Personal injury £6,000 payout for wheelchair victim

A man is to receive £6,000 personal injury compensation plus £10,000 in legal fees, after he fell from his wheelchair on council property and asked the local authority to take responsibility for the accident.

Chronicle News reports Leslie Willans only wanted Gateshead County Council to pay for repairs to his wheelchair, but personal injury lawyers were able to secure the substantial payout when the victim's request was turned down.

Mr Willans remarked: "It was never about getting compensation. I wanted them to accept responsibility and to do something about it," adding councils should take the Disability Discrimination Act seriously.

It was recently revealed the average local authority pays almost £200,000 a year in personal injury compensation for people who hurt themselves tripping over uneven pavements.

This could indicate the scale of the problem and may mean many more accident compensation lawyers are called upon to ensure victims reserve the reparations they are owed.