Student paralysed by crash wins seven-figure payout

Rosie Mayes, 24, is now tetraplegic, with only a small amount of movement in her right bicep, after the car hit an embankment in Dronfield, Derbyshire, after swerving on to the wrong side of the road.

It took firefighters more than 30 minutes to cut her free from the wreckage following the crash in December 2009.

She then had to face a three-year legal battle with an insurance firm over liability for the collision.

Now she has secured a payout which her lawyers say will secure her the 24-hour care and rehabilitation she will need for the rest of her life.

“The moment the judge said we had won the case in February last year was a huge relief but getting the settlement agreement through has felt like the final milestone I’ve had to overcome,” said Miss Mayes, of Gleadless, Sheffield.

“Now I can finally move on, make plans for the future and decide what I want to do with my life now I know the specialist care and support I need is taken care of.”

Miss Mayes, who is in her final year studying history at Sheffield University, uses a wheelchair and needs round-the-clock care.

She lives with her parents, Wendy and Andy, and their home has been extended and adapted as the legal claim progressed through the High Court.

Rachael Aram, spinal injury expert with law firm Irwin Mitchell, who represented Miss Mayes, said: “The settlement will ensure Rosie will have access to the professional care she needs for the rest of her life and we hope it gives her a sense of justice for what she’s been through as well as helping her to live as independent a life as possible.

“Rosie has been tremendously brave over the past three years and is very determined to not only be successful herself, but also to help others through fundraising and charity work.”