Claim for Being Injured by Faulty Shopping Trolley

Can I make a claim for being injured by a faulty shopping trolley? I had been using the trolley for five minutes in a well-known supermarket when one wheel fell off causing the trolley to fall over, taking me with it. I injured my back as a result.

Eoin P. Campbell, LL.B., Solicitor

Editor in Chief

Eoin P. Campbell

It is possible for you to claim for being injured by a faulty shopping trolley if it can be proven that the shopping centre breached their legal duty of care to provide a safe shopping environment as the shopping centre should provide their customers with properly functioning trolleys. It is important that you carry out some procedures in order to support your compensation claim.

Every business is required to maintain an “Accident Report Book” on site, and each injury sustained should be recorded. On recording your injury in the book, you are ensuring an element of evidence that could be used to support your claims. Additionally, other similar incidents may be found to have occurred in the supermarket that were also recorded in the book, providing further proof of the supermarket’s negligence.

Your health should have been your first priority and you should have sought immediate medical attention after the accident. The professional medical practitioner who examined you would have recorded your injury in your medical history, which could also be used as evidence. It should be noted that any delay you made in seeking professional medical treatment can have potentially reduced the value of your compensation settlement.

Another procedure to carry out that may be advantageous to your claim for being injured by a faulty shopping trolley, would be to request access to the supermarket’s CCTV system by giving the time and date of the accident and a brief description of yourself. The resulting images may also serve as proof that the supermarket was indeed responsible for your accident by failing to provide their customer with a fully operational trolley.

If the supermarket realise their liability, their insurance company may approach you directly with an offer of compensation for your claim for being injured by a faulty shopping trolley. While this offer may be a fair and reasonable reflection of the injuries you received and the impact they had on your quality of life, it would be worth referring to an experienced solicitor in order to determine that it is, in fact, a sufficient amount.

You would be well advised to contact a solicitor if you believe that you may qualify for a claim for being injured by a faulty shopping trolley, even if you have not carried out all of the procedures mentioned above or if you are not approached by the negligent party’s insurers. Every case is unique and should be evaluated on its own merits. Most solicitors offer an initial consultation without charge where your questions may be answered and where they can assess your claim and determine whether or not it is worth pursuing.