In this guide, we will discuss the eligibility requirements that all public liability compensation claims must meet to be valid. We will explain the duty of care you are owed while in public spaces and the relevant claiming criteria that need to be met to have a valid case. Additionally, we will discuss how an accident in a public space could happen as a result of a third party breaching their duty of care to you.
Furthermore, we look at what evidence could be gathered to support a public liability compensation claim. This guide also looks at how personal injury compensation is valued and what factors of an injury are considered during the calculation of a public liability claim, with a guideline compensation table to show what could potentially be awarded for different types of injuries.
Finally, we will look at how our panel of personal injury claims solicitors can help you if you have a valid case and the benefits of claiming with them on a No Win No Fee basis.
If you have questions about making a public liability injury claim, you can contact our advisors. As well as offering you free advice, they may also connect you with one of the personal injury solicitors on our panel.
Connect with our team today via any of the following methods:
- Call 0800 408 7826.
- Contact us online to arrange a callback.
- Use our live chat to ask a question.
Select A Section
- What Is A Public Liability Claim?
- Examples Of How Negligence Could Lead To A Public Liability Claim
- What Do I Need To Make A Public Liability Claim?
- How Much Compensation For Public Liability Compensation Claims?
- Why Make A No Win No Claim With Us?
- More Resources About Public Liability Compensation Claims
What Is A Public Liability Claim?
You could be eligible to make a public liability claim if you have experienced third-party negligence. Third-party negligence occurs when you are injured because a third party breaches the duty of care that they owe you.
The people or parties in control of public places owe a duty of care to everyone who uses the space for its designed purpose. These parties are otherwise referred to as ‘occupiers’, and their duty of care is established in the Occupiers’ Liability Act 1957.
To comply with their duty of care, occupiers must ensure the reasonable safety of those who use that public space for its intended purpose by taking steps, such as performing regular risk assessments and handling any hazards they encounter, to reduce the risk of injury.
As such, here are the criteria you would need to meet to be able to begin a public liability claim:
- An occupier owed you a duty of care.
- This occupier breached their duty of care.
- As a result of this breach, you sustained an injury.
What Is Meant By A Public Place
Essentially, a public place is any place that the public is allowed to access. Some examples include:
- Bus and train stations.
- Leisure centres and libraries.
- Public parks, streets, and footpaths.
- Shops and supermarkets.
- Cafes and restaurants.
If you have been injured while in a public place, you can contact our advisors to see if you could be eligible to make a personal injury claim. They can also answer any questions you may have about public liability compensation claims.
Examples Of How Negligence Could Lead To A Public Liability Claim
There are various ways that you could become injured while in a public place. Some examples could include:
- In a shopping centre, you lean on a faulty railing. The railing has been faulty for a while, but the occupier has not made any efforts to fix it. The faulty railing breaks, causing you to fall from a height. Falls from a height can lead to more serious injuries, such as paralysis and brain damage.
- A milk spillage occurred in a supermarket. However, no wet floor signs were displayed to make the public aware of the hazard. Thus, you slip and fall on this spillage. Slips, trips, and falls can lead to injuries such as broken and fractured bones (such as a broken forearm or a broken foot) and soft tissue injuries.
- While in a restaurant, you sit on a faulty chair. The restaurant was aware that this chair was faulty but had failed to replace it. This causes the chair to break, and you suffer a back injury and a broken leg.
These are only a few examples. However, you must remember, to be able to claim for your injuries, they must have been caused by an occupier breaching their duty of care.
Is There A Time Limit When Claiming Public Liability Compensation?
There is a standard time limit for which you must begin a public liability claim. This time limit is 3 years, as stated in the Limitation Act 1980, which begins from the date you sustained your injury.
However, if the claimant lacks the mental capacity to claim, the time limit is frozen, and a litigation friend can be appointed to begin the claim instead. If the claimant regains their mental capacity and a claim has not already been made on their behalf, they would have 3 years to claim, beginning from the date they regained this capacity.
The time limit is also frozen for those younger than 18 when they suffered their injuries. Before they turn 18, a litigation friend can begin the claiming process on their behalf. If a litigation friend has not already started a claim by the time the claimant has reached their 18th birthday, then the standard 3-year time limit will commence from this date.
Our advisors can tell you more about the limitation periods for personal injury claims if you get in touch with them today. Additionally, if you discuss your case with them, they may also put you in contact with a personal injury solicitor on our panel.
What Do I Need To Make A Public Liability Claim?
Evidence is crucial to show that third-party negligence occurred if you are wishing to claim personal injury compensation.
Thus, some useful types of evidence to collect could include:
- CCTV footage capturing the public liability accident.
- A diary including your symptoms, psychological effects, and treatment.
- Copies of X-rays and your medical records detailing the injuries you sustained and their treatment.
- Photographs of your injury and the accident site.
- Contact details from possible eyewitnesses of the accident. A legal professional could collect a statement from them later on.
Contact our advisors today to discuss your case. In addition to informing you how much compensation for public liability compensation claims could be awarded, they may also connect you with one of the solicitors on our panel. As part of their services, they could help you gather evidence for your case.
