road traffic accident

  Mobile phones can be a lethal weapon when it comes to motoring with the part they often play in causing road traffic accidents being well known. However, in Kenya mobiles are in fact being used to try and reduce the death toll arising as a result ...

  Road traffic accidents on Scotland’s rural roads are all too common. One of the worst blackspots in Scotland for road traffic accidents is reported to be on the A9 Perth to Inverness route. Although the overall death toll as a result of road...

  Road traffic accidents are common all over the world so much so the UK Foreign Office has introduced a road safety campaign aimed specifically at British nationals who drive abroad. The campaign is intended to reduce the number of Brits who are in...

  Although road deaths as a result of road traffic accidents appear to be on the rise in parts of Britain, the EU has just reported the lowest ever number of road deaths across Europe as a whole. According to the European Commission, deaths caus...

  When Scottish Olympic cycling hopeful Jason McIntyre died while cycling in Fort William in 2008 the dangers of road cycling were highlighted for the world to see. The Fatal Accident Inquiry into the 33 year old’s death offered little in t...

  It is relatively common knowledge nowadays that if you are injured in a road traffic accident that is not your fault you can claim compensation. The legal basis behind compensation is that the person injured should be restored to the position t...

  I was shocked and saddened to read about the death of a spectator at a recent Highland Rally who sustained fatal injuries while enjoying the event. The circumstances of the road traffic accident, which lead to the spectator’s death, make for...

  In the last few months it seems every time I read the news there is another report of someone, be they a driver, passenger, cyclist, motorcyclist or pedestrian, suffering injury as a result of a road traffic accident. I was not surprised therefore...

  Any one who has been involved in a road traffic accident or knows someone who has been in a crash will be all too aware of the impact that this can have on the victims and their families and loved ones. Rather worryingly, a police chief has wa...

  Fiasco is a word which the residents of Edinburgh are all too familiar with in relation to trams. The City of Edinburgh Council proposed a tram project some years ago which has never quite captured the imagination and subsequent to the installatio...

There was some personal injury related scare-mongering in the news this week with warnings that the Council face making personal injury compensation payments of up to £1million to cyclists who become injured when the wheels of their bikes become ...

  In the wake of the high profile cycling accident of Olympic and Tour de France champion Bradley Wiggens and then just hours later another cycling accident this time involving his coach, Shane Sutton cycle safety campaigners are calling for improve...

  It has been reported that annually there are almost one million road traffic accidents in Britain that are a result of drivers being distracted by attractive pedestrians. Direct line have reported that there are around 2525 road traffic acciden...

  Scotland’s Chief Statistician announced the release of Key Safety Camera Statistics 2011.  The publication reports on statistics relating to road traffic accidents and offences at safety camera sites in Scotland.  These sites inclu...

  Last week saw the European Commission hold its 4th annual Road Safety Day in Cyprus. This year the conference, aimed at decreasing road traffic accidents within the European Union, focused specifically on youth road safety. Statistically tho...

  Nearly two out of five adults have suffered life-threatening experiences, with the average person cheating death at least once, according to new research from MetLife. The nationwide study found that 39% of adults have nearly died in accidents, wi...

Good news from Transport Scotland - the number of people who were injured on the roads in Scotland fell to a record low in 2011. The new statistics reveal that road casualties are 4% lower than in 2010, and include an 11% drop in fatalities over the same ...

  I’m quite looking forward to the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee – Mrs Thom has been planning some sort of street party, and I’m sure we will all have a good time. Road safety group the Institute of Advanced Motorists is also ce...

  I was pleased to read recently that the number of people suffering personal injury on Scotland’s roads fell to a record low last year according to official figures published by the Scottish government. There were 13,324 reported road cas...

  As a car accident claim expert I am familiar with most of the medical injuries inflicted on drivers. In minor low velocity road traffic accidents (especially as a result of rear end shunts) the most common form of injury is a ‘whiplash re...

  My friends were aghast recently when they asked me what would happen if I was involved in an road accident that was caused by Mrs Thom.   My wife is an excellent driver with an unblemished record, however, if we were involved in an accid...

  The basis of any claim for compensation is negligence.  The line between negligence, carelessness and bad luck is often blurry when it comes to Road Traffic Accidents (i.e. car crashes). All of us who drive are likely to have a bash at som...

Often when people think of compensation claims they think of car crash claims.  Car accident claims make up almost 30% of the claims that I deal with on a daily basis. I guess this makes me an expert car accident compensation Solicitor.  I ...

  They’ve done it again!  My friends at Thompsons Solicitors won two awards on Thursday night at the Law Awards of Scotland- Employment Firm of the Year and Litigation Firm of the Year!  There must have been a few people feeling a...

  I was shocked to read that health and safety failings led to an employee at Lowmac Alloys being crushed between two skips.  The company were rightly fined £80,000 by the Health and Safety Executive but this is an accident that, if all t...

