Compensation for ‘whiplash’ motorist

A car crash victim who was told by doctors that his fractured neck was nothing more that 'whiplash' has been awarded substantial medical negligence compensation.

Warwickshire resident Gary Rickard was driving home on the A5 when his tyre burst, causing him to career into a tree.

The impact knocked the 43-year-old unconscious and he was later cut from the wreckage by emergency services and air-lifted to the University Hospital, in Coventry. Yet despite the severity of his crash, staff at the hospital carried out a series of precautionary scans on Mr. Rickard before sending him home with treatment for whiplash.

But after three weeks of intense pain and discomfort, Mr Rickard was re-admitted to the hospital for a course of intensive physiotherapy. Subsequent CT scans showed signs of a neck fracture.

Mr Rickard had to endure three operations to repair his damaged neck and three years after his final operation still suffers restricted movement in his right hand, forcing him to lose his job as a HGV lorry driver.

As a result, Mr Rickard has now been awarded an undisclosed amount of compensation from the hospital. Yet for the victim, an apology is what he really wants, and something which he says he will continue to fight for.