The Public Liability Claims Process – A Guide To Compensation

This guide will explain public liability claims and help you make a more informed decision about seeking compensation after an accident in public. You’ll find lots of useful information about who is eligible to claim, the types of injuries that might qualify and what you could be compensated for.

Key Takeaways In Public Liability Claims

  • Those who control public spaces have to keep you reasonably safe.
  • If you suffer an injury in an accident that wasn’t your fault, you may be eligible to claim compensation.
  • Compensation figures depend on the severity of the injuries and claimable financial losses.
  • You normally have 3 years to make a claim, but there can be exceptions.
  • An expert personal injury solicitor from our panel could help you with your case on a No Win No Fee basis.

Please carry on reading to learn more. Or, if you would like to discuss public liability claims with a member of our advisory team, you can:

GRAPHIC OF SCALES AND QUESTION MARKS TO IMPLY LEGAL ISSUES

Select A Section Of Our Public Liability Claims Guide

  1. Can I Make A Claim For An Accident In A Public Place?
  2. What Are Public Place Accidents I Can Claim For?
  3. Types Of Injuries You Could Claim For
  4. Who Pays Public Liability Compensation?
  5. How Much Compensation Can You Get From Public Liability Claims?
  6. How To Prove A Public Liability Claim
  7. Am I Too Late To Make A Public Liability Claim?
  8. Is Making A Claim Expensive?
  9. Can UK Law Help Me?
  10. Get More Information

Can I Make A Claim For An Accident In A Public Place?

Establishing your eligibility to start a personal injury claim is the first step. Three points are used to form the basis of a valid claim:

  • You were owed a duty of care.
  • The third-party responsible failed to meet this duty of care.
  • You suffered harm as a result.

Under the Occuipiers’ Liability Act 1957, those in control of an area open to the public need to carry out reasonable steps to ensure the safety of visitors. What is reasonable will depend on the circumstance but this could include dealing with known hazards promptly or having a system on inspection and maintenance.

To clarify if you are eligible to start a claim after an accident in public, speak to our team on the contact options above.

What Are Public Place Accidents I Can Claim For?

Without the requisite attention being paid to health and safety issues in public places, it can be possible for visitors to suffer a wide array of injuries. Here are some examples:

  • A supermarket employee failed to clean up a spillage that was pointed out to them and a customer slipped on the wet floor and shattered their kneecap.
  • Despite being aware of the need for repair, a broken handrail in a cinema is not fixed. This caused a person to fall and sustain head injuries.
  • A person burns themselves on a hot surface in a restaurant that lacked warning signs or a safety guard.
  • Those in control of a recreation area failed to remove dangerous litter such as broken glass or a bottle despite being made aware of the danger by a member of the public. A child sustained serious cuts after coming into contact with this.

Your particular example may be different. However, if you can prove that your injuries were the direct consequence of a failure by others to remove or control hazards as much as possible, speak to our advisory team about a claim.

PERSON SLIPPING ON A WET FLOOR IN A PUBLIC PLACE

Types Of Injuries You Could Claim For

There are a wide range of injuries that can result from an accident in a public place:

  • Minor sprains and strains.
  • Pulled tendons.
  • Shallow cuts and bruises.
  • Deeper lacerations.
  • Head and spinal injuries.
  • Burns and scalds.
  • Back and pelvic damage.
  • Bone fractures.
  • Serious, life-altering head injuries
  • Psychological distress.

A combination of these injuries is possible. For example, if a person falls down a faulty escalator, they can suffer cuts, bruises, spinal damage and shock. To ensure your claim includes all the harm you suffered, see if a skilled personal injury solicitor from our panel can handle it for you and call today to see if you can be connected.

Who Pays Public Liability Compensation?

Anyone operating a facility or service to the public should have valid public liability insurance. This usually covers accidents and injuries up to a certain level. If a personal injury claim against an occupier is successful, this insurance will cover the compensation that needs to be paid to the victim.

Unlike employers’ liability insurance, it is not a legal requirement to have public liability insurance. This means that sometimes, at the start of a case, investigations into the insurance position of the defendant are needed.

Such investigations are not needed if claiming against a defendant, such as a local authority or council, as they will be able to use Government funds to pay compensation claims made against them.

How Much Compensation Can You Get From Public Liability Claims?

In the event of your public liability claim being a success, the ultimate compensation award can be made up of two categories of loss called general and special damages.

General damages compensate the claimant for the physical injuries, as well as any psychiatric and mental health injury they experienced as a result of what happened. The amount may also reflect loss of amenity, any permanent disability and general negative impact on the person.

To calculate a monetary value for general damages, those responsible might look at the medical proof that has been submitted as evidence. Often, they consult documents like the Judicial College Guidelines (JCG), which lists award bracket guideline amounts for certain injuries.

