Driver wins £1.25m pay-out after hitting runaway horse

A taxi driver left with severe head injuries when his car struck a runaway horse that was on the road has won a £1.25million pay-out in London’s High Court.

Khalid Mahmood, 27, suffered “catastrophic” brain injuries in the September 2004 tragedy, which happened as he was driving on the B4100 towards Banbury in Oxfordshire.

Mr Mahmood has since undergone a pronounced personality change due to his injuries, his counsel Nigel Cooksley QC told the court on 7 December.

He lost control of his car when the horse, Tansy, careered into the road, colliding with his vehicle. The car went on to hit a wall and a tree.

Mr Mahmood sued Daniel and Judith Kleinman of Caversfield House, Caversfield, Bicester, who kept Tansy on their land, and the horse’s owner, Patricia Simonon.

Judge David Mitchell approved a £1.25m settlement in favour of Mr Mahmood, commenting that the pay-out was “entirely appropriate”.

This news story was first published in Horse & Hound (20 December, ’07)

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