Brachers secures compensation for personal injury resulting from cruise ship accident

Successful ‘no win, no fee’ claim for client who recovered a five-figure sum

Brachers has acted in a successful claim for compensation for a passenger who suffered a serious shoulder injury during a cruise, which resulted in two operations and permanent shoulder restrictions.

Lyn Lester in the Personal Injury team recovered a large five-figure sum by way of compensation for the injuries and financial losses, on a no win, no fee basis.

Summary of the case

Our client, SC, a school estates director, was on holiday with her husband on a two-ship 14 night cruise. One morning, while at sea on route to Mexico, she was in the breakfast hall when she suddenly slipped on something on the floor, causing her to fall forwards, landing heavily on her right side. She was immediately in severe pain, having badly injured her shoulder.

SC was taken by wheelchair to the ship’s medical room. X-rays confirmed she had suffered a multiple compound fracture of her right shoulder at the proximal humeral joint. Upon docking at Mexico, she was transferred by ambulance to a hospital – a long and painful three-hour journey – where she remained an inpatient for two days before she was able to fly home to the UK.

Upon her return, she was admitted directly to hospital where she had open reduction and internal fixation of the fracture. She was off work for two and a half months and underwent extensive physiotherapy but continued to suffer ongoing pain, stiffness and severely restricted movement of her right shoulder. This required further surgery, another month off work and further physiotherapy and hydrotherapy. She was left with a 10cm scar, together with two arthroscopy scars.

The defendant admitted liability for the accident at an early stage and we were able to secure an interim payment to assist our client financially while she was unable to work.

Our client’s post-accident issues

For the first three months after each surgery, SC required assistance with showering, dressing and almost all activities around her home. She was unable to look after her granddaughter.

Despite the second surgery and extensive physiotherapy and hydrotherapy, she had ongoing constant dull aching pain in her shoulder and remained unable to perform activities above head height or carry items of any real weight, with around 50% loss of the range of movement of her shoulder. This impacted her day-to-day activities, including being unable to style or blow dry her hair, zip her dresses or fasten her bra.

She also experienced difficulty with tasks such as hoovering, pushing a shopping trolley and driving for long periods, and was unable to lay on her shoulder at night due to pain. She could no longer reach items in her cupboards and shelves in her home and was unable to undertake any gardening which required high reach. SC needed significant ongoing care and assistance and was unable to return to her hobbies of sewing or dancing. Medical evidence indicated that she may require further surgery to remove the metal plate in the future, followed by physiotherapy.

SC also suffered psychological symptoms following the accident which led to a loss of confidence and some difficulties with her employers, who did not fully appreciate the extent of her restrictions. As a result, she took the decision to take early retirement, the impact of the accident being a significant factor in this decision, which she had not contemplated prior to the accident.
Medical reports were obtained from an orthopaedic expert specialising in upper limb injuries, including the future risk of osteoarthritis and avascular necrosis resulting from the injury.

The outcome of the case and how we helped our client

The defendant initially put forward a low offer in settlement of the claim. We obtained further supportive medical evidence and following negotiations were able to achieve a significantly higher settlement of the claim. SC was extremely happy with the outcome, rating her experience of Brachers as excellent and having exceeded her expectations. She said that throughout her dealings with Lyn Lester, “communication was excellent, explanations of the processes, timescales and potential outcomes were very clear and allowed me to make informed decisions.”

How can we help you?

Lyn Lester is a Senior Litigation Executive and an Associate of CILEX. She is experienced in handling many types of personal injury compensation claims, in particular public liability claims and accidents at work, on a no win, no fee basis.

If you have suffered an accident and would like to know more about pursuing a personal injury claim, book a 30-minute virtual appointment with our team to find out more about how we could help you. Alternatively call our dedicated, experienced team of personal injury and industrial disease claims lawyers on 01622 680402.

This content is correct at time of publication