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Personal injury compensation - trip and fall accidents in supermarkets
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Trip and fall in a shop or supermarket
This case study discusses a surprisingly common accident in a supermarket.
CASE STUDY - Accident in a supermarket
The claimant, who was a 40 year old factory worker, was shopping in a well known supermarket. It had been raining heavily outside and the tiled foyer and entrance area was very wet. The management had placed some mats down in certain areas but generally the area was very greasy and care was needed to walk through into the main store.
Unfortunately the claimant slipped as she walked out of the store. She was holding two carrier bags full of shopping and could not regain her balance. She crashed to the floor and fractured her ankle in two places.
The store management acted quickly to make the area safe and put more mats down replacing the sodden ones that had been in situ for some time. They also had cleaners mop up the muddy greasy areas and dry off the tiles with cloths.
Meanwhile the claimant was taken to hospital and her leg was put into a plaster cast. X'rays revealed the extent of the fractures and she was kept in overnight for observation.
On her release she made enquiries with The Claims Connection regarding a possible compensation claim. We instructed our public liability solicitor team to deal with the case on her behalf.
The circumstances outlined above clearly demonstrate a lack of judgement on the part of the shop management team. They took immediate steps to rectify the obvious problems and reduce the scope of the danger to the public but they could have acted much sooner. It took a serious incident to prompt their actions and our legal team believed they were negligent. The insurer involved on behalf of the supermarket chain admitted liability in full.
The claimants injuries were troublesome and the plaster cast was re-applied after the initial 6 weeks for a further 4 weeks. The claimant then underwent physio to aid her recovery and regain the movement and flexibility in her joint. Following a detailed medical assessment it was found that she would be left with some residual weakness that would be permanent. Because the fracture went into the ankle joint there was also a substantial risk of arthritis developing in later years.
The claimants settlement was agreed at £12,000 for pain and suffering and £29,000 in addition for care, services, misc expenses and disadvantagement on the labour market etc. The award would have been more substantial but for the claimants honest testimony that she was able to manage with the majority of her daily tasks.
Summary - In most situations Supermarkets have excellent procedures in place to ensure that people can shop safely and this incident was unusual in terms of the extent of the mismanagement involved. However slips, falls and other incidents are always going to occur in supermarkets and it is important that the full facts are examined to determine whether there has been any breach of safety regulations or whether the shop management acted reasonably in the circumstances.