August marks Road Victim Awareness Month
The month of August marks National Road Victim Month, a campaign set up by national charity RoadPeace to raise awareness and remember the people who have tragically lost their lives as a result of road traffic incidents.
The charity selected August as the month of remembrance to memorialise the lives of Princess Diana, who lost her life in a road traffic collision on 31 August 1997, Bridget Driscoll, the first person to be killed by a motor vehicle in August 1896, and over half a million people who have been killed on Britain’s roads since Bridget’s death.
HOW IS ROAD VICTIM AWARENESS MONTH MARKED ACROSS THE COUNTRY?
The annual day of remembrance was set to take place on 31 August 2020 at Liverpool Cathedral, but due to COVID-19, the service will instead be available to watch on YouTube from 2pm. A Justice for Crash Victims Webinar, also made by RoadPeace, explores how the justice system affects crash victims, and is available to watch here.
HOW MANY PEOPLE SUFFER FROM ROAD TRAFFIC ACCIDENTS EACH YEAR?
There were 1,748 reported road deaths in the UK 2019, and 153,315 casualties of all severities in reported road traffic incidents, which marks a 5% improvement on the previous year.
However, Niamh Wilson Head of Civil Litigation at Hampson Hughes explains that whilst these figures are positive, we shouldn’t become complacent: “Whilst these overall figures show a step in the right direction for road users and pedestrians alike, we are also seeing an increased number of vehicles such as bicycles and electric scooters navigating Britain’s roads, and quite often without proper knowledge of the highway code.
“With inexperienced road users, we’re unfortunately likely to see a rise in future road traffic accidents, and over the years we have worked with so many cases that highlight the devastating impact road traffic incidents can have the lives of everyone involved.
“The service that RoadPeace offers in supporting affected families is invaluable, and Hampson Hughes is supportive of National Victim Awareness month.”
At Hampson Hughes, our personal injury team work tirelessly to successfully claim compensation for victims who have suffered as a result of road traffic accidents. Over the past 10 years, we have settled over 37,000 road traffic accident cases, helping families achieve the financial support they deserve.
Recently, we settled a claim for cyclist, Pat, from Bootle. While cycling home from work, he suffered a collision from a car who hit him due to the driver failing to give way to him as he travelled straight across a roundabout. Sadly, he suffered a fractured skull, dislocated right shoulder, broken ribs, fractured collar bone and skin abrasions. Fortunately, he made a fantastic recovery and was fully healed within two years of the accident.
Following a court case, we settled his claim for £25,000. This covered his costs for physiotherapy post-accident, as well as for his bike plus further compensation for damages.
Another of our clients was awarded £14,891 last year after she was hit from behind at high speed whilst stationary at a pelican crossing, causing her to be shunted into the vehicle in front. As a result of the incident, our client suffered a squashed vertebra, fractured upper lumbar spine, and soft tissue damage to her back, neck and shoulders.
HAVE YOU BEEN INJURED IN A ROAD TRAFFIC ACCIDENT?