How Much Compensation For Public Liability Compensation Claims?
A personal injury settlement awarded after a successful public liability claim can consist of up to two heads of claim. The primary head of claim is referred to as general damages.
General damages reimburse the psychological and physical effects of your injuries. It is awarded in all successful cases. This head of claim takes into account:
- How your quality of life has been impacted.
- What treatment you require.
- How long your recovery period is.
The Judicial College Guidelines (JCG) can help those valuing your claim for general damages. This document contains guideline compensation brackets for all sorts of injuries, both mental and physical, at varying levels of severity. Additionally, you may be asked to attend an independent medical assessment for your injuries at some point during the claims process. The medical reports from this assessment can be used alongside the JCG by those valuing your claim.
Compensation Table
In our compensation table, we have provided some of the compensation guidelines within the JCG for different types of injuries that may be sustained from accidents in public places. Please note, however, that the first line has not been taken from the JCG.
| Injury | Severity | Guideline compensation brackets | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Multiple serious injuries and special damages | Serious | Up to £750,000+ | Compensation for sustaining multiple serious injuries plus each of their special damages including lost wages and medical expenses. |
| Paralysis | Tetraplegia (a) | £324,600 to £403,990 | Where the senses and ability to communicate have been impacted, and the person experiences physical pain will apply to the higher end of this bracket. |
| Paraplegia (b) | £219,070 to £284,260 | The person's age, life expectancy, extent of pain experienced and other factors will affect the amount awarded. | |
| Brain damage | Moderate (c) (i) | £150,110 to £219,070 | There will be an intellectual deficit ranging from moderate to severe. Personality will also change and there will be no prospect of future employment. |
| Moderate (c) (ii) | £90,720 to £150,110 | There will be an intellectual deficit ranging from moderate to modest. The ability to work will also be greatly reduced. | |
| Back | Severe (a) (i) | £91,090 to £160,980 | The most severe types of damage to the spinal cord and nerve roots. There will be severe disability and pain with a combination of a significantly impaired bowel and bladder and incomplete paralysis. |
| Severe (a) (iii) | £38,780 to £69,730 | Soft-tissue injuries or disc fractures leading to chronic conditions where disabilities remain despite treatment. This includes depression and impaired agility. | |
| Ankle | Very severe (a) | £50,060 to £69,700 | A transmalleolar fracture with extensive soft-tissue damage which results in deformity plus the risk that any future leg injury might necessitate below-knee amputation. |
| Arm | Injuries leading to permanent and substantial disablement (b) | £39,170 to £59,860 | Serious fractures to either one or both forearms. Permanent and substantial disabilities, whether cosmetic or functional, will remain. |
Compensation varies for each claimant since each case is personal and unique. Please use this table as guidance only.
Special Damages As Part Of Your Personal Injury Compensation
The secondary head of claim is referred to as special damages. Special damages reimburse the past and future monetary losses you have incurred due to your injuries. For example, this may include:
- Loss of earnings if you have needed time off work during recovery.
- Medical expenses, such as prescription costs.
- Travel expenses, such as journeys to and from hospital appointments.
You will need to show evidence of your monetary losses to be able to claim under this head of claim. This may be in the form of receipts, payslips, bank statements, or invoices.
Please don’t hesitate to contact us if you want more information on the eligibility requirements for public liability compensation claims.
Why Make A No Win No Claim With Us?
If you have an eligible public liability claim, one of the solicitors on our panel could help you with your case. Our panel of solicitors have lots of experience working on various types of public liability compensation claims, and they could assist you with gathering evidence and negotiating a settlement for you.
Additionally, you could be offered a Conditional Fee Agreement (CFA) from one of the solicitors from our panel if they agree to take on your case. A CFA is a specific type of No Win No Fee agreement.
When claiming with a solicitor through a CFA, you do not pay anything for your solicitor’s services before the claims process, throughout the claims process, or if the claim is unsuccessful.
If you have a successful claim, a success fee will be deducted from your compensation. Success fees are a small percentage of your compensation. There is a legal cap in place for the maximum percentage that can be taken as this success fee. This cap helps to ensure that claimants always receive the majority of the awarded compensation.
Contact our advisors today to find out more about working with a No Win No Fee solicitor from our panel and about the public liability claims process. Our advisors can also help answer any questions you may have, about the public liability compensation claims process.
Connect with our team today via one of the following methods:
- Call 0800 408 7826.
- Contact us online to organise a callback.
- Use our live chat to ask a question.
More Resources About Public Liability Compensation Claims
Personal injury compensation claim guides by us:
- See how much compensation you could be awarded for you injuries suffered after tripping on a pavement.
- Learn about injury at work claims, including the eligibility requirements that need to be met.
- Guidance regarding how much compensation for medical negligence claims could be awarded.
External resources:
- NHS – how to know whether you have broken a bone and what to do if you have.
- Gov.UK – guidance regarding what insurance does a small business need, including public liability insurance.
- Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents (RoSPA) – Guidance regarding fall prevention.
Hopefully, you have found this guide on public liability compensation claims helpful. If you have any additional questions or would like to discuss your particular case, you can contact our team of advisors.