Benjamin; the perils of the premature medical
examination
Benjamin
was driving his own car when it was struck, almost head on, by another vehicle,
whose driver was uninsured, high on narcotics and attempting to evade
police. The other driver was killed in
the collision. Benjamin had to be cut
out of his car.
He
suffered shoulder and neck injuries and was initially in a neck brace in hospital. His motor insurers sold his case to their
“panel solicitors” who sent him straightaway for a medical examination. The doctor was a GP and his prognosis was
that Benjamin would be over his problems in about six months (a standard
prognosis given by doctors who examine patients without the benefit of reading
the medical records). Benjamin was
sceptical about this and consulted us.
It seemed plain to us that he would not be over these problems so
quickly and that the doctor’s prognosis was over optimistic.
In
the event, we needed to refer Benjamin for orthopaedic and psychiatric
examination. Physically, Benjamin had
suffered a shoulder injury which conflicted with his work and his pursuit or
martial arts. Psychologically, he had
suffered panic attacks, loss of libido and travel anxiety. The doctors we appointed took a more cautious
view of Benjamin’s recovery and we negotiated compensation on the basis of
their reports. He recovered £17,000 for
his injuries and loss of income and our costs were paid in full. Had he relied
on the earlier medical report he would have recovered about 20% of that figure.
We acted for Benjamin under a “conditional fee
agreement” (more commonly known as “no win – no fee”). No win – no fee as it now works will no
longer exist after April of next year because of proposals which this
government intends to force through to the detriment of accident victims like
Benjamin.
