Slipped On Wet Floor – How Much Compensation Can I Claim?

­­­­Slipping on a wet floor can cause all sorts of painful injuries. While some can be recovered from quite quickly, others can have long-term consequences. Importantly, if someone else’s negligence has caused your accident, you could be entitled to claim compensation for your suffering. This article will look at how to claim compensation if you’ve slipped on a wet floor because of someone else’s negligence and the types of injuries that are commonly claimed for. We’ll look at claims involving workplace accidents as well as if you’ve slipped on a wet floor in a public place.

We can support you at the start of the claims process by offering a no-obligation consultation over the phone. We’ll answer any questions you might have and provide free legal advice after your claim has been reviewed. If there’s a fairly good chance you’ll be compensated, we’ll ask one of our personal injury solicitors to contact you. They have dealt with many slip, trip and fall claims and they could agree to help you to claim on a No Win, No Fee basis. If they do, you won’t have to pay any legal fees unless you are compensated.

For more information on making a claim, please read on. Alternatively, you can call us on 0800 652 1345 if you would prefer to discuss your claim with a specialist right now.

Common injuries from slips and falls on wet floors

The speed at which you’ll fall after slipping on a wet floor can mean it’s easy to sustain a variety of different injuries. Some of the most common that lead to compensation claims include:

• Broken bones – particularly in the hands, fingers, arms, elbows and wrists.
• Concussions and other head injuries and brain damage.
• Back injuries.
• Soft tissue damage (sprains and strains of ligaments, muscles and tendons).
• Ankle injuries.
• Moderate to severe bruising.
• Cuts and laceration injuries (often as a consequence of contact with adjacent objects).

Some injuries may be relatively minor and you could make a full recovery within a matter of weeks. However, some serious head injuries or back injuries can be life-changing and you might have to live with the consequences for many years to come. Any compensation awarded will need to take the impact of your injuries into account.

Can I claim compensation for a slipped on wet floor injury?

Our team of personal injury lawyers don’t want to waste your time so will offer a realistic assessment of your claim and only take it on if you have a realistic chance of being compensated. As such, some of the questions they’ll ask before accepting a slipped on wet floor injury claim include:

• Were you owed a duty of care by the party you’re claiming against (the defendant); and
• Did the defendant’s negligence cause you to slip on a wet floor; and
• Were you injured following your fall?

Duty of care is something that your lawyer will verify by referring to laws like the Occupiers Liability Act 1984 or the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974. However, this isn’t something you’ll need to be overly concerned about. Instead, you should concentrate on how to prove the extent of your injuries and who caused you to slip and fall. We’ll explain what proof you could use to support your claim shortly.

I slipped on a wet floor at work can I sue my employer?

While you’re at work, your employer must take reasonable steps to try and keep you as safe as possible from accidents at work. This is their duty of care. It means that if you slipped on a wet floor at work, you could claim compensation if the accident happened because:

• Handrails were not installed to help prevent slips and falls when working in damp or wet areas.
• Cleaners in the workplace had not used warning signs to show highlight that the floor was wet.
• Workplace equipment that was known to be leaking water or oil was not repaired swiftly.
• Overflowing toilets were not cordoned off while a plumber fixed the problem.
• Anti-slip footwear was not provided by your employer when you had no choice but to work on wet flooring.
• You were not trained about the company’s health and safety procedures relating to working in wet conditions.

If you have slipped on a wet floor in the workplace and would like to seek damages for your injuries, please contact our team for free claims advice.

I slipped on a wet floor in a public place who do I claim against?

Any organisation or business that you are allowed to visit without permission like a supermarket, leisure centre, library, council office, restaurant or shop must also try to prevent any foreseeable wet floor accidents. Some examples of when compensation claims after slipping on a wet floor in a public place might be possible include:

• If you slipped on a wet floor in a supermarket because a leaking freezer had not been cordoned off.
• Where you fell over after slipping on rainwater at the entrance to the town hall because of adverse weather conditions that hadn’t been cleared up.
• If you slipped in a changing room in a swimming pool accident because excess water had built up but not been cleaned up.
• Where you slipped in a shopping centre where the floor had been recently cleaned but wet floor signs hadn’t been positioned properly.

We could help you to claim for an injury sustained after slipping on a wet floor so please get in touch to let us know about your claim.

How much compensation will I get for slipping on wet floor?

Any personal injury claim must take into account how you suffered physically, mentally and financially. There is a lot to consider and that’s why we believe it’s best to take on specialist legal representation before claiming compensation for slipping on a wet floor.

