Family badly injured in road accident by drunk driver

Joseph and his family were on their way home from the airport when they were hit by a drunk taxi driver who was using their mobile phone at the time.

“It was quite a joyful trip in the beginning, a lovely evening and full of chatter about the holiday. As we approached Peterhead, a car coming the opposite direction veered towards us on our side of the road. I tried to get out the way but there wasn’t enough time. We didn’t stand a chance.”

Real life consequences of drinking at the wheel

“The worst thing was seeing your nearest and dearest injured like that and not knowing where each other were.  The noises – moaning, screams from my family – no-one should have to go through that and see the carnage caused by an accident.

“My son in law nearly died. I remember hearing the paramedics say, ‘We’re losing him’ and the fireman pulling him out the car.

“It was very close to being worse than what it was.  I don’t know how I would have coped if one of us had died. I’m grateful and thankful to have come through that.”

Road accident was avoidable if driver hadn’t been drunk or distracted

“It was unnecessary what happened. It shouldn’t have happened in the first place. The devastation that this has caused us as a family was considerable – and it’s a 100 times worse with it being a drunk taxi driver licensed to carry passengers.

“Anyone can have an accident, but this was avoidable.”

Long term damage to family

“Two years on from the accident and we are still recovering and trying to get our life back. The injuries meant I lost a lot of strength and confidence and I couldn’t go back to work fully.

"Unless it’s happened to yourself, you wouldn’t know the depth of how you would feel after a road accident like that. People think you will just get over it, but you don’t ever get over it really.

"We will never be the same again. We couldn’t be the same again after what happened. It really was a life changing even. It was an awful experience to have to go through – and it was avoidable.”