You may be wondering, ‘How could a public liability solicitor help me claim after an accident in a public place?’. If so, this guide could help as it looks at the services a solicitor could provide to help you seek compensation and the benefits of instructing legal representation under No Win No Fee terms.
Additionally, we discuss the duty of care certain parties owe in a public place with regard to your health and safety and whether you could have an eligible public liability claim if this duty is breached. You can also find information on the evidence you could gather to strengthen your case.
Furthermore, we discuss what settlements following successful public liability claims could comprise and how they are calculated to address the different impacts of the harm you suffered.
Please connect with one of our advisors if you have any other questions about public liability claims. They can offer a free, no-obligation case check to see if you are eligible to proceed with your case. To get in touch, you can:
- Call on 020 8050 2736
- Contact us through our website.
- Use our Live Chat window below.
Browse Our Guide
- How Could A Public Liability Solicitor Help Me Claim?
- What Is The Eligibility Criteria For Public Liability Claims?
- Potential Evidence That Could Support Your Public Liability Compensation Claim
- How Much Public Liability Compensation Could Be Awarded?
- Why Use A No Win No Fee Public Liability Solicitor To Claim Compensation?
- More Resources About Making A Personal Injury Claim For Public Place Accidents
How Could A Public Liability Solicitor Help Me Claim?
A public liability solicitor could help you in several ways, provided you meet the eligibility criteria for personal injury claims. For example, they can:
- Help you collect supporting evidence.
- Send important documents and other correspondence on your behalf.
- Keep you regularly updated on the status of your claim.
- Correctly calculate the personal injury compensation you could be owed.
- Explain any complex legal jargon.
- Ensure your case is submitted within the relevant time frame.
The public liability solicitors on our panel have years of experience representing claims for an injury sustained in an accident in a public place, such as a leg injury in a shop or a hotel. If you reach out to an advisor, they can assess your claim for free and determine whether you’re eligible to take legal action. If you are, they can connect you with an expert solicitor from our panel who could begin working on your case. Call the number above to find out more.
What Is The Eligibility Criteria For Public Liability Claims?
The party in control of a public space, also known as an occupier, has a duty of care to take steps to ensure the reasonable safety of those visiting the space for its intended purpose. This is set out in the Occupiers’ Liability Act 1957.
If an occupier were to breach their duty of care, it could potentially cause you to suffer an injury in a public place accident. For example, an accident in a supermarket could be caused by a failure to put down a wet floor sign to make customers aware of a slippery surface. As a result, a customer may have sustained a severe head injury after a slip, trip or fall for which a claim could potentially be made.
However, in order to have valid grounds to start a public liability claim, you need to demonstrate that negligence occurred. In tort law, negligence means:
- Firstly, you were owed a duty of care by the occupier.
- Secondly, this duty was breached.
- Thirdly, you suffered physical and/or psychological harm due to the breach.
To discuss your specific case and find out whether you could be eligible to have a public liability solicitor represent your case, please contact an advisor using the number above.
Potential Evidence That Could Support A Public Liability Compensation Claim
A public liability solicitor can help you through the different stages of the personal injury claims process including gathering evidence to prove negligence. Some examples of the evidence you could collect include:
- Any available CCTV footage that shows your accident.
- Photographs of your visible injuries and the accident scene.
- Copies of your medical records, such as X-rays, scans and specialist reports.
- Witness contact details so that statements can be collected at a later date.
Our panel of expert solicitors can help with the collection of evidence and assist you in building your case for personal injury compensation. To see if you could access their help, speak to an advisor on the number above.
How Much Public Liability Compensation Could Be Awarded?
If you successfully claim compensation for your injuries, two heads of loss can make up the settlement awarded. General damages compensate you for the pain and suffering of your injuries. This can include physical and/or psychological injuries.
If you instruct a public liability solicitor to help you seek compensation, they can arrange for you to attend a medical assessment with an independent medical professional. The report produced can provide an in-depth insight into the extent of your injuries and how they’ve impacted your quality of life. Furthermore, those valuing the general damages head of claim can use this report to assist them.
The medical report can be used alongside the Judicial College Guidelines (JCG). This publication lists various guideline award brackets for different types of injuries.