  I saw such an inspirational story today in the papers about an Aberdeen woman, Lorna Harper, who said she feels like the Bionic Woman after doctors practically rebuilt her after a road traffic accident.  The series of operations she received ...

  I was sad to hear that 22 people had to be taken to hospital following a bus crash close to Glasgow airport.   Early in the morning on the A726 Barnesford Road close to Glasgow Airport the bus crashed into a perimeter fence and ended up pe...

  I saw recently that a van driver in Edinburgh ploughed into a woman’s parked car after he had a sneezing fit at the wheel.  Luckily the woman escaped the smash as she was in a café nearby but her car was completely written off by the ac...

  I read in the papers this morning that a woman saved her seven year old grandson from a dog attack when they were out on the beach in Essex.  My first thought was just how brave both the child and the grandmother had been to get through such ...

  No one expects to go through what Danielle Ormond went through a few years ago.  She was working in the Drumtochty Arms in Aberdeenshire when there was a gas explosion and she got buried under the rubble.  Luckily she managed to get out ...

My friends at Thompsons have been out and about on their bikes to give a better service to cyclists who end up in accidents.  I love getting around on my bike and Mrs Thom and the kids do too but it can sometimes be really pretty dangerous.   ...

  Speed cameras are something that are loathed by most drivers however many argue that they increase road safety as they force drivers to slow down at road traffic accident black spots.  However many people argue that they are pointless as they...

  I was pleased to hear that according to official figures the number of people who sustained injuries in road traffic accidents fell last year. The statistics published are however, only based on incidents, which were reported to the police. Lo...

  Is it just me or has there been a spate of cyclists and motorcyclists seriously injured in Scotland’s roads of late? It is regrettable that the most vulnerable on the roads are offered no protection from negligent drivers. The latest inciden...

  I was reading with interest that although Scotland’s most heavily used roads have seen an increase in road safety they still remain the most dangerous in the UK. A report by the Road Safety Foundation has found that the chances of having ...

  Thank goodness my friends at Thompsons are there to stick up for all the people who have legitimately sustained whiplash injuries and have a right to claim compensation. I feel reassured to know Thompsons are not afraid to take on the big Insuranc...

  I was pleased to read this week that William Prentice, the have-a-go-hero who tried to stop a runaway taxi, recovered £9,000 in compensation.  Mr Prentice was lauded by the Sheriff for acting in a public spirited manner.  He was wa...

  Drivers are being urged to be more alert on the roads to avoid a risk of a road traffic accident due to deer on the road. The number of road traffic accidents with deer peak between April and May each year as this is the time when young deer le...

Another Car Accident, Again?!   Life is full of tragic events, whether we want them to take place or not, which result in unintended consequences. I know it’s a bitch isn’t it, get over it. Take for example ‘Car Accidents’. ...

  The other day I read in the paper that a teenager was quoted almost £33,000 to insure his second-hand car.  His car only cost £3,000 and was a 6 year old Vauxhall Corsa. He used a comparison quotes website and received the quot...

  I have been continuing to read the articles about the possibility of scientists developing an uncrashable car and it is really very exciting.  Have you seen any of the ideas?  The latest thing that I was reading about was an intelligent ...

  I read with interest this week about the Jury award of £320,000 for a father and daughter who made a compensation claim following the devastating death of Caroline Hamilton in a road traffic accident. Mrs Hamilton died after she was involved...

  Last year I was following the story about the research into uncrashable cars.  My friends at Thompsons Solicitors  and I are always interested in ways to increase health and safety and ways of reducing road traffic accidents so I was ple...

  I was very happy to read recently that work to reduce road casualties has seen accident fatality rates fall to their lowest level since records began.  Recent statistics show that Scotland achieved the lowest road accident fatality rates sinc...

  I was sad to see another story in the press about a sat-nav device causing a road traffic accident.  It has taught me not to rely on just the sat-nav as they sometimes can be wrong.  This time the error proved fatal and a four year old g...

  I was so sorry to learn of the recent death of the Polish student Milena Gott following a road traffic accident to her severe injury around 18 months ago.  She has been fighting for her life for such a long time, however, finally succumbed to...

  I was pleased to learn that my friends at Thompsons successfully negotiated a £17,000 settlement for an Aberdeen man who was involved in a hit and run incident. The man was socialising with friends in Aberdeen city centre when he was struck ...

  I was really saddened to hear that a lollipop lady Audrey Williams, 79 from Ayr died after being involved in a road traffic accident involving a single decker bus while she was on duty. The lollipop lady known otherwise as the Forehill Primary...

  Although the snow was very good fun to play in and little Thom had some unexpected time off school; have you noticed that the snow has made a real mess of the roads? Prior to the snow the potholes in the streets around the Thom household were b...

  I have been pleasantly surprised with the weather recently and I thought that the bad weather had left us alone.  We are just starting to get back to normal so I am a bit worried to see that freezing conditions are continuing to cause problem...

