Proposed new changes to the Fatal Accidents Act.
The Ministry of Justice announced today (1.7.09 ) that “Children under 18 left behind following the death of a parent through negligence will be able to claim additional compensation under proposed legislation…….
Changes to the Fatal Accidents Act 1976 will extend the categories of people eligible to claim damages for bereavement to include children under 18 for the death of a parent; cohabitants of at least two years’ duration for the death of a partner; and unmarried fathers with parental responsibility for the death of a child under 18. The ability to claim as a ‘dependant’ of the deceased person will also be extended to include any person who was being wholly or partly maintained by the deceased person immediately before the death….”
The consultation paper on the Law on damages also proposes “….changes to the law in relation to damages for gratuitous care, which is care provided for an injured person free of charge by relatives or others, and on aggravated and restitutionary damages, which are awarded respectively to compensate the claimant for mental distress caused by the defendant’s conduct and to take away unfair gains by a defendant….” Need more information? Cut and paste this into your browser:
http://www.justice.gov.uk/news/newsrelease010709a.htm
Tags: personal injuy law, training