GHP Insights

News, Q&As and Press Releases From Our Team

Q&A - Can we make a public school personal injury claim for son‘s 2019 rugby accident?

Q:    Our son suffered a leg injury in 2019 playing rugby at his boarding school. The sports master made him play on despite being in pain. When my son still complained of pain a week later, the master told him to ‘man up’.

Read more

New solicitor appointed to busy Llangollen residential property team

One of the region’s leading law firms has announced the appointment of a new solicitor at its Llangollen office based in the town’s Old Bank Chambers. The appointment comes at the end of a challenging year that has seen GHP Legal having to adopt new work practices to accommodate COVID-19 restrictions in both England and Wales.

Read more

Q&A - I was knocked off my bike by an uninsured driver. How can I get compensation?

Q: Last year I took up cycling. I got myself kitted out with a brand-new road bike, a new helmet and a GPS, but whenI was out cycling one day a red Mercedes started tailgating me. The driver pulled out to overtake but did not leave enough room and hit me, knocking me off my bike. The driver raced away and left me lying in the road. The Police have traced the driver and it transpires he had no insurance. He is being prosecuted for driving without due care and driving without insurance, but where does that leave me?

Read more

Q&A - Can Mum claim against the council after tripping on a broken paving slab?

Q:    Rushing for the bus a few weeks ago, my mum tripped on a raised paving slab that had partially dislodged. She ended up with a broken wrist that needed pinning and hurt her back. As a result, she has not been able to work and as she is on a zero hours’ contract which means she does not get paid. Can she claim compensation from the local authority?

Read more

Q&A - How do I record that I do not want treatment if my quality of life is gone?

Q:    Watching people on TV who caught COVID-19, lying helplessly in hospital beds and in some cases destined to die, has made me consider whether in dire circumstances I would want to be kept alive. I am 93 and would not want to carry on if my quality of life was taken away. Can I register my wishes now in respect of how I would want to be treated in case I am unable to voice my wishes when the time comes?

Read more

Q&A - Surveyor we engaged failed to pick up defects on house we purchased. What should we do?

Q:    Despite asking for our house purchase to be rushed through to take advantage of the COVID stamp duty holiday, we took the time to get a full structural survey done as we were cash buyers with no lender’s survey being done. Now we are in the property and a builder engaged to do some alterations has found several defects the surveyor should have picked up. Among these is a manhole that has been concreted over, severe damp in two ground floor rooms, rot to a couple of roof joists and a ‘missing’ soil vent pipe. How should we go about trying to get some compensation from the surveyor, who we were told was RICS qualified?

Read more

Q&A - My sister is mentally ill due to COVID – can I get help to look after her kids while she recovers?

Q:    My sister has suffered mental health problems since the COVID pandemic began. As a single mum she is finding it very hard to cope with her children aged seven and four. The children have not seen their father since he walked out three years ago. My sister needs help to get better but is terrified the children will be taken away if she asks for it. I could take care of them until she gets better, but I would need some financial help. Could I apply for temporary custody and get financial help to look after them?

Read more

Q&A - Manager allowed client to verbally abuse me. What can I do?

Q:    I arranged to show a client around an empty property but when I met him, he wanted the keys and to go round alone. I refused and explained it was company policy that clients must be accompanied. He became verbally abusive and said he was an important client so he could do whatever he wanted. He threatened to put in a complaint and have me sacked. Frightened, I gave him the keys and waited in my car.

Read more

Q&A - Historic debts can have serious consequences when someone dies so it is worth seeking legal advice, both before taking such a loan and before settling an estate.

Q:    Due to the coronavirus pandemic my father’s business has suffered greatly and he has borrowed money as the government aid did not meet his needs. The stress has taken a toll on his health and we don’t really know even now if the business will survive. This, together with the fact that COVID-19 is still a potential death threat hanging over us, has made me wonder what would happen to the debt if he should die before clearing it, as mum doesn’t really understand it all. Could my mother inherit the debt?

Read more

Q&A - My sister is joint attorney with me for our mother but refuses to agree to live-in care. What can I do?

Q:    Our mother became frail and asked me to arrange a lasting power of attorney to handle her affairs as my sister lives abroad. Mum wanted to stay in her own home, so I organized private carers to visit daily. However, before the COVID pandemic began my sister visited Mum with a lawyer friend, demanding that she be made joint attorney with me so that I could not make decisions alone and she could ensure I wasn’t syphoning off mother’s money. Mother was upset but agreed. Now mother’s health has deteriorated. She has fallen twice whilst on her own. I’ve suggested live-in care and Mum likes the idea, but my sister says it is unnecessary. I think she wants to keep mother’s money in her estate. What can I do?

Read more