We were recently appointed to undertake surveillance regarding a personal injury claim. The claimant aledges that four years ago that he fell from a ladder and injured himself so badly that he could not work and hadn’t done so since the accident. (for four years!)

This despite the fact that his own doctor and an independant specialist had confirmed that his injuries amounted to light bruising and he should have been back to work inside three months on a worst case scenario.

Despite this the claimant had stuck to his story and built his case for compensation.

His story was full of inconsistancies, for a start the incident was witnessed. the claimant who was employed as a Meter Reader had entered a loft to read the gas meter in a restaurant. He claims he fell 15 feet to the ground.

The maximum height that it was possible to fall is 7 feet. He claims that the ladder collapsed. It didn’t, and is in fact it is still in regular use.

From witness testimony it is confirmed that the guy did fall, but from about the third rung up, but square on to his feet. The claimant put on a show as if something really tragic had happened. Nonetheless and ambulance was called and he was taken to hospital.

The claimant appointed a lawyer and quanified his losses at £218,000. This was made up of lost earnings, lost future earnings, pension contributions and future care costs.

As the surveillance operation was put together a intelligence gathering exercise was called for to see what, if anything this guy does on a regular basis. It quickly became apparent that at 0730 am every day that he drives his son to the station. This despite the fact that he can not drive and needs constant care.

Our motorcycle surveillance operative followed the claimant and plotted his routine and filmed him from a mobile camera kit. This was for intelligence purposes only.

Over the coming days, thanks to the intelligence gathered we were able to site surveillance operatives and photograph him doing what had stated on oath that he could not do.

The crunch came when a surveillance van was parked in his street. It captured our man loading his car with not one, not two but three sizable suitcases. these were first carried out by his wife and daughter as they were so heavy. They were stacked at the rear of his car and left for him to load.

Our man picks up the cases with ease despite claiming not being able to use the left side of his body for anything strenuous. He wrestles with the bags demonstrating a full range of movement even holding a heavy flight bag in the crook of his left arm whilst he lays flat the rears seats of the car with the other hand.

The incident was filmed and photographed in finite detail and presented to the lawyers. With one saying “it’s not much of a show stopper is it?”

Well in terms of surveillance it was. More often than not in these types of cases it is very difficult to capture anything useful. You might if youre lucky get your target mowing the lawn or washing his car, but a 6 minute film of a supposedly paralised man wrestling with baggage and driving to the airport doen’t happen very often. It was an Oscar winning performance.

The day in court has now passed, did our man win his £218,000?

What do you think?!