Estranged wife demands £700k compo over 'cheating' husband's death because 'they would have got back together'
Get daily updates directly to your inbox + Subscribe Thank you for subscribing! Could not subscribe, try again later Invalid Email
An estranged wife who was divorcing her husband at the time he was killed by a speeding driver wants almost £700,000 in compensation.
Cathryn Craven has taken her claim to the High Court and believes she and her husband Jayson could have reconciled had he not been killed.
The case brought by Ms Craven hinges on whether there was a substantial chance of reconciliation with Jayson, her husband of 12 years.
Mr Craven died instantly when he was struck by a car in Coventry in the early hours in June 2014.
Driver Terry Davies, who was travelling at 86mph in a 40mph zone, was later found guilty of causing death by dangerous driving and jailed for four years.
(Image: Coventry Telegraph WS)
At the time of the 48-year-old steel fixer's death, the couple were in a "cooling off period" between decree nisi pronouncement and decree absolute.
After a relationship lasting 29 years, they separated in January 2014 after Mr Craven began an affair, and Mrs Craven petitioned for divorce.
Mrs Craven, 50, from Coventry, has brought a claim amounting to £676,985 against Davies on behalf of herself and her family under the Fatal Accidents Act.
(Image: Google Street View)
On Tuesday in London, her counsel, Marcus Grant, told Judge Freedman that there was an 80% chance of reconciliation while lawyers for the other side say that is "no more than fanciful" and was never going to happen.
Contributory negligence on the part of Mr Craven is also alleged, and denied.
Mr Grant said that neither Mrs Craven, who worked as a part-time travel consultant, nor her husband, who was the major breadwinner, had received legal advice about the financial implications of going through with the divorce.
If Mrs Craven had thought it through, she would have opted to save the marriage and reconcile, which was Mr Craven's wish, he added.
(Image: PA)
Mrs Craven's case was that, had he not been killed, her anger was likely to have been eased by the passage of time because she loved him deeply and her desire for divorce would have been lessened to the point of extinction by realisation of the financial consequences.
He said: "The claimant is quite satisfied that once furnished with this advice she would have done everything in her power to reconcile with the deceased and to terminate the divorce proceedings.
"The cooling off period between the decree nisi and decree absolute stages in divorce proceedings is specifically designed to provide angry couples with time to reflect on the financial reality of their decisions before they become irretrievably committed to acting on them."
The hearing is expected to last three days.