  I read in the papers that a woman was saved from her car as it filled with water after skidding into a Moray canal.  Christine Rhodes, skidded her car on black ice, hit a verge and crashed down a steep embankment, landing upturned in the free...

  I was dismayed to read that the pedestrian death toll on Scotland’s roads has reached five by the 6 January 2011. I was even more astonished to read that the deaths occurred within the space of 24 hours. It appears as though three of these d...

  Like many of us I have spent the last few weeks treading gingerly along our nations pavements trying to be one of the few to avoid slipping and falling on the ice. The ‘big freeze’ has inevitably brought with it a huge spike in road traffic accidents and has seen hospital admissions at 10 times the normal quota for this time of year.   Careful drivers, who have never been in an accident before will have succumbed to the conditions and will feel aggrieved to be held ‘at fault’ for accidents that wouldn’t have happened had it not been for the ice and snow.  Unfortunately, in terms of car accidents, insurance companies and the law pay no mind to the fact that adverse conditions may have caused your accident.  Even if you are driving within the speed limit and cause an accident you are deemed to not have driven ‘as conditions dictate’ and will be found liable. The law is not much more forgiving for pedestrians who are injured as a result of falling on ice. There is unlikely to be any liability in a case where someone falls on ice so long as the accident was due only to the ice.  The law does not regard the natural accumulation of snow and ice as an actionable defect.  Simply, there is no liability in cases caused purely by natural conditions. Local Councils have a broad obligation to maintain the roads but there is no particular requirement for them to grit roads or pavements to any particular standard or frequency. The exemption that applies to Councils does not extend to private landowners. Thus, for example, in a private complex, the company could find itself liable for problems arising from a failure to clear ice and snow. In circumstances where the ice may have formed due to man-made defects such as a faulty gutter, or where the snow has been transformed or moved into an unnatural hazard then liability may attach.

  Well folks it's getting to that time of year again when little Thom gets excited about building snowmen, me and Mrs Thom pretend to be fictional characters while devouring our son with presents and Granny Thom pulls on her granny-grip shoes. ...

  Me and my friends at Thompsons are happy to see any initiatives which help reduce the number of road traffic accidents.  This week is Road Safety Week and it is organised by Brake, the road safety charity, but is a community event open to all...

  The news has been full of depressing stories this week.  I saw that despite a general decrease in road traffic accidents tragically a 6 year old boy has died after being struck by a car in the east end of Glasgow.  It is believed to be a...

  I did not think the potholes in the roads in Glasgow could get much worse however, I read today that a road expert has warned Glasgow motorists to expect another winter of misery on the roads. It has been reported that Glasgow City Council are...

  I was shocked to hear that golfer, Colin “Monty” Montgomery was involved in a road traffic accident on A80 this week. It is also a shame to learn that he suffered a personal injury by virtue of which, he will not be able to take part i...

  Every year around 30 million vehicles travel in Britain and around 10,000 accidents are reported every day. Even though these include minor scrapes, bumps etc, it is still a worrying number and suggests people are not taking all necessary precauti...

  I was surfing the internet at the weekend and I saw that a champion cyclist has been awarded a record breaking £14 million in compensation after his career was destroyed when he was hit by a car.  As a result of the road traffic acc...

Ever since I started reading about the possibility of driving an uncrashable car I have been reading about the subject with great interest and I have been asking my friends what they think.  I am happy to see any ideas which will make the roads a saf...

  The risk of being involved in a road traffic accident for drivers who eat at the wheel is around twice that of drivers who don’t. This is similar to the risk involved in driving while using a mobile phone. Research by Brunel University ha...

When I heard that Volvo were trying to make an uncrashable car I thought that this sounded like something from a science fiction film. How on earth can you have a car that doesn’t crash?  Imagine if you were driving along on the motorway and yo...

There are more vehicles on our roads than ever these days and as a result there are more and more road traffic accidents occurring every day!  Unfortunately road traffic accidents happen and it has been estimated that 1 in 3 people who die as a resul...

  You would think if you put your car into a garage to be repaired the repairs would be carried out and your car would be safe to drive, however that does not always seem to be the case! I was very concerned when reading a recent report which fou...

Recently a friend of mine was involved in a road traffic accident, she was sitting at a set of traffic lights when another car drove into the back of her vehicle. She was shocked and had a very sore neck. She swapped details with the other driver and t...

Compensation claims have increased 3 fold this month, particularly from cyclists.  With more people opting to cycle to work in the rush hour the number of accidents on the roads involving bikes has been steadily increasing. 

Most serious cyclists are prepared with well fitting helmets and quality bicycles, but educating drivers is another story.  Roundabouts prove to be a paricularly dangerous environment for cyclists and how the City addresses these incidents and encourages people to cycle each day is difficult, but the incidents that have come to our attention most recently were almost fatalities which is worrying and these victims are going to need financial security over the next 12 if not 24 months before they are fit to work again.  For this cyclist there was a least a positive financial outcome after successfully winning compensation for an accident that was not their fault.