If you’ve slipped on a wet floor and your claim is taken on by one of our solicitors, they could seek damages to cover:

• The physical pain caused by your injuries and any ongoing symptoms.
• Any distress, anxiety, depression or other forms of mental harm linked to your accident.
• Any impact your injuries have on any normal hobbies, social activities or your family life (loss of amenity).
• Loss of income if your injuries lead to time off of work.
• The time someone else spent looking after you during your recovery. In more serious cases, this may include the cost of a professional carer.
• Travel costs such as fuel or parking fees linked to hospital visits.
• The cost of replacing any personal item damaged during your fall (clothes, phones, jewellery etc).
• Remedial medical treatment costs and physiotherapy.
• Future loss of income for more serious injuries that reduce your capacity to work.
• Home and vehicle modifications to improve any quality of life issues caused by a permanent disability.

To help determine exactly how you’ve suffered, you’ll need a medical assessment during your claim. This will be conducted by an independent medical expert and can usually be arranged locally. After examining your injuries and discussing the suffering they’ve caused, the expert will explain your prognosis in a report for all parties involved in your claim.

Your solicitor will use this report to calculate how much compensation for slipping on a wet floor you might get.

Providing proof for your claim

In any personal injury claim, proof will be needed to convince the defendant’s insurers that you should be compensated. This will need to show why the defendant was to blame, what injuries you’ve suffered from slipping on the wet floor and how the accident occurred. In most cases, this could include:

• Security camera footage. If your workplace or the place where you slipped and hurt yourself has security cameras, you should ask for a copy of any relevant footage. You must do this quickly as data is usually deleted in around 4 weeks or so.
• Medical records. You should visit A&E, your GP or a minor injuries unit after slipping and injuring yourself for a proper diagnosis of your injuries. Later on, if you decide to make a claim, you can ask for copies of any medical records and x-rays to show the severity of your injuries.
• Witness statements. If your wet floor accident was seen by others, ask them for their contact details. If liability for your fall is denied by the defendant, your solicitor could gather witness statements to try and prove what happened.
• Photographs. As well as taking pictures of any visible injuries, you should take photographs of the accident scene if you’re able to. Ideally, this will happen before the floor has dried or anything has been removed from the scene.
• Accident reports. If you slip on a wet floor at work or in a public place accident, you should always report the accident. Most organisations have to keep a record of the incident and you are entitled to a copy. This can help to prove the date, time and location of your accident.

Your solicitor will help to secure supporting proof for your claim where possible but please let us know if you have any already when you get in touch.

Slipped on wet floor compensation claim time limits

As with any type of personal injury claim, if you’ve slipped on a wet floor and would like to be compensated, you’ll need to abide by the 3-year time limit. Usually, this will begin from the date of your accident. However, if your child has been injured from slipping on a wet floor, the time limit doesn’t begin till their 18^th birthday. For this reason, you could use the litigation friend process and claim on behalf of your child at any point before that date.

Claiming early can be a good idea because it can make it easier to secure supporting proof. Additionally, if liability for the accident is accepted early, you could receive an interim payment to cover any ongoing costs (loss of earnings, medical costs etc) before your claim is settled in full.

No Win, No Fee claims

Our solicitors realise that no one wants to risk losing money in legal fees when claiming compensation for slipping on a wet floor with no sign. As such, they offer a No Win, No Fee service for any claim they agree to work on. As a result, you only have to pay legal fees if your claim is successful.

As part of their service, your solicitor will look to:

• Discuss the impact of your injuries with you so they fully understand how you’ve suffered.
• Arrange for medical reports and collect proof to support your claim.
• Inform the defendant of your wet floor injury claim and handle all communication with them on your behalf.
• Try to deal with any arguments or objections by supplying additional proof where necessary.
• Try to secure the maximum compensation possible and look to negotiate any settlement offer upwards if it’s deemed to be too low.

If your claim is won, an agreed success fee would be deducted from the settlement to cover your solicitor’s costs and time.

Start a compensation claim for slipping on a wet floor today

We are here to help you start the ball rolling if you’ve decided to claim. Simply call our team on 0800 652 1345 today and your claim will be assessed and legal advice will be offered about your options.

If your claim is taken on, one of our personal injury solicitors will work on it on a No Win, No Fee basis which should make your claim a lot less stressful.

Our live chat team is available if you have any extra questions about a slipped on wet floor compensation claim.