£4,500 awarded for client who slipped on black ice

Pauline Smith, associate and personal injury claims handler recently settled a case for a claimant who had sustained injury due to slipping on black ice on a supermarket car park.

The claimant was getting out of his car having arrived on the supermarket car park. As he did so, he took a step forward in order to close the car door and his left foot slipped forwards on a patch of black ice causing him to fall straight to the floor with his right leg trapped underneath him. Two members of the public assisted the claimant to stand and then left the scene. The claimant then attempted to walk back to his car when he slipped again on the ice landing on the base of his spine.

On attending the hospital, the claimant suffered from torn muscles in his right knee and thigh and a painful lower back. The claimant had a further assessment at the hospital and was advised that there was no damage to the knee but there was some muscle wastage and that physiotherapy would help this. The claimant therefore underwent physiotherapy. The expert opinion was that the claimant would recover completely from his injuries nine months post accident.

After Stephensons proceeded with the case against the property owners, the case was settled and the claimant received £4,500 compensation.