Loss of Earnings: Retail Employee: Single Joint Expert
Rakesh Kapila was instructed jointly by solicitors representing the claimant, a product handler, and solicitors representing the defendant, an electrical retail chain with over 200 stores, following injuries sustained by him during the course of his employment. A report prepared for both parties considered the claimant’s past and future loss of earnings and his loss of pension rights based on assumptions relating to the different dates on which he could have recommenced employment. The report also provided calculations under three scenarios relating to the claimant’s earnings capacity, i.e. part-time work only, full-time work without overtime and full-time work without overtime. The case was settled before trial on the basis that the claimant would have been able to undertake full-time work without overtime.
Loss of Earnings: Trainee Certified Accountant: Claimant
A trainee certified accountant was severely injured at a pop concert a few months before he would have taken his final examinations. A report prepared by George Sim quantified the claimant’s lost earnings and costs of care and considered his career prospects, given his known abilities, had he not been injured. The claimant was awarded £625,000.
Loss of Earnings: Former Olympic Athlete: Defendant
A former Olympic athlete and world record holder was injured in a road traffic accident and put forward a claim exceeding £500,000 based largely on his contention that he would have broken a veterans’ world record. Sim Kapila’s report critically examined the assumptions underlying his claim for loss of earnings and the claimant eventually settled out of court for an overall amount of approximately £250,000.
Loss of Earnings: Self-Employed Dentist: Defendant
A dentist in her late twenties involved in a road traffic accident claimed aggregate past and future loss of earnings of approximately £170,000. A report prepared by Sim Kapila on behalf of solicitors representing the insurers evaluated her past and future loss of earnings based on her hours of work in comparison to another dentist at her practice and her expected earnings given the stage she had reached in her career. A critical appraisal of the claim submitted on behalf of the claimant enabled an out of court settlement to be reached at approximately £50,000.
Loss of Pension Rights: Firefighter: Claimant
After being injured in a road traffic accident, a firefighter was transferred to a non-operational role with lower earnings potential, a later retiring age and reduced pension benefits. Sim Kapila’s report compared his potential pension and lump sum as an operational firefighter with the pension and lump sum to which he would have been entitled in his new role and with the ill-health pension and lump sum to which he became entitled when he left operational service, quantifying his loss of pension rights at close to £100,000.
Loss of Car Benefit and Pension Rights: Sales Representative Employee: Defendant
A sales representative who was injured in a road traffic accident claimed approximately £700,000, of which car benefit and loss of pension rights accounted for about £100,000. Sim Kapila’s report quantified his loss under these heads at approximately £10,000 and the claim was settled out of court for an overall sum in the region of £300,000.
Loss of Dependency: Milkman: Claimant
Sim Kapila were instructed in connection with the death of a self-employed milkman in a road traffic accident. Since his business had been operational for a period of only two years, no accounts had been submitted to the Inland Revenue. We quantified his past and prospective loss of earnings from the available information and without detailed information on his business prospects. A substantial settlement was reached before trial based on a claim in excess of £250,000 computed by us after taking account of various dependency factors given the claimant’s young family.
Loss of Dependency: Computer Systems Consultant: Defendant
Sim Kapila were instructed to prepare a report on behalf of solicitors representing the insurers in connection with the death of a computer systems consultant in his early thirties in a road traffic accident. Our report evaluated his future loss of earnings and benefits, his loss of pension rights and the dependency ratios relating to his wife and children. A critical appraisal of the claim submitted on behalf of the claimant enabled an out of court settlement to be reached at approximately £300,000 in comparison to a claim approaching £450,000.