Australian couple win £140k damages over Tower Bridge lift plunge

An Australian couple left with leg fractures after a lift plunge at Tower Bridge have won a £140,000 payout.

Graham and Bronwyn Cowan were among 10 people using a lift at the London attraction when it started vibrating and making strange noises before plunging. It then came to a jarring halt before plunging again.

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The couple were on the first day of their dream holiday to Europe and, as well as suffering leg fractures, say they still suffer with psychological trauma from the accident in May 2009.

Mr Cowan suffered a spinal fracture and a broken left leg, while Mrs Cowan suffered fractures to both ankles and a toe.

According to the Metro, Mrs Cowan unfortunately got stuck in a lift on the first day of court proceedings in London in April.

Barrister Christopher Edwards explained: "My client was briefly stuck in the lift and suffered a very unpleasant reaction."

He said in court: "It is clear that she is still psychologically affected by this horrible accident – as we saw from her brief experience of becoming stuck in this lift."

Mr Edwards also told the court that Mr Cowan now suffers with a lift phobia, which affects him daily as he works on the 16th floor of an office building in Sydney.

According to the Evening Standard, the couple sued lift company Temple Lifts Ltd, who admitted liability for the accident.

Judge Peter Wulwick has now awarded Mr Cowan more than £60,000 and Mrs Cowan almost £80,000 in compensation for their injuries, loss of earnings and ruined holiday, from which they had to be medically evacuated home.