Below, you’ll find a table made of excerpts from the JCG. Importantly, the first amount is not from this publication. Also, they represent purely guidelines, as each compensation claim has factors that make it unique:

Compensation Guidelines

INJURYHOW SEVERE?JC GUIDELINE AWARD BRACKETS
More than one serious injury and special damages SevereUp to £1 million plus.
Head(a) Very Severe £344,150 up to £493,000
(d) Less Severe £18,700 up to £52,550
Knee(a) Severe (i) £85,100 up to £117,410
Psychiatric Damage (a) Severe £66,920 up to £141,240
Wrist (a) Complete function loss.£58,110 up to £73,050
Back (a) Severe (iii) £47,320 up to £85,100
Hand(f) Severe finger fractureUp to £44,840
Neck (b) Moderate (i) £30,500 up to £46,970
Ankle(c) Moderate £16,770 up to £32,450

What Are Special Damages?

Special damages are the second category of loss. This compensates the claimant for the financial loss and expense caused to them by the injuries. You will be required to prove any financial amounts that you want to include as part of your claim. The following examples of documented evidence may help:

  • Any payslips that prove a loss of earnings (or reduction in earnings) caused by the injuries.
  • Proof of medical expenses for private care.
  • Evidence that you incurred costs after paying others to look after you.
  • Invoices and estimates for essential changes need to your home (wheelchair access or adaptations for a disability).
  • Travel expenses to hospital or essential appointments.

This evidence can help calculate a sum for special damages and could result in boosting the overall compensation you might receive. Please call our team on the number above and discuss the general and special damages in your case.

PERSON ON CRUTCH AFTER PUBLIC PLACE ACCIDENT AND INJURY

How To Prove A Public Liability Claim

To give your public liability compensation claim its best chance of success, you need to gather as much proof as possible that the breach in the duty of care caused your injuries. With this in mind, the following is often useful:

  • CCTV footage from the area that caught the accident.
  • Photos of your injuries and importantly, the hazard that caused them.
  • The contact information of anyone who saw how the accident happened. If you decide to place your claim with public liability lawyers from our panel, they could obtain corroborating statements from these eyewitnesses without holding the claim up.
  • Medical evidence such as X-rays, notes from specialists and proof of prescription medication.

Solid evidence can help you put together a much more viable claim for personal injury. The advice of a skilled solicitor can also help, so call our team now to see if one of our panel solicitors could handle your public liability compensation claim.

Am I Too Late To Make A Public Liability Claim?

According to the Limitation Act 1980, there is a time limit of three years for starting personal injury claims, which usually begins from the date of the accident. There can be alterations to this:

  • A pause applies to personal injury claims for minors, as those under 18 cannot start a claim. Because they cannot claim themselves, the courts might appoint a parent or guardian to act for them as a litigation friend. Alternatively, if no claim is made for them, the minor has three years to begin their own claim starting from the date they become 18.
  • A freeze applies to the time limit for those without sufficient mental capacity to claim independently. Again, a litigation friend may be appointed to act for them. Or, they have three years starting from any date that mental capacity is restored to claim themselves.

To check if you are still within the time limit to claim, connect with our advisory team by phone or email. Or ask the live discussion portal below a question about compensation time limits.

Is Making A Claim Expensive?

The solicitors on our panel offer eligible claimants a way to start their claim, with a variant of the No Win No Fee contract called a Conditional Fee Agreement (CFA). This offers numerous benefits to those seeking compensation. Under a CFA, there are:

  • No solicitors fees are needed upfront.
  • Zero solicitors fees to pay as the claim moves forward.
  • Nothing to pay your solicitor for their finished work at all if the claim fails.
  • If the claim wins, a percentage is deducted from the compensation as a success fee. This is paid to your solicitors after the award has been made.
  • The success fee is capped by law to keep it low. This means you can benefit from excellent legal representation and keep most of the compensation you are awarded.

If this way of bringing a case is something you are interested in, you can call today for a free case assessment to see if you are eligible to claim.

PERSONAL INJURY SOLICITOR READY TO EXPLAIN THE PUBLIC LIABILITY CLAIMS PROCESS

Can UK Law Help Me?

You are not legally obliged to hire solicitors to represent you. But given the advantages offered by the solicitors on our panel, it makes sense to see how they could help. For example:

  • They can calculate the compensation owed to you much more precisely.
  • They will take care of all court correspondence and meet essential deadlines.
  • Solicitors will communicate with the third party on your behalf and strive to agree on the best settlement for you.
  • They can explain legal terminology and accompany you to court (if the claim needs to go that far, although it is rare for a case to need you to attend court).
  • Our panel of solicitors also has the essential expertise to ensure that all past, current, and future losses are taken into account. As a claim can only be submitted once, it’s important to include everything.

Again, all these excellent services can be accessed without upfront solicitors costs. Why not see if you qualify for their help with your public liability claim? Take the first step of speaking to our advisory team:

Get More Information

Whilst the focus of this guide was public liability claims, you might find these other resources useful:

External information to help:

To conclude, we value your interest in our guide about public liability claims. If you’d like any additional information or free guidance, please use the contact options above to reach out, and we’ll be happy to help.