Mother in crash which killed her sister wins payout

Claire Child, aged 27, was 30 weeks pregnant when she was hit by a car near the Co-operative supermarket in Walsall Road, Great Barr.

She was crossing the road with her sister, Sarah, who was also struck by the car and died from serious head injuries at the scene of the accident.

The driver, Amirul Islam, from Lozells, in Birmingham, was jailed for four years back in 2013 after pleading guilty to causing death by dangerous driving.

Now Claire, with help from lawyers from Irwin Mitchell, was awarded an undisclosed out-of-court settlement after the driver's insurers admitted liability for the accident.

She said: "No amount of money will make up for losing Sarah or the injuries I suffered, but holding those responsible for the incident to account feels like some form of justice in Sarah's name. "Hopefully, what happened to us will make others think about how they behave on the road and other families won't have to go through what we have in the last three years."

She suffered nerve damage in her right leg as a result of the impact and was unable to walk on her own for two weeks due to the severity of cuts to her legs.

Claire was unable to return to her sales job at a plumbing products supplier, where her sisters Sarah and Hannah also used to work.

But recently she has recovered well enough to able to secure a job and has returned to part-time employment.

Claire, who gave birth to her daughter Evie two months after the collision, said her daughter is now her main focus

Claire said: "My sisters and I have always been extremely close.

"I've had to learn to live with the guilt of being the one that survived the incident and know that I have to make the most of still being here too.

"Most of all, I have to get used to being afraid, because now I know that anyone is a potential killer and that's what people will never understand.

She said her solicitors helped her gain access to funds to cover her loss of earnings, as well as the costs of on-going treatment.

Since the crash Claire is still unable to sleep properly and suffers flashbacks of the incident when she was physically unable to help her sister Sarah because of her own injuries.

Manisha Patel, an expert serious injury lawyer at Irwin Mitchell, who represented Claire, said: "We are delighted to have secured Claire a settlement and spared her the further pain of going to court. "Hopefully, this case will indicate just how dangerous speeding is and will encourage drivers to change their behaviour and take more care on roads in built-up areas."