so it could accommodate my wheelchair with my leg lifted,” says Sonia.