You must have been hiding under a rock these past two weeks not to have seen the footage of Dr David Dao being physically removed from a United Airlines flight. The reason for Dr Dao’s ejection was apparently due to the flight having been overbooked by United Airlines. Dr Dao has described his treatment as being worse than leaving war torn Vietnam in his youth.
Reports in the press last week indicated that Dr Dao has now instructed two teams of lawyers to pursue a personal injury claim against United Airlines in respect of his injuries and other losses. It has been quoted that Dr Dao will be seeking “millions of dollars”.
Newspaper reports of this nature infer that pursuing compensation is a straightforward process and will result in a cheque being quickly received by the claimant for millions of pounds (or in this case dollars). Whilst many claims involving minor whiplash injuries can result in swift settlements, in order to receive adequate compensation for those claims and for more serious personal injury claims it is imperative that an individual instruct a firm of solicitors to assist and that is where Jackson Boyd can help.
If Dr Dao’s injuries had been occasioned in Scotland and we were acting on his behalf the first thing that we would do is establish whether his injuries were ongoing. If so, Jackson Boyd could arrange for Dr Dao to be provided with private rehabilitation treatment at no cost to him. Our aim is to provide all of our clients with more than just compensation.
Dr Dao has apparently sustained facial injuries and dental injuries. The images indicate that the force used to remove him from the plane is such that it would not be surprising if he had also sustained injuries to his neck, shoulders, back or even to his legs. Therefore it would be important that the appropriate experts were instructed to examine Dr Dao and thereafter provide medical reports in support of his claim. In order to maximise the compensation he would receive and also to assist with his recovery we would obtain medical reports from an ENT surgeon, an expert dental surgeon and possibly from a consultant orthopaedic surgeon. Again, we would instruct these reports at no cost to Dr Dao.
Our Personal Injury Team at Jackson Boyd would also assess what other losses Dr Dao suffered as a result of this incident. At the time of writing he is still in hospital and we would seek to recover any private medical costs he has incurred. He has been unable to return to work. We assume he will have suffered a loss of earnings. When he returns to work we would at that stage contact his employers to establish the extent of his loss of income and pursue a claim accordingly.
In Dr Dao’s case there may also be additional travel and accommodation costs to consider together with the costs that his family may have incurred in being at his bedside and providing assistance to him in hospital and indeed during his recovery.
Using Dr Dao’s recent incident as an example is beneficial in demonstrating the various losses an individual can suffer following an accident, be it on an aeroplane, in a car or even at work. At Jackson Boyd our specialist team will fully investigate not just the accident circumstances but also the losses an individual has suffered. We are able to recover more than just compensation for your injury. We will also endeavour to recover compensation for all of the additional losses that are referred to above, and any further losses that may apply to your particular case. In order to ensure you do not lose out, seek advice from the experts if pursuing a personal injury claim. In short, do what Dao did!
If you consider that you may have a personal injury claim caused by the negligence of another party then please get in touch with our specialist team on 0330 037 4384 or at enquiries@jacksonboyd.co.uk and we will be only too happy to guide you through the process.
