Injured pedestrian to get damages over untrimmed bushes
13 July 2010
A pedestrian injured in a road accident has won the right to compensation from a council which failed to trim bushes on a central reservation.
Pervin Yetkin, 54, of Dalston, north London, was hit by a
taxi as she crossed a street while traffic lights were against her in 2004.
She appealed against a ruling that she was to blame for the accident and could not seek damages from Newham Council.
The Court of Appeal said the bushes had obscured her view of the traffic.
The three judges said, despite her own negligence, the local authority still owed her a duty of care and had failed in that duty by not trimming back the bushes.
Duty of care
They said Newham Council should compensate her for 25% of the damage she suffered.
The amount she is to receive will be assessed by another court at a later date.
Mrs Yetkin was knocked down by a
taxi at night on 13 February 2004 while crossing the southbound carriageway of Stratford High Street.
She suffered life-threatening injuries, including a fractured neck and internal injuries.
She sued Newham Council but Judge Hegarty QC dismissed her claims at Manchester civil justice centre last October.
On Tuesday, appeal judges Lord Justice Laws, Lady Justice Smith and Lady Justice Black said the single judge had misunderstood the law.
Source; http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/10619487
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