Graham Anderson was on a family ski holiday. It was their third ski holiday using tour operator Snowbizz. They were staying in Puy St Vincent. Mr Anderson was having lessons with a ski instructor Jerome Portejoie who permitted and possibly encouraged Mr Anderson to ski off piste when Mr Anderson hit into a tree and was seriously injured.
The UK High Court has ruled that the French Ski instructor should pay a substantial sum in damages to Mr Anderson. The Court felt that the potential for serious injury is clear when skiing off piste. The potential for serious injury when impacting with a tree is obvious and therefore the instructor should not have taken Mr Anderson off piste during his lessons.
A skier cannot relinquish all responsibility to an instructor. Adult skiers must say something to the instructor to avoid the suggestion that they are not taking sufficient care of their own safety.
The Court held that the ski instructor was two thirds responsible for this accident and that Mr Anderson was a third responsible for his own accident.
The Court warned that everyone recognises that skiing is inherently risky and accidents causing injuries, sometimes very serious, will occur without there being any negligence established.
It is estimated that Mr Anderson may receive in excess of £1,000,000, but damages are yet to be assessed.
Contact Isabel Elliott on 020 8300 9321 or ielliott@wmk-law.com alternatively Contact Us
Wednesday, 21 January 2009
Asbestos Claims: New scheme for Mesothelioma sufferers
From 1 st October 2008 people suffering from Diffuse Mesothelioma, an asbestos related illness, may be able to claim for a lump sum payment under a new government scheme entitled 2008 Diffuse Mesothelioma Scheme.
The Scheme aims to benefit those suffering from diffuse mesothelioma which was not contracted as a result of their employment, who are not entitled to claim by any other means and who have not received payments for their illness from any other source, ie: from an employer or from a Ministry of Defence Scheme.
The government aims to make 95% of payments within 6 weeks.
For the first 12 months of the Scheme anyone can make a claim no matter what date they were diagnosed. However, after the first year the claim must be brought within 12 months of the date of diagnosis, or 12 months of date of death in the case of dependants.
If you think you may be eligible you should therefore act as soon as possible to make a claim.
Contact Isabel Elliott on 020 8300 9321 or ielliott@wmk-law.com alternatively Contact Us
The Scheme aims to benefit those suffering from diffuse mesothelioma which was not contracted as a result of their employment, who are not entitled to claim by any other means and who have not received payments for their illness from any other source, ie: from an employer or from a Ministry of Defence Scheme.
People entitled to make a claim under the Scheme are those who have been:-
- Exposed to asbestos via a relative (for example a wife washing her husbands work clothes)
- Exposed to asbestos environmentally (for example by living close to a factory)
- Exposed to asbestos while self employed
- Exposed to asbestos but the exposure cannot be determined, as long as it was in the UK.
The government aims to make 95% of payments within 6 weeks.
For the first 12 months of the Scheme anyone can make a claim no matter what date they were diagnosed. However, after the first year the claim must be brought within 12 months of the date of diagnosis, or 12 months of date of death in the case of dependants.
If you think you may be eligible you should therefore act as soon as possible to make a claim.
Contact Isabel Elliott on 020 8300 9321 or ielliott@wmk-law.com alternatively Contact Us
Thursday, 8 January 2009
Late Filing Penalties
As you are aware the Companies Act 2006 (‘the Act') has been introduced in stages and the final implementation is not due until October 2009.
You may not however be aware that section 453 of the Act specifies that a civil administration penalty shall be payable if accounts are delivered late and permits the Secretary of State to specify the level of this penalty by way of regulations.
Section 453 comes into force on the 1 February 2009 and the current schedule of late filing penalties will be changed. Simultaneously the Government will amend the 1985 Companies Act (‘the 1985 Act') so that these changes will apply to accounts that have been prepared under the 1985 Act, but are deemed to be delivered late on or after the 1 February 2009.
The new table of penalties will be:
How late are the accounts delivered | Penalty – Private Company | Penalty Public Limited Company |
Not more than one month | £150.00 | £750.00 |
More than one month but not more than three months | £375.00 | £1,500.00 |
More than three Months but not more than six months | £750.00 | £3,000.00 |
More than six months | £1,500.00 | £7,500.00 |
In addition to the above be aware that if there was a failure to comply with filing requirements in relation to the previous financial year (commencing on or after 6 April 2008) the penalty will be double that show above.
You should:
- Check your filing date
- If you have an accountant ensure that they are aware of the filing date and
- Ensure that your Registered Office address is up to date so that you receive your reminders from Companies House.
Contact
Charlotte Parry-Jones on 020 8300 9321 or cparry-jones@wmk-law.com alternatively Contact Us
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