Slipped On Fruit.....

comercrawley

the personal injury lawyers

Your questions answered ……

Question:  I recently had an accident whilst shopping in a supermarket.  I slipped on a piece of fruit that was on the floor in one of the aisles and fell hurting my back.  The staff at the supermarket were very kind at the time and I have since received some flowers and vouchers from the supermarket.  I am concerned however as my back is still bad.  Could I make a claim for compensation?

Answer:  You may have a claim for compensation against the supermarket.  To succeed with a claim, you would need to show that your accident and injury has been caused by the supermarket’s breach of duty of care under the Occupiers Liability Act 1957 (and also under the general law of negligence).  In essence, the supermarket owes a duty of care to its customers to ensure that they are reasonably safe when using their premises and that they are not exposed to the risk of foreseeable injury.

The fact that you slipped on something on the floor of the supermarket does not automatically mean that they are at fault.  The piece of fruit may only just have been dropped on the floor by another customer.  The supermarket will however be liable if they fail to have an adequate system for checking the floor and cleaning up spillages etc.  If a claim for compensation is pursued, the supermarket will need to provide evidence (such as signed records) that at the time of your accident the floor of the aisle was inspected at frequent and regular intervals and that no hazards were found.  If they are unable to do so, you are likely to succeed with your claim for compensation.  Additionally, the supermarket should have mats on parts of the floor in the fruit and vegetable aisle where spillages are most likely to occur, for example near to the grapes.

Finally, the fact that you have received flowers and vouchers from the supermarket is not necessarily an indication that the supermarket considers that they were at fault for the cause of your accident.  Companies often do so as a good will gesture.  Similarly, you do not need to worry that by spending the vouchers you will have accepted an offer of compensation and will be prevented from pursuing a compensation claim.

If you have a question for our legal advice team you can submit it by email: enquiries@comercrawley.co.uk or in writing to:  Chancery House, Victoria Road, Diss Norfolk, IP22 4HZ.

Many parents will be unaware that they can make a personal injury compensation claim on behalf of their child aged under 18 years.

If your child is injured due to someone else's negligence, you can make a claim on their behalf by acting as a 'litigation friend' (an independent person not involved in the incident).

However, if you are involved in the incident - for example a car crash in which you are driving and your child is injured - while you cannot claim on their behalf, another litigation friend could do so.

Give us a call on 01379 644311 for more information

What happens about repairs to my bike - and how quickly?

If you have third party insurance then we will need to get the other driver's insurers to inspect your bike if the damage is serious. They will arrange for their engineer to come and look at it – this will take a few weeks and we have no control over how quickly they move. In the meantime, it is important you keep the bike in a place where it is being stored free of charge – insurers will not generally pay storage fees.

Their engineer will prepare a report, either writing the bike off if it is uneconomic or unsafe to repair or giving a repair estimate. If the bike is written off they will put forward a valuation. You are only entitled to the pre-accident value – not what you paid for it. 

If the damage is minor, then you may obtain your own repair estimate and we will forward this toinsurers who may agree the repair cost.

We would advise you not to proceed with repairs until these are agreed by the insurers.

Often insurers will make a 'without prejudice' payment to you for the bike at the start of the claim while they are still looking into liability - but if you are ultimately found to be at fault, they are entitled to claim this back from you. 

How can I claim for my damaged clothing and helmet?

Even if the accident is not your fault, the law requires you to prove every aspect of the claim. This means providing receipts/statements for the purchase of the damaged items where at all possible and/or photographs of the damage to the items – do not dispose of them until the claim is finalised. 

Payments are not made on a 'new for old' basis so the Court can deduct up to 33% for wear and tear. http://www.comercrawley.co.uk/think-bike.php#how_can_I_claim_for_my_damaged_clothing

comercrawley

the personal injury lawyers

Your questions answered……

Question:  I have been injured in a car accident caused by my husband – can I claim compensation?

Answer:   Yes, a compensation claim can be pursued by, say, an injured passenger in a car even if the accident is the fault of the driver and s/he is a relative.  The other common example is a claim brought by an injured pillion passenger on a motorcycle.

A claim can still be brought even if the injured passenger is also covered by the motor insurance policy.  This would occur where, say, a husband and wife are both insured to driver a vehicle; if the husband is driving and causes an accident that injures his wife who is a passenger in the car, the wife can pursue a claim against her husband which the motor insurance company with deal with.

Therefore, the fact that you are related to or living with the person responsible for the accident does not prevent you from pursuing a claim for compensation against them.  Provided that person is insured to driver the car then the insurers will be responsible for the claim.  If the case when to court, legal proceedings would need to be issued against your partner.  However, the insurance company would be responsible for paying whatever compensation was agreed or awarded.  It is worthwhile mentioning however that the vast majority of personal injury claims settle without the need to start court proceedings.

If you have a question for our legal advice team you can submit it by email: enquiries@comercrawley.co.uk or in writing to:  Chancery House, Victoria Road, Diss, Norfolk IP22 4HZ.

comercrawley

the personal injury lawyers

Your questions answered……

Question:  I recently injured my back as a result of lifting something heavy at work.  Please can you advise me about pursuing a claim for compensation?

Answer:  To successfully pursue a claim for compensation you will need to prove that your back injury was caused by your employer’s negligence or breach of statutory duty.

The Manual Handling Operations Regulations 1992 place a number of duties upon an employer.  The primary duty is for employers, so far as is reasonably practicable, to avoid the need for employees to undertake any manual handling operations (which is defined as any transporting or supporting of a load by hand or by bodily force).  Where this can’t be avoided, the employer is then under a duty to carry out a risk assessment in respect of that task and to take appropriate steps to reduce the risk of injury.  The employer must also provide the employee with certain information concerning the task and to provide appropriate training.  Where there is a breach of the Regulations which causes an injury, this gives rise to a civil claim for compensation.

There is also potential liability under the common law duty of care which employers owe to their employees in negligence which includes a duty to provide safe equipment and a safe system of work.

The issues will therefore be firstly whether your employer should have provided equipment to prevent you from having to lift the item by hand.  Thereafter, it will be a question of investigating whether your employer carried out a sufficient risk assessment in respect of the task and provided you with sufficient information and training.  The relevant factors will include the size and weight of the load, your gender, height and general build, and how the item needed to be lifted.  

It will be necessary to obtain medical evidence to prove that your back injury has been caused by lifting the item.  This will involve seeing a medical expert (often a Consultant Orthopaedic Surgeon).  The expert will consider, amongst other things, the nature of the injury and whether there is anything in your past or present medical history which may be relevant to the injury (this is often the case with back injuries as people sometimes have a pre-existing condition).  Where this is the case, it will tend to not prevent compensation being claimed but instead may limit the value of the injury claim.

Finally, it is worthwhile mentioning that your employer is likely to be insured in respect of any claim that you pursue, through their employer’s liability insurance policy. 

If you have a question for our legal advice team you can submit it by email: enquiries@comercrawley.co.uk or in writing to:  Chancery House, Victoria Road, Diss, Norfolk IP22 4HZ.