Cows on the road

Rob contacted Motorcycle Law Scotland regarding a road traffic incident he had been involved in.

He was riding his motorcycle on B743 Ayr to Mauchline Road. The road is made up of a two lane undivided carriageway and the speed limit is 60 mph.

As Rob proceeded along the road, he approached the entrance of the farm. Hedgerows on either side of the entrance reduced his visibility and so he reduced his speed.

Just as he was upon the entrance, five cows suddenly exited the farm road and into his path.

Rob had no opportunity to take evasive action. He hit one of the cattle and, as a result, he was thrown from his motorcycle.

Rob’s motorcycle was badly damaged and even though he was wearing full protective clothing he sustained severe fractures to his hand and ribs.

A claim was intimated against the third party insurers of the farm for failing to keep the premises secure and had resulted in the cattle entering onto the main road and causing the incident.

Liability was not disputed and the third party insurer funded physiotherapy to help Rob’s recovery.

The most severe injury was to his dominant right hand which would impact on his future employment.

Final settlement was reached in December 2016 after two reports were instructed from a specialist Orthopaedic surgeon who was only able to provide a final opinion after Rob had completed all physiotherapy and his injury had time to heal.

Settlement was reached at a figure which represented a 30% increase from the original offer proposed by the third party insurers.

Rob was delighted with the outcome and had this to say. “Thank you for all your help and support throughout the case”.

If an injury has the potential to impact on a future career, it’s vitally important to ensure that before settlement all factors are taken into consideration and, in severe injury cases, that process can take some time. Rob did benefit from interim payments so as not to be out of pocket while his injury resolved to an extent that a surgeon could provide a definitive prognosis for the future allowing a proper assessment of the final compensation figure.