Seagull attacks on humans are most likely in Scotland in the period May to July each year Injuries caused by dogs and other animals can give rise to successful personal injury claims. But what about an injury caused by a seagull? This is what a judge in the Court of Session had to consider in Cathie Kelly’s claim against the owners of the building – an old Victorian school - in Greenock, where she worked. Swooping seagull As she was going out of Ladyburn Business Centre (“LBC”) to get her lunch, an adult seagull dived at Mrs Kelly with outstretched wings. The bird did not injure her directly; instead, she hurt herself in her effort to get out of its way, as she stumbled and fell. She claimed that the building owners failed to take reasonable care for her safety. Her claim was based on occupiers’ liability and – because she was at work at the time – health and safety regulations. Seagulls protecting their young In Scotland, and certainly in Moray, you don’t even have to live at Continue Reading
Grigor & Young Elgin Office Becomes an APIL Accredited Practice
The Elgin office of Grigor & Young, Solicitors, has been granted corporate accreditation by APIL The Association of Personal Injury Lawyers (APIL), a national not-for-profit organisation which campaigns on behalf of injury victims, has awarded Grigor & Young’s Elgin office corporate accreditation with effect from May 2014. This mark of excellence highlights the firm’s commitment to the highest standards of client care, quality assurance and ongoing staff training. It follows the recent individual accreditation of Associate solicitor, Marie Morrison, as a Senior Litigator – a development which means that the firm’s Elgin office has two Personal Injury accredited specialists. Peter Brash of Grigor & Young said: "Marie and I have been members of APIL for many years and have benefited from the in-depth specialist training they provide. I live in Lossiemouth and Marie lives in Macduff." "We hope this latest APIL accreditation will convince the people of Continue Reading
Poor Hospital Care Is Not Necessarily Medical Negligence
It’s always a worry if you have to have hospital treatment. You’ll be concerned about the procedure or operation, any anaesthetic and the recovery period. The practicalities of your stay in hospital will also be on your mind, such as sharing a ward with others and the quality of the food. You’re unlikely to think about the risk of being injured due to medical negligence during your stay because health service staff are dedicated professionals working hard to deliver the best possible care. Their jobs require them to deal with deadlines and to keep within strict budgets. Sometimes, they have to exercise judgement in making decisions, weighing up competing risks. And medical science is not an exact science. Unfortunately. things don't always work out for the best. You need to understand that, if things go wrong and outcome of your treatment is not as you would wish, just because you have experienced poor standards of care, that does not necessarily mean you have Continue Reading
How Insurance Disclosure Reform Can Help Your Claim Succeed (And Save You Money)
Consumer claims on home and other insurance policies should now succeed more easily We’re now just over a year into a new legal framework which could benefit you, as a consumer, if you have to make a claim on insurance and your insurer refuses to honour it. The range of consumer insurance policies affected is very wide indeed. In our experience, most people have a wrangle with an insurance company sooner or later. This change to the law is something worth bearing in mind if you find yourself in dispute with an insurer over a claim you have made on a policy. The fatal mistake – failure to disclose Typically, the scenario is one where your insurer says that, at the time you took out the insurance (or renewed it), you failed to tell them about some important fact which would have influenced the level of premium – or even whether they would have agreed to insure you at all. In those circumstances, the insurer would refuse to pay out on your claim, or could impose Continue Reading