Tripped and Fell on a Worn Tile in an Office

I tripped and fell on a worn tile in an office while making a delivery of stationary and broke my nose and two teeth. I have received an offer of compensation from the insurance company for 10,000 Euros. Should I accept this offer?

Eoin P. Campbell, LL.B., Solicitor

Editor in Chief

Eoin P. Campbell

It is certainly good news that the company´s insurers have offered you compensation for having tripped and fell on a worn tile in an office; however you are right to seek advice about accepting this offer. Insurance companies frequently approach accident victims with an offer of compensation rather than waiting for a claim to be assessed by the Injuries Board. This is often an attempt to reduce the amount of office trip injury compensation which they might otherwise have to pay.

Although 10,000 Euros may seem like a reasonable sum of compensation for having tripped and fallen on a worn tile in an office, it may be in your best interests to reject the offer and to apply for an assessment to the Injuries Board. Insurance companies rarely offer accident victims their full entitlement to personal injury compensation.

Although it is not possible to calculate the exact amount of compensation for having tripped and fallen on a worn tile in an office you are entitled to, it is possible to estimate the value of your claim based on the information you have provided, and to use the same criteria as the Injuries Board to calculate the likely level of office trip injury compensation you should therefore receive for an injury caused by your trip on a worn tile.

The Injuries Board will calculate your entitlement to compensation using the Book of Quantum as a reference. This reference is available online and is a rough guide to how much compensation you could receive for having tripped and fell on a worn tile in an office. The Book of Quantum suggests the range of compensation for a broken tooth is €6,000 to €11,100, and facial injuries such as a broken nose would be €14,900 to €19,600. Using these minimum figures as a guide, your claim for having tripped and fallen on a worn tile in an office could be worth 26,900 Euros.

You will also be entitled to claim compensation for a trip in an office if your injuries have a negative effect on your quality of life or if you have incurred any expenses – such as dental expenses – which are directly attributable to the negligence of the company responsible for the safety of the offices in which your accident occurred. You are able to recover these expenses as part of a claim for having tripped and fallen on a worn tile in an office.

There are other factors which can affect how much compensation for a trip in an office you might be entitled to receive, such as if there was any contributory negligence on your part. This would see any compensation reduced to some extent of you were partially to blame for the accident. Nonetheless, at face value, it would appear that the amount of compensation you have been offered is particularly low.

Before accepting or rejecting any offer of compensation for having tripped and fell on a worn tile in an office, you we recommend that you seek advice from a personal injury solicitor. Only after listening to the circumstances of the accident and being provided with details of your injuries will it be possible to accurately calculate how much more compensation you might receive if you pursue a claim through the Injuries Board, by negotiation with the insurance company or via the Irish courts. You can then decide whether or not to accept the offer or proceed with a claim to recover your full entitlement to office trip injury compensation.