Skiing Holiday Claim for Paralysed Man
25/11/2008
Graham Anderson from Devon was seriously injured on a trip to the French Alps in February 2004. He sued the Cambridgeshire-based ski company Snowbizz, alleging breach of duty for allowing a ski instructor to take him down an off-piste run.
The High Court ruled that the instructor was two-thirds responsible for the accident but that Mr Anderson was a third liable for what happened to him.
Mr Anderson was coming to the end of his week long trip to Puy St Vincent with his family when he lost control whilst skiing off-piste and crashed into a tree at the bottom of a slope. He claimed Snowbizz breached its duty by allowing ski instructor, Jerome Portejoie to take him on the run, given his limited level of ability. The case related solely to the role of the instructor for whose actions, under English Law, Snowbizz are responsible.
In a statement, Mr Anderson said: "It was an accident that should never have happened. The resulting spinal cord injury has left me severely paralysed with extremely limited levels of function. For the rest of my life I am confined to a wheelchair and need help with health care and many activities of daily living. My family have been devastated by the accident."
The Judge said that as the trial continued, evidence emerged that left him satisfied that this accident was avoidable and reasonably forseeable but it did not mean that anyone who suffered an injury whilst skiing under the supervision of an instructor would automatically win damages. Mr Anderson's compensation should run into millions of pounds.
Full story: BBC News
