by Richard Robins
4 October 2010
The devastated parents of a man killed in a hit and run accident have revealed their fury after they have been thwarted while trying to claim compensation.
Billy Harrison, from Manchester, was run over and killed by Brian Williams in May 2009. Williams, who was both drunk and uninsured, had also racked up 19 previous driving convictions before he knocked Mr Harrison off his bike. Because he was uninsured, any compensation claim that the his parents wish to pursue has to come from the Motor Insurers’ Bureau, whereas normally it would be paid by the defendant’s personal motor insurance.
Now they are suffering fresh heartache as insurance companies ask them probing questions about Billy’s financial affairs in order to gauge how much they should be entitled to. They have already been informed, to their disgust, that they are not entitled to a bereavement claim as Billy was an adult when he was killed. An initial offering of £2000 was rejected and eventually upped to £7500. They were given money for the funeral, and that was all.
"It's disgusting we've been asked to put a price on our son's life. His injuries were devastating," Ann Harrison told the Mirror.
Williams was jailed for seven and a half years.