You should expect to be safe when walking in public, so an accident on a pavement can be both shocking and painful. If you suffered a pavement injury and a third party was liable for your accident, you might have a right to be compensated. Our guide explains how the pavement accident claims process works and the law that requires occupiers of public spaces to keep you reasonably safe.
If you can prove thrid party liability, you could be in line to receive compensation. Read through our guide to learn what proof you can collect and how compensation for different forms of harm is calculated when personal injury claims succeed.
The specialist public liability solicitors from our panel offer their services on a No Win No Fee basis. You can learn about the benefits of these terms in this guide, as well as by speaking to our dedicated advisors. Through a free initial consultation, you can even find out whether your potential case could gain a solicitor’s expert support.
To reach us, you can either:
- Call 0330 0433679.
- Go online and contact us about your case.
Select A Section
- Can You Make A Pavement Accident Claim?
- How Can Pavement Accidents Happen?
- How Do You Prove Pavement Accident Claims?
- What Compensation Could You Receive From A Pavement Accident Claim?
- How Can Solicitors Help With Claims For Pavement Accidents?
- Read More About Pavement Accident Claims
Can You Make A Pavement Accident Claim?
The Highways Act 1980 states that, in most cases, the local authority or highway authority is responsible for the upkeep of public roads. This is one piece of legislation that outlines the duty of care these public bodies owe people using roads and streets.
Another is the Occupiers’ Liability Act 1957, which requires the occupier of a public place to take all steps that ensure the reasonable safety of people on the premises.
In summary, a local council responsible for the upkeep of a public road should ensure that anyone walking on the pavement can expect to be reasonably safe.
You can make a pavement accident compensation claim if you can show that:
- An occupier, such as a local authority, owed you a duty of care under the Occupiers’ Liability Act or the Highways Act.
- They failed to uphold this duty. For example, they may have neglected to check the pavement for a long period of time.
- An accident happened as a direct result of this failure, causing you to suffer physical and/or psychological harm.
You may be able to seek compensation for tripping on a defective pavement. One of our advisors can go through the pavement accident claims eligibility criteria with you. Just call today if you want to know more about public liability claims and learn whether you can make a claim of your own.
How Can Pavement Accidents Happen?
You may be wondering what sort of pavement accidents could be caused by third-party negligence. These examples are designed to show you how pavement injury claims against local authorities might come about:
- The local authority was made aware of an issue with tree roots growing through a pavement. However, they did not act to fix the problem and a local resident tripped on a protruding root.
- Paving is not installed properly, leaving