No Win No Fee Claim for Boys Martial Arts Accident
The family of a Wigan schoolboy whose leg was broken during a martial arts lesson are locked in a legal fight with his instructors.
Jay Howlett was only six when he suffered a double fracture in an accident at Leigh Thai Kick Boxing Club more than three years ago.
But when his parents put in a compensation claim to the club’s insurance scheme,the club issued a counter-claim, suing Jay’s dad for failing to supervise him.
At their home in Park Road, Hindley, Mark and Angela Howlett say they cannot understand why the club, owned by Robert Sharpley, will not let what appears to them a straightforward claim for £2,000 to £3,000 run its course.
Mr Sharpley’s legal team are keeping tight-lipped at this stage, but their counter-claim suggests that Mr Howlett should have been keeping his youngster under tighter control.
The two parties do not dispute the sequence of events. Mr Howlett had accompanied his son to a session at the club off Chapel Street in October 2004 when he was due to take his first grading exam.
At one point Jay ran over to where his dad was sitting. Mr Howlett told
him to go back to the other children but, within a few steps of returning, the accident happened.
Two men had been practising throws, and as Jay passed them, one landed on top of him, snapping his tibia and fibula in the process.
The Hindley Junior and Infants School pupil was taken to Wigan Infirmary for treatment.
He also had to return there several days later to have the bones re-set because they were not fusing properly. He returned to the club with his leg in plaster to watch his cousins who were still attending, but after his injuries healed he did not return to the sport, his confidence gone.
Part of the subscription fee went towards insurance against accidents, so the Howletts put in a claim. But after a year and no response they began to realise it was not going to be as straightfor
ward as they had envisaged. Then they discovered that Mr Sharpley and his insurers were suing Mr Howlett.
He said: “I am disgusted by this obstruction and counter-claim. What do you pay insurance for at the club if it isn’t for accidents like this?
“They are suggesting that I was supervising him. But there was no requirement for me even to be there.
“Half the parents drop their kids off and go home. Would they have been negligent if their child had been injured in their absence?
“It’s not as if we are claiming a huge amount of money. It’s a maximum £2,000 to £3,000 – sufficient for the inconvenience caused.”
A spokesman for London-based legal firm Eastwoods, which is representing Mr Sharpley’s insurers, said: “It would be wrong for anyone to make any assertions until the matters are resolved further. The matter is on-going and it is not fair to make any comment at this stage.”
Tags: no win no fee solicitors