Compensation Table
The table below contains figures from the JCG, with the exception of the first entry. Please use the table as a guide only because public liability claims settlements can differ depending on the unique circumstances of your specific case.
| Injury | Severity | Notes | Guideline Compensation Brackets |
|---|---|---|---|
| Multiple Severe Injuries and Special Damages | Severe | An award of this size would look at multiple severe injuries plus acute financial expense through long-term lost earnings and essential care costs. | Up to £1 million plus. |
| Brain Damage | (b) Moderately Severe | A very serious disability that is either cognitive or physical where there is a substantial dependence on others and a requirement for constant professional care. | £219,070 to £282,010 |
| Back | (a) Severe (i) | The most severe types of injury to the spinal cord and nerve roots which leave severe pain and disability as well as incomplete paralysis or impaired bladder, bowel, and sexual function. | £91,090 to £160,980 |
| Neck | (a) Severe (ii) | Injuries involving fractures of a serious nature or cervical spine disc damage which cause disabilities of a considerable severity. | £65,740 to £130,930 |
| Leg | (b) Severe (iv) | Moderate injuries are covered in this bracket, such as complicated or multiple fractures or severe crush injuries typically to one limb. | £27,760 to £39,200 |
| Pelvis | (b) Moderate (i) | A significant injury to the pelvis or hip but no great risk of permanent disability in the future. | £26,590 to £39,170 |
| Arm | (c) Less Severe | Despite significant disabilities, a substantial degree of recovery takes place, or is expected to. | £19,200 to £39,170 |
| Elbow | (b) Less Severe | Injuries that cause impaired function but do not involve major surgery or leave significant disability. | £15,650 to £32,010 |
| Ankle | (c) Moderate | Fractures and tears to ligaments that create less serious disabilities, such as difficulty walking on uneven ground. | £13,740 to £26,590 |
| Knee | (b) Moderate (i) | Injuries that involve dislocation, torn cartilage or meniscus causing mild future disability. | £14,840 to £26,190 |
| Shoulder | (c) Moderate | Frozen shoulder that limits movement and causes discomfort for around two years. | £7,890 to £12,770 |
Special Damages In A Public Liability Claim
The second head of loss, special damages, compensates for the financial losses caused to you by the injury. You must have evidence to prove these losses in order to claim them back. Examples of the costs for which you could seek reimbursement and the evidence you could provide in support of your personal injury claim include:
- Payslips that show a past or future loss of earnings because you could not work due to your injuries.
- Receipts that show any medical bills, such as the cost of prescriptions you have had to pay for.
- Invoices that demonstrate any domestic care costs.
- Travel tickets to show any transport costs.
A public liability solicitor could ensure all aspects of your claim are accounted for so you receive a settlement that addresses all the impacts your injuries have caused you. To find out whether you could be connected with a solicitor from our panel, please get in touch using the number above. An advisor can also provide a free valuation of your claim to help you understand how much compensation you could be owed.
Why Use A No Win No Fee Public Liability Solicitor To Claim Compensation?
After an accident in a public place, you may be unsure of what steps you could potentially take. If so, get in touch with one of our helpful advisors and they can provide advice on whether you’re eligible to seek compensation and what steps you can take to do so. Furthermore, they can connect you with an expert public liability solicitor from our panel if you have valid grounds to proceed.
The knowledgeable solicitors on our panel can offer their services through a type of No Win No Fee contract called a Conditional Fee Agreement (CFA). This offers numerous advantages to the claimant. For example:
- Your solicitor won’t request a fee for their work upfront or while your claim moves forward.
- If the claim fails, the solicitor won’t ask for a fee for the work they completed on your case.
- Should your claim win, a percentage of your compensation is taken as the solicitor’s success fee. However, this percentage is legally capped which ensures you always receive the bulk of the payout awarded.
If you are interested in learning more about your eligibility to make a public liability claim with a solicitor from our panel under No Win No Fee terms, please get in touch now. You can:
- Call on 020 8050 2736
- Contact us through our website.
- Use our Live Chat window below.
More Resources About Making A Personal Injury Claim For Public Place Accidents
For more of our helpful guides related to public liability compensation claims:
- Read more about how to claim for an accident in a shop which left you injured.
- Learn about pavement accident claims including when you could be eligible to seek compensation.
- Discover when compensation claims against the council could be valid.
- If you’ve been injured by an escalator in a public place, you can view our guide on potentially claiming for this type of accident.
For more external resources:
- A guide on First Aid from the NHS.
- Information on fall prevention from the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents.
- Find out how to request CCTV footage of yourself from GOV.UK.
We hope this guide discussing how a public liability solicitor could help you has provided you with the information you need. However, if you have any other questions, please reach out to an advisor using the number above.