Nathan Williams claimed to have been left with a broken hip and ankle as well as injuries to his face, knee, foot and groin.

The roving 38-year-old attempted to sue eight councils over a litany of trips and falls over 17 months.

Williams, who lives in a £500,000 flat in trendy Soho, could have been in line for hundreds of thousands of pounds in compensation but after an inquiry involving several local authorities and police he was charged with fraud.

City of Westminster Magistrates’ Court confirmed Williams faced eight fraud charges and would next appear on September 1, having been remanded in custody.

The first bid for compensation was made after Williams, of Dean Street, claimed he tripped on a broken footpath in Boleyn Road, Hackney, in November 2007: nine months later he told Hackney Council officials he was left with an injured hand and foot because of their negligence.

The second compensation claim was made after Williams alleged he tripped and hurt his knee in Muswell Hill Road, Haringey, in February 2008.

The third was made after Williams claimed he tripped, fracturing his hip and bruising a testicle, in Ormanton Road, Lewisham, on May 11, 2008.

The fourth attempt to claim a payout was made after Williams said he tripped over broken paving stones near his Dean Street home and broke an ankle one week later.

Other claims were for alleged accidents in Wandsworth, Tower Hamlets, Elephant and Castle, and Greenwich.

John McTier, then 16, was walking his girlfriend home when he was jumped by a gang three boys and three girls, aged 14-17. Finally, after five years, his fight for compensation is close to success.

After support from the Professional Footballers’ Association Scotland a record breaking sum is expected. John, who had just signed for Ayr United, was predicted by experts to have a big future ahead of him, when his career was ruined by the unprovoked attack in December 2004.

As John lay blinded in one eye in hospital thinking about the wreckage of his life, he told mum Patricia: “I wish they had finished me off. If I can’t play football I can’t do anything else.”

A £5,000 sum was initially offered from the Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority – CICA – which was rejected and since then, negotiations have continued.

Settlement is expected soon and it’s thought that the offer will top £500,000 to cover loss of earnings and injuries.

Chief Executive of the Professional Footballers’ Association Scotland stated: “John had the ability to have a long and successful career. Left-sided players are at a premium.

“If he continued to develop he would have moved upwards. There would have been every chance Rangers, Celtic or Championship clubs in England would be interested. Players of this type would expect between £200,000-£500,000 per annum.”

John who has eight Standard grades, three Higher and a degree in sports development, at present is on a salary of £8,000 a year, working for a car recovery firm.

Last night, he said: “I have been waiting for almost five years for the compensation to be settled. I gave football a try again but anytime I went to kick the ball it don’t seem to be in the right place. My balance had been totally affected.

“People talk about Dean Shiels of Hibs and how he can operate with one eye but the difference is he grew up with one eye and is used to the balance. I am not used to it. I would never be the same player again.

“My dreams of being a pro are ruined.”

Johns injury lawyer, Liam O’Donnell, said: “Negotiations are at an advanced stage in this very sad case and we are extremely hopeful a deal will be forthcoming which properly reflects what this young man has gone through.

“He lost his career that night. He’s had everything taken from him through no fault of his own.”

The workplace accident, in May 2008, occurred when machine operator Mr. L and a colleague had been working on a plastic cutting machine. The plastic had become jammed and Mr L, thinking that his colleague had turned off the automatic guillotine switch, tried to clear the blockage. As he did so the guillotine cutter came down on his hand, severing four fingers.

Mr L was in hospital for three weeks with surgeons eventually managing to re-attach two of the fingers, but he will be unable to carry out any manual work in the foreseeable future.

Liverpool Magistrates Court fined the company £2,500 with £2,438 in prosecution costs for breaching the Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations which state that an employer must stop employees having access to dangerous machine parts.

HSE inspector Martin Paren said: “The company should have had a guard on the guillotine to prevent workers from reaching the blade. An automatic mechanism should also have been in place so that the power was cut if the guard was opened. Instead Mr L wrongly assumed that a colleague had switched the guillotine off, and he had four fingers cut off as a result.”

Potholes pose a danger to all road users.  The sudden jolt you get from driving or riding over a pothole could be a distraction at just the wrong moment, or it could even mean you lose control of your vehicle.

It isn’t just concentration and control that can be affected by potholes; poorly maintained roads can cause damage to your vehicle, particularly the suspension.  Estimates from motoring groups put the current number of potholes on UK roads at around 1.5 million.  In early 2009, a report from the Asphalt Industry Alliance, the body which represents asphalt producers and contractor, said there was already a 13 year backlog of pothole repairs.  With the recent cold weather, it is likely this backlog has increased.

