Public liability compensation from a supermarket
If during a shopping trip, you have suffered an injury due to the negligence of a supermarket, you could make a personal injury compensation claim from their public liability insurance.
The accident may have been due to a wet floor with no warning signs in place, to make you aware of the slippery surface. Shops have an obligation to ensure any slippery floors due to spillages or cleaning are left in a safe condition to avoid an accident and injury to customers and staff.
There may have been stock on the floor which was left in a dangerous position or empty cardboard boxes left on the floor causing a slip or trip hazard. Either of these could be the cause of the accident. Also such items as hanging signs may have fallen and caused an injury.
In a supermarket, the shelves should be stacked correctly, if stock falls from a shelf or the shelf collapses causing a personal injury, you could make a public liability compensation claim.
Above are a few examples, however, there are other types of accidents which happen in a supermarket for which the public can make a personal injury claims.
Public liability claims on the road or pavement
A public liability compensation claim could be due to a slip or trip accident in the road or on the pavement. The local authorities are required to ensure that roads and pavements are kept in a good state of repair and should be inspected regularly to avoid accidents to the public.
As a guide, if there is a defect which could be a pothole in the pavement for example, you may be able to make a personal injury compensation claim if the defect is at least an inch in depth.
If you have had an accident on the road or pavement, it is a good idea to take photographs of the area. The photos should include measurements of the defect that caused the injury. Ideally take around six photos which also show the immediate surrounding area. Then report the accident, injury and defect to the authority responsible so they can make necessary repairs to prevent further injuries to the public.
Public liability claims in a car park
Car parks should not have defects that can injure a member of the public who is leaving or returning to their car. A public liability compensation claim could be due to car park drain covers missing or defective that cause a slip or trip accident. Also any defects such as potholes should be made safe to avoid accidents.
It is advisable to take photos of the defect in the car park if possible which caused the accident and injury. This could help your personal injury claim. Then the defect should be reported to the authority responsible, so they can rectify the problem before someone else suffers an injury.
Public liability compensation awards
A medical assessment may be required to help determine the exact level of compensation for your public liability compensation claim. You will receive the compensation based on all the injuries and length of suffering. To see examples of injury awards, please click on the link for our Compensation Estimator above.
How to make public liability claims
The Accident Advice Bureau ensure that by winning your public liability compensation claim you will receive 100% compensation*. If for example, you are awarded £10,000 you will receive £10,000 no deductions will be made, if you lose, you will pay nothing! We also claim for loss of earnings if you have had to take time off work and lost wages, damage to clothing, prescription costs, travel expenses and home help if required. These expenses are on top of the compensation awarded for your injuries. You will have the peace of mind knowing your accident claim will be dealt with by a solicitor that specialises in public liability personal injury claims, on a No Win No Fee basis.
Every year, thousands of people have public liability claims and many successfully claim compensation with our help.
Whatever the cause of the accident and your injury, please contact our friendly staff today. We will discuss the accident circumstances with you, assess the claim and advise you of the next step. Please call us, use our quick contact form to the left or alternatively use our claims form by clicking here: Public Liability Compensation.
Could you be entitled to public liability compensation?
If you have an accident, and are hurt, because of the actions of a company or individual, either on their premises or somewhere public, the laws of public liability compensation will apply.
You may be able to make an accident claim for personal injury under public liability compensation rules if the accident was not your fault, and you can show that the party responsible should have prevented the accident, or minimised the risk of accident and injury.
Public liability law means organisations have a duty of care to protect the public. In most cases, they will have public liability insurance to cover them against public liability compensation claims if an accident results in personal injury to you, or, worse, the death of the injured person.
When can you make public liability claims?
Unfortunately, there are all too many situations which can lead to public liability claims. You may be entitled to public liability compensation because of:
- Slip, trip or fall accidents because the local authority or highways agency has not maintained road or pavement surfaces properly
- Similar accidents in supermarkets, retail outlets such as DIY stores, public car parks or even amusement parks
- Poor traffic management at road works causing road traffic accidents
- Tripping accidents after items have been left lying around
- Tree branches which have fallen on to pavements and roads
- Walls or other structures collapsing on to highway or other public areas
- Accidents in places like swimming pools, fitness centres and gyms.
Maximise your chances of successful public liability claims
For public liability claims purposes, keep a record of what happened, take photographs; ask for names and addresses of witnesses; record doctors' visits and treatments, and keep receipts for all injury-related expenses.
Where possible, report your accident to the person or organisation who owns or maintains the premises where your accident took place. They should have a log for recording such incidents.
You should also seek prompt specialist public liability claims advice, especially as there are rules applying to the time limits for making public liability claims.
A three-year limitation period generally applies to all accident compensation under public liability claims. However, there may be exceptions due to the circumstances of the accident, or the injured party's personal situation.
The Accident Advice Bureau and Public Liability Claims
At the Accident Advice Bureau, we specialise in public liability claims. We help you to claim the money you deserve, and to which you are entitled, operating on a strictly 'no win, no fee' basis, if you have had an accident in a public place through no fault of your own. This means that, for example, if you win £10,000, that's exactly the sum you get to keep.
Visit our web site today and read more about the public liability claims process. You'll find us sympathetic, helpful and realistic. Give us a call, fill in the quick contact form on our web site, or fill in an online claims form, and let us take the strain out of your public liability compensation claim.
