Woman who sued friend for £115,000 after being hurt by her Alsatian 'regrets taking legal action'

Pulled off feet: Kay Benstead sued Anne Finnie over the accident in Enfield
Lauren Pilat2 November 2017

A woman who won more than £100,000 after suing a friend whose dog pulled her over in a park said today she regretted the “ordeal” of bringing legal action.

Kay Benstead broke her hip and arm when she was dragged to the ground by her former colleague Anne Finnie’s three-year-old German shepherd, Lily.

Her friend had passed her the dog’s lead to hold while she bought drinks at a park in North London.

But Ms Benstead, a social worker, claimed she had never agreed to take control of the large dog and blamed her friend for her injuries. A county court judge ruled yesterday that Mrs Finnie had been “negligent”.

Today Ms Benstead said she felt “no animosity” towards her friend, and regretted having to go to court.

She told the Standard: “This whole thing has been horrible and although I’m relieved the court case is over I regret it had to be taken to court because it has been an ordeal.

“I hoped to have had met an agreement before taking it to court.

The dog's owner Anne Finnie acted 'negligently', a court ruled

“I don’t feel any animosity towards Anne but I’m pleased the judge realised there were a number of reasonable things that she could have done but didn’t.”

She added: “I didn’t have a chance to say no and I didn’t have the opportunity to let go of the lead which was put into my hand, it was then that I was pulled back and injured.”

The incident occurred in Trent Park in Enfield, where Mrs Benstead was walking her own dog, a 12-year-old cockapoodle Freya.

Mrs Finnie had “thrust” Lily’s lead into her friend’s hand, the Central London county court was told. The loop tightened around her fingers and Lily almost immediately began to strain at the lead, pulling her back.

Mrs Benstead said today her injuries caused her “immense pain” that meant she had to cut her hours of work down to part time which had impacted her financially.

She said Mrs Finnie had “dedicated her life to German Shepherds and volunteered as a trainer” so she should have been more aware of Lily’s strength and temperament.

Mrs Benstead said she “hadn’t had time to focus on the money” but that it would help cover her losses from not being able to work.

Judge Peter Wulwick referred to Mrs Benstead as a “cautious” dog owner who did not have a chance to refuse the lead.

She had only ever patted Lily once when she was a puppy and would never have agreed to hold her lead, the court heard.

He ordered Mrs Finnie to pay her friend £115,000 in compensation, plus her court costs — which could amount to as much as another £100,000.

Judge Wulwick said: “The weight and force of the dog was too great” and caused Mrs Benstead to fall over which could have been prevented.

Mrs Finnie declined to comment.

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