Because I fell in the vegetable section of a supermarket and sprained my wrist, can I claim for slipped on lettuce leaf in supermarket compensation?
Eoin P. Campbell, LL.B., Solicitor
Editor in Chief
If it can be proven that the supermarket owners, managers or staff breached their “duty of care” to provide you with a safe and clean shopping environment, you would be eligible to claim for slipped on lettuce leaf in supermarket compensation. However, this duty of care is not “absolute” meaning that if the staff members did not have a “reasonable” time to remove the hazard – for example, if the lettuce leaf had just fallen out of the trolley of the customer who was directly ahead of you – the supermarket will not be held responsible for your injury.
To ensure a more straightforward slipped on lettuce leaf in supermarket compensation claim, there are a number of procedures that you should have taken after your accident. Your health should have been your first priority and you should have sought medical treatment immediately after the accident occurred. It would have been beneficial to your case if you collected the details of any witnesses who could later be called upon to support your claim. You should also have had your injury noted in the supermarket’s “Accident Report Book” – and retained a copy for yourself. If you have not already done this, it is possible to return to the supermarket later and report your injury then.
It would be in your best interest to engage in the services of a solicitor as soon as possible as even if you have not carried out all of the procedures mentioned above, you may still qualify to claim for slipped on lettuce leaf in supermarket compensation. Your solicitor will be able to assess your claim and determine whether or not it is viable. He or she will also be able to obtain footage from the supermarket’s CCTV to see the length of time the lettuce leaf was on the floor and what efforts the supermarket staff made to remove it.
When supermarkets admit liability, their insurers are usually quick to approach the accident victim directly with an unsolicited offer of compensation. It would be in your best interest to refer such an offer to your solicitor who would be able to establish whether or not their offer genuinely reflects the impact your injury has had on you physically and on your quality of life.