Statement

I Colin Berry am making a
statement on behalf of my wife
Mrs. Mary Berry and my self;
the reason why Mrs. Berry is
unable to make her own
statement is because of a head
injury received at the
accident.

I Colin Berry am a self
employed businessman who ran
an established business since
1983 named 'Colin
more

Statement

I Colin Berry am making a
statement on behalf of my wife
Mrs. Mary Berry and my self;
the reason why Mrs. Berry is
unable to make her own
statement is because of a head
injury received at the
accident.

I Colin Berry am a self
employed businessman who ran
an established business since
1983 named 'Colin Berry BMS'
it specialized in Electrical
and Plumbing and also offered
to carry out Building
Maintenance Specialist work on
commercial and domestic
properties.

My wife does domestic work, 31
and a half hours a week for
various individuals including
10 hours for Enfield Council,
she also carried out
additional work dealing with
the clerical side of my
business in taking calls and
keeping accounts to date.

Accident at Costco

We went shopping on the 5
April 2003 at Costco Chingford
around 5:00 p.m. after passing
the first isle walking in
between the first and second
isle we heard an enormous bang
that shook the whole building,
preventing my wife from taking
another step forward she flew
out of my grasp and vanished
followed by another enormous
bang two washing machines
lying in front of me but my
wife was not to be seen, I
panicked trying to find her
she was thrown about 10 ft
behind me in the opposite
direction from where we were
heading. She was unconscious
with blood coming from her
mouth, I laid beside her
calling her name and suddenly
realized that she needed an
ambulance and shouted out, get
an ambulance, but there was no
one around it must have
frightened everyone, it seemed
forever but eventually someone
tiptoed and poked their head
around the corner I screamed
at them get an ambulance
please.

Finally a plea was announced
across the tannoy asking for
Medical Assistance, a doctor
and several other people two
of which were an ambulance
crew; they were directed to
the scene by Costco's
management but the management
kept well away from the seen
of the accident? My wife
finally stirred I asked her if
she was all right but she was
still dazed the ambulance crew
that was shopping there came
and introduce themselves to me
and began to put my wife into
a safe position awaiting the
Air Ambulance crew to arrive.

Police

The police were called, their
was around five officers at
the accident they had to seal
the whole area off one of the
police officers who was taking
photos remarked, don't worry
we have taken 14 photos of the
incident and have all the
names of the witnesses, he
pointed up to show me where
the washing machines were
stacked, 8 machines on the
highest shelf the remaining 4
were tipping over, there was
barely sufficient room to
accommodate the 4 that fell at
the back, the bottom 2
machines fell on the racking
on our side the top 2 machines
that fell and hit my wife was
30 ft. high the police officer
remarked how the machines
manage to pull the cling film
down because of their weight
resting on it due to the 20%
overlapping.


Air Ambulance

The air ambulance crew had to
cut my wife's clothes off to
enable them to assess her
injuries, she was in a lot of
pain and refused to move they
eventually managed to lift her
on to the stretcher and went,
I was told that a constable
would take me to the Royal
London Hospital. When I
arrived at the Hospital she
was in the emergency intensive
care area where a lot of
X-rays was taken, after a
while a Doctor approached us
with the X-ray and informed me
that three of my wife's
vertebrae's were fractured and
showed me on the X-ray that
there was concern for internal
bleeding and wanted to take
more CT scans, now it is past
10:00 p.m. I am told that it
is best that I go home don't
know the area and asked my
son-in-law to come and pick me
up.

Admitted in Hospital

My wife was in intensive care
for five days and was moved to
an adjoining ward after, she
had to wear an extremely
restrictive 'neck collar MJ
200L' for over a week, she had
bruises to the head and
extensive bruising to the
right side of her rib cage and
arm, she looked a mess, she
could not turn her head to the
left without extensive pain,
she had a body cast made and
fitted, that allowed her to
move more freely, 12 days
later I over heard a
conversation made by her
Consultant Dr. Afshar on the
phone debating whether or not
to discharge my wife with his
superiors, 'there is a
possibility that the bone may
break away' after the phone
call he approached us saying
there is a shortage of beds
would she be prepared to
accept to be discharged. Well
I gather that they were
willing to take the risk on
behalf of my wife, throwing
the ball into our court, I
guessed if there were patients
that needed the bed it would
be right that she accepted to
be discharged and I agreed. (I
am appalled to think that the
NHS is under such considerable
strain that they are prepared
to release patients with such
severe damage to their
vertebras and partial movement
to her neck, not to mention
her head injury, which was
totally discarded.)

Outpatient at Bart's

Regular X-rays was taken at
Bart's Hospital and a CT Scan
at the London Chest Hospital
revealing, this is what the
nurse had to say, 'in the 15
years doing this work I have
only come across one other
similar fracture, there is
only a wedge remaining of one
vertebrae carrying a rib, how
did this happen?'
I mention to the Consultant's
in charge of Mary's case at
Bart's that she has a memory
problem and was told, I am a
Consultant Neurosurgeon there
is nothing I can do for Mary
and finally referred Mary to a
Consultant Neurologist Dr.
Gawler at Bart's.

Dr. Gawler said that he
couldn't locate any problems
with Mary's short-term memory
loss. Dr. Gawler requesting
that Mary see a local
psychiatrist, letter sent to
Mary's GP Dr. Connaughton,
letter dated 24 March 2005; he
had also made an appointment
with a Mr. Blunden Chartered
Clinical Psychologist for the
27.6.05. At the appointment on
27 June 2005 Mr. Blunden told
me that Mary's GP failed to
carry out the request made by
Dr. Gawler for a local
Psychiatrist to see Mary.
Apparently I only knew of the
appointment to see Mr. Blunden
he was annoyed that the
request was not followed
through by Mary's GP.

Eventually Mary saw a local
Psychiatrist, Consultant
Psychiatrist at the CMHS
Edmonton N9
Dr. Balasubramaniam asked for
reports from the following
doctors mention. Psychologist
Dr. Gillion Century was
assigned to her case, further
test conducted by Dr. M. K.
Burke Clinical Psychologist
and was referred on to Dr.
Kizzy Alner Clinical
Neuropsychologist at Queen's
Square London, she advised me
that our Solicitor should
obtain private rehab for Mary
'remarked Medico Legal should
have been involved in the
first six months,' she advised
in her report that Mary should
obtain rehab.

Our first and second
Solicitors' failed to see the
need to obtain rehab for Mary
or even obtaining an
independent Medical Expert
Report, with my constant
pleading for protocol rules to
be in force the both
Solicitors' ignored my
request, I had to report the
both Solicitors' to the Law
Society. They failed my wife
dismally and refused to obey
any of my instructions.
Currently we are on our third
firm of Solicitors' and my
wife is still consulting a
local psychiatrist and
awaiting Brain Rehab
assessment at Edgware
Hospital.

Second Claimant Colin Berry

I am still in a dream I cannot
believe what has happened, my
heart torn from me and haven't
had the time to recover, its
as if my soul is missing and
has been replaced with sheer
determination.
My world fell apart and have
not been given the opportunity
to recover in the midst of
deep sorrow and destruction
lies a soul that is misplaced
and required some form of
normality to regain its
consciousness.
Extremely hurt injured and
bitter determine to get
justice at no matter what
cost.

Business and accounts

We was thrown into the deep
end and left to die, we
received no financial help or
advice from the hospital or
our solicitor, eight months
before an interim payment of
£5,000 was offered, my wife
required constant care, I had
to employ someone we knew and
trusted and someone to help
with the backlog of work
already booked in my business,
pledges that we could not
deny, customers that had over
twenty years loyalty and
elderly. I had to accomplish
clearing my pledges in
whatever way I could and what
ever help I could get,
realizing that it was
impossible to keep my business
going due to extreme
circumstances I find myself
in, the reality is that people
want plumbers and electricians
ASAP and remain till the job
is done.

After dismissing our first
appointed solicitor for
professional negligence he
demanded £15,000 + to release
the files eventually settled
for £5.875.00 as an interim
payment.

The second appointed solicitor
took the case on a private
client bases, saying that it
was till they received the
files from the first solicitor
but decided to leave us on a
private client basis till they
finally came off the records
that was a further £1,000 in
interim payment.

We have cleared all of our
savings of £15,000 and Mary's
life insurance policy of a
further £10,000 and loss of
earnings for 4 and half
years.

This accident not only
destroyed us physically but
also mentally and demolished
all the faith we had in our
society.

Category People & Blogs

Tags Costco, Insurance, Solicitors, Companies, Healthcare, family, news, friends, music, movie, people, Creativity, human