Being involved in an accident as a result of someone else’s negligence can be hard to swallow.  Here at Genesis Accident Claims we know that an accident caused by a badly maintained road surface could have very serious consequences for the people involved, both in terms of injuries and also damage to any vehicles that were involved.

The woman was attacked by a German Shepherd dog as she delivered post to a farm in February 2007.

In the attack, the woman feared her face was going to be bitten and in protecting herself the dog bit her hand, almost severing her ring finger. She has been left with permanent damage to the finger and finds it difficult to bend, which has affected her grip.

A CWU (Communication Workers’ Union) spokesperson said, “It’s clear that this dog was a menace and preventative action should have been taken prior to this horrific attack.

“Whilst welcoming this significant victory in relation to personal injury compensation, it does emphasise the importance of the ongoing CWU Biteback campaign which continues to fight for tougher laws to protect postal and other workers and members of the public from dangerous dogs.

Commenting on the out-of-court personal injury compensation settlement the woman’s claim solicitor, said “A tightening of the rules governing animal ownership would be welcomed and highly appropriate given the number of injuries sustained each year,”

Road accidents in the area have continued to increase despite the number of speeders halving.

Swindon Council leaders have therefore supported their decision that removing the devices was the correct thing to do.

However road safety groups and opposition politicians have warned that it is far too early to claim Swindon’s roads are now safer.

According to figures released by Swindon Council there were six injuries on Swindon’s roads between August and October of this year. Two of these were serious personal injuries, while four were slight. Over the same period in 2008 there were four slight injury accidents and one fatal.

“We know that we have a problem with the number of accidents on our roads rising and that is why we want to tackle the problem by using that money in the most effective way. Our actions have also led to a change in Conservative national policy on this issue.”

Andrew Howard, head of road safety at the AA, said the council needs to be cautious: “The accident rate is improving everywhere. The death toll on the roads is coming down. I would be very loath to read anything into these figures. Casualty figures can bounce up and down.”

In the course of his work, a claimant suffered a manual handling injury whilst installing some machine steel at the top of a lift shaft. It slipped out of its retaining pocket and he held on to it in an attempt to prevent it from falling, sustaining a personal injury to his neck and shoulder as he did so.

He required extensive medical treatment and time off from work and eventually had to change his occupation altogether, as the long-term injury meant that he was no longer fit to carry out the heavier aspects of his job.

The injured employee appointed a lawyer to act on his behalf in a claim against his employer. The case was pursued the case on the basis that they failed to employ sufficient health and safety measures to provide him with a safe system of work and keep the risk of injury to a minimum.

Liability was admitted and the lawyer then entered into detailed negotiations with the defendant to ensure that the claimant received an appropriate amount of compensation. During this process, the claimant was able to obtain interim payments to help fund his medical expenses until the case could be concluded. He eventually secured a total amount of damages in excess of £35,000 in respect of his injuries, loss of earnings, medical costs and other losses.

If you suffer an injury as the result of a workplace accident, or any other accident caused by the negligence of someone else, you may be entitled to make a personal injury claim. Our lawyers have a wealth of experience in recovering compensation for the victims of accidents and industrial diseases and can provide you with expert injury claim advice on a cost-free, confidential basis.

The victim was injured when he lost his balance and fell onto the long handle of a schoolmate’s paint brush. The incident happened in April 2003 at Ladywell Primary School, Motherwell.

The end of the 12 inch-long brush went into the ten-year-old’s left eye and brain, leaving him with severe disabilities, the Court of Session in Edinburgh heard.

The effects of his accident injuries have left him with “significant cognitive impairment” including poor concentration and memory, as well as chronic fatigue.

Personal injury solicitors representing the boy’s claim said that he is now unlikely to ever perform gainful employment, take care of himself or live independently.

The council is contesting the no win, no fee compensation action, claiming that the damages being sought are unreasonable.

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The 26 year old man’s injury lawyers agreed the settlement ahead of a claim for damages, which was due to open at the High Court in Belfast.

“The compensation reflects the severity of the injuries and his future needs for health care and support,” said his injury lawyers.

The settlement in his claim brought against the driver of the car in which he was a seat-belted passenger, was reached out of the court.

The lawyers for the offending driver did not dispute the liability for the accident and the figure to be paid out was agreed with insurers for the defendant.

The injury lawyers said that their client was a promising singer and was travelling on the Glasgow to Stranraer road with the rest of his music band, who were on the way to catch a ferry back to Northern Ireland.

He was asleep in the back when their vehicle collided head-on with a motorcycle. He suffered severe brain and physical injuries, and was left in a coma for weeks.

The motorcyclist and the driver’s five-year-old son were killed in the accident.

The injured man has no recollection of the accident and is still striving to cope with the physical and psychological impact of his injuries.