A suspended sign in a supermarket, a wall mounted sign on the side of a building, or perhaps a sign erected on a pole – if either of them fall and hit you, it’s likely you will end up with some form of injury; normally to the head.
So if you are the victim of a falling sign that has caused an injury, what are you rights when it comes to making a claim for personal injury compensation? Is there any way you can make a claim against whoever is responsible for the sign or the premises you are in?
Why did it fall?
This is commonly the first issue we need to address. In public places, the Occupiers Liability Act is normally the important piece of health and safety legislation that applies. This puts a duty on whoever is responsible for the sign to take all reasonable steps to ensure it doesn’t injure anyone. So, signs must be fully secure and at some stages inspected to ensure that they haven’t become loose or damaged.
In times of hurricane force winds like we’re currently experiencing here in the UK, there is of course an argument that there is a duty to ensure that either the weather doesn’t cause a sign to become dangerous, or a sign is taken down if it isn’t going to survive the weather.
Ultimately, if the sign has fallen and hit you and the incident was entirely preventable, i.e. it is reasonable to suggest that more could have been done to have prevented the accident, you might have grounds for a claim. On the other hand, if this sign has fallen and hit someone before, this could strengthen your claim as well.
Generally speaking, the law that applies put a duty on those responsible to take reasonable steps to prevent incidents, so winning a claim is about proving that more could have been done, and that this incident was preventable.
Can I claim if it’s just a minor injury to the head?
You don’t have to have broken any bones or be seriously injured to make a claim. Even a knock where there is a potential for slight scarring or headaches / concussion can be claimed for.
When it comes to making a claim for this kind of thing, the process for most people is dead straightforward. All we need to do is submit a Claim Notification Form to the other side and ask that they either admit or deny liability within 40 working days from submission.
The system is actually designed to encourage the other side to admit liability early for straightforward minor claims. If they try and dispute it, they must provide evidence to show reasonable steps have been taken. But more importantly, if we turn that dispute around, it normally costs them much more in legal fees as there is much more work that needs to be done. So they need to make a sensible commercial decision when it comes to whether they should try and fight it or not.
Historically these kinds of claims are often defended, but this new system is aimed at avoiding the need for litigation and the courts being involved, so hopefully they will admit liability for your accident to potentially save themselves money in the long run. For you, it can mean a quick compensation settlement as well!
What does it cost me?
We work in a very unique way. Other law firms will take a percentage from your payout because of law changes from April 2013. In fact, other solicitors will want to take 25% from your payout if the claim wins.
For this type of accident, our clients keep all 100% of their compensation payout!
So if you come to us directly, you can receive all 100% of your compensation payout. If the claim is unsuccessful, we work on a No Win, No Fee so you don’t pay anything at all.
You have nothing to lose in making a claim – so get in touch for help and advice on 0800 634 75 75.
