Escalator Injury Compensation

Question:

I fell down an escalator in my local shopping centre when the escalator stopped suddenly for no reason at all. Quite a few people were hurt and I would like to know if it is possible to claim escalator injury compensation for my injuries.

Answer:

Before you are eligible to make a claim for escalator injury compensation, it has to be established that the shopping centre management – or another party responsible for the safe operation of the escalators – were negligent in either failing to maintain the escalators in a safe condition or by creating a scenario where the escalators were stopped suddenly with no prior warning in a non-emergency situation.

As you mention that the escalators stopped “for no reason at all”, it should be safe to assume that there was not an emergency situation – a fact which could be confirmed by either the shopping centre management or any of the other people who were injured in the accident – and that a fault (or human error) occurred which led to your injuries being sustained.

This would imply that you are indeed eligible to claim escalator injury compensation however, before you submit an application to the Injuries Board Ireland, you should ensure that a report of your accident and injuries is recorded in the shopping centre´s “Accident Report Book” and that your doctor is certain you will have no long term health issues due to your escalator accident.

Although the Injuries Board Ireland offers the opportunity for you to update information submitted to them via their online portal, this can be complicated if you have suffered an injury which either takes longer to heal than first thought, or an injury you sustained develops into something more serious.

You are allowed two years from the date on which your injury was sustained to make an escalator injury compensation claim and it is sometimes better to wait a short period of time after sustaining a physical trauma before submitting your claim – although you should waste no time in collecting evidence of negligence and not delay in seeking advice from an experienced personal injury solicitor if you wish to find out how much compensation for an escalator injury you may be entitled to receive.

This information could be of great value to you if the Injury Board assessment of your escalator injury claim does not amount to how much compensation for an escalator injury you felt you were entitled to, or if you are made an offer of escalator injury compensation by the shopping centres insurers before your application for assessment to the Injuries Board Ireland is submitted.