Motorcyclist loses his appeal over spooked horse
A motorcyclist has lost his appeal against a decision to allow a rider to apply for compensation.
Michaela Devereux, of Holmsley, Hants, suffered a “traumatic brain injury” when her horse threw her after being spooked by the motorbike ridden by Peter Hayward on 29 October 2006.
A judge at the High Court in Winchester, on 28 October last year, found that although Mr Hayward slowed down when he saw Mrs Devereux’s horse, he was still travelling fast enough to scare it.
The judge also concluded that the bike made contact with the horse – which Mr Hayward had denied.
The ruling opened the way for Mrs Devereux to seek substantial compensation.
But the motorcyclist’s insurers challenged the ruling in the Appeal Court in London on 19 April, claiming it was “against the weight of the evidence“.
However, Lord Justice Hughes refused permission for an appeal, which he ruled was unlikely to succeed.
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“I am sure there is no reasonable prospect of successfully appealing the finding that there was a collision,” the judge concluded.
The amount of compensation now due to Mrs Devereux will be assessed at a further court hearing, unless a settlement can be agreed.
This news story was first published in the current issue of H&H (3 May 2012)
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A self-confessed newshound, farmer’s daughter and journalist of many years' experience, Charlotte worked on regional papers before joining H&H in 2007. A regular rider, she visited Ireland in 2010 to investigate the fate of Irish horses through the recession, to much acclaim, and reported from the FEI General Assembly in Rio de Janeiro in 2011. She left Horse & Hound in March 2013.