A Victorian woman who was run over when her dog bumped the handbrake of her car has been awarded more than $140,000 worth of compensation.
The Victoria's Transport Accident Commission (TAC) this week offered the compensation to the woman, who suffered injuries to her hip, shoulders, back and neck.
The woman from Colac, south-west of Melbourne, was walking her dogs just before the accident occurred in February 2005.
She loaded two of the pets into the back seat of her car and one into the front passenger seat.
The engine was running to power the air conditioner, and as the woman went to get into the driver's seat, one of the dogs bumped the handbrake.
The woman, who was in her 60s at the time, was caught in the door and dragged along with the car before falling to the ground and being run over by the vehicle.
Her lawyer, Ann Cunningham, said the case was incredibly unusual.
"When she walked into the office and she simply said 'I was run over by my dog', I literally did think 'I've heard it all now'," Ms Cunningham said.
"While it has its humorous dimension, the major injuries caused were no laughing matter for the woman concerned.
"She obviously had lots of abrasions on her, but she also suffered an injury to her left hip that has ended up requiring multiple surgeries.
"She also ended up having both shoulders replaced, and also she had issues with her back and her neck."
Doctors believe she will not need any further surgery, nearly a decade after the accident.
The TAC offered her $143,590 no fault injury compensation, on top of medical expenses and income entitlements.
"It has been a long process where the TAC is unable to assess the injuries fully until the person is stabilised," Ms Cunningham said.
"Because this lady has had to have many lots of surgery it has taken a long time for her to reach that point.
"It has been really good to get a great result in the end for her, but it has certainly been a difficult journey.
"While this is a highly unusual car accident, it underlines the point that TAC offers no fault compensation payments to help injured people in their rehab and to get on with their lives as best they can."
Topics: human-interest, animals, accidents---other, colac-3250
The Victoria's Transport Accident Commission (TAC) this week offered the compensation to the woman, who suffered injuries to her hip, shoulders, back and neck.
The woman from Colac, south-west of Melbourne, was walking her dogs just before the accident occurred in February 2005.
She loaded two of the pets into the back seat of her car and one into the front passenger seat.
The engine was running to power the air conditioner, and as the woman went to get into the driver's seat, one of the dogs bumped the handbrake.
The woman, who was in her 60s at the time, was caught in the door and dragged along with the car before falling to the ground and being run over by the vehicle.
Her lawyer, Ann Cunningham, said the case was incredibly unusual.
"When she walked into the office and she simply said 'I was run over by my dog', I literally did think 'I've heard it all now'," Ms Cunningham said.
"While it has its humorous dimension, the major injuries caused were no laughing matter for the woman concerned.
"She obviously had lots of abrasions on her, but she also suffered an injury to her left hip that has ended up requiring multiple surgeries.
"She also ended up having both shoulders replaced, and also she had issues with her back and her neck."
Doctors believe she will not need any further surgery, nearly a decade after the accident.
The TAC offered her $143,590 no fault injury compensation, on top of medical expenses and income entitlements.
"It has been a long process where the TAC is unable to assess the injuries fully until the person is stabilised," Ms Cunningham said.
"Because this lady has had to have many lots of surgery it has taken a long time for her to reach that point.
"It has been really good to get a great result in the end for her, but it has certainly been a difficult journey.
"While this is a highly unusual car accident, it underlines the point that TAC offers no fault compensation payments to help injured people in their rehab and to get on with their lives as best they can."
Topics: human-interest, animals, accidents---other, colac-3250
