People tend to be in such a rush nowadays that accidents and injuries are fairly common. When it comes to accidents in supermarkets, we take on a lot of claims for personal injury compensation. A fair few of these involve claims when a person is hit by a shopping trolley.
It can do a serious amount of damage; particularly if your leg or ankle is hit. We have seen fractures and serious ligament damage from being hit by a trolley. An impact with a trolley can also lead to a fall to the ground which can of course cause serious injuries as well.
So if this has happened to you, can you make a claim for compensation?
Your Rights as a Shopper
Whether you can make a successful claim or not depends really on who is at fault. If you are hit by another shopper, it would be difficult to make a claim against the supermarket as the actions of a visitor is largely out of their control. Unfortunately it could be hard to prove that they have breached the applicable law here which is the Occupiers Liability Act.
This Act imposes a duty on the supermarket to take all reasonable steps to look after your health and safety. Making a claim against the person directly could be hard as they likely don’t have insurance to cover them for such circumstances, and they probably don’t have the funds to pay you and a lawyer out.
But if you were hit by an employee of the supermarket, you actually have a very strong claim against the supermarket for compensation. The negligent actions of an employee can fall on the employer; i.e. the supermarket. This is often known as vicarious liability. So in this scenario you have a strong claim and we can definitely look to assist you.
Your Rights as an Employee
As an employee of the supermarket, the workplace health and safety regulations apply. They’re generally stricter but in this kind of situation your rights are almost the same as a visitor. If you are hit by a trolley being controlled by a shopper, making a claim could be hard. But if a colleague hits you, you have a very strong claim for compensation. The same rules surrounding vicarious liability can apply.
Making a Claim – 100% Compensation
We still offer 100% compensation for a claim against a supermarket. We will not look to deduct the 25% that other lawyers will ask for, so long as you comply with the terms of our agreement.
For help and advice, give us a call now on 0800 634 75 75 today.
