27 February 2004
On Friday 27th February Sally Moore, Partner at Leigh Day & Co solicitors, reached an out of court settlement for her client, Max Burt, for £8 million at full value. It’s believed that this is one of the highest personal injury awards ever.
Before his accident, Max Burt was a hard-working, successful advertising executive, looking forward to setting up his own business. Amongst many professional achievements, he received industry awards for his memorable campaign for BT – the “Its good to talk” ads fronted by Bob Hoskins.
On 2nd November 1999, his car collided with a fire engine which was passing through a red light in answer to an emergency call. Max sustained
catastrophic and
life threatening injuries and as a result he is now reliant on 24-hour care. He was 34 years old at the time of the crash and recently married.
In 2002, at a trial dealing with whose fault the accident was, the High Court found that responsibility for the accident should be shared with the London Fire Brigade on a 50/50 basis (contributory negligence). This was because other traffic had been aware of the approaching fire engine whereas Max had not, despite the fact that he was furthest away and therefore least able to appreciate the other vehicle’s presence. The consequence of this finding is that he will only receive half of the total award, that is £4 million.
In cases where there is a finding of contributory negligence the parties are required to value a case first before the deduction is made. At £8 million, this is one of the highest
personal injury damages award ever. The level of damages paid to Max reflects his past business success in the advertising industry, a career which is now curtailed. The nature of his 24 hour care needs are also taken into consideration.
For more information contact
Sally Moore in the accidents department on 020 7650 1200.
Information was correct at time of publishing. See terms and conditions for further details.
Information was correct at time of publishing. See terms and conditions for further details.