Mark
Bowman has
recovered £250,000 for David following an assault that
took place in May 2005.
In the early hours of 08 May 2005,
David was asleep at home. His house was broken into by his
assailant, who dragged David out of bed and assaulted him.
David was taken by ambulance to
Horton Hospital in Banbury where he remained for three
weeks. He
suffered a severe brain injury in the attack. Initially David was
unable to walk without support, was unable to go to the toilet
without assistance, was confused, agitated and had reduced
concentration and memory.
After he was discharged from hospital,
David came under the care of the team at the Nuffield
Orthopaedic Centre in Oxford. It was here that the extent of
David's injuries really became apparent and David was given an
intensive rehabilitation programme to try and assist his recovery.
Over the course of the next five
years, David started to make progress, and, having initially been
living with his mother for support and care, was able to return to
independent living, despite still displaying a number of symptoms
of a subtle frontal lobe injury.
David was not able to return to
paid employment and the medical evidence obtained suggested that
this was unlikely due to continuing problems with concentration,
memory and planning.
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An application was made to the
CICA (Criminal Injuries Compensation
Authority) who provided interim payments throughout
the conduct of the claim.
The CICA initially made an
unsatisfactory offer in settlement of the claim following receipt
of medical evidence from experts in neurology and
neuropsychology.
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Further expert evidence was obtained in order to clarify the true
extent of David's injuries, which, due to their nature, were easily
under-estimated without a proper understanding of head injuries and
their presentation. Following appeal of the initial award, an
increased offer of £250,000 was made and accepted.
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At the conclusion of the case, Mark
said:
"This was a very nasty claim in which
David suffered life changing injuries. The CICA initially offered a
very low figure in compensation for David and I am glad that we
were able to produce the evidence necessary for them to increase
their award to the final settlement figure. The money should allow
David to receive suitable treatment, to continue his rehabilitation
and to move on with his life as best he can."
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David's mother said:
"We were very happy with the way that
FFW dealt with our case, especially in the early stages when things
were extremely difficult and sensitive.
We never felt we were one of many
cases and were always able to speak to someone if necessary and all
emails were answered promptly. We are pleased with the end result and wish FFW good
wishes for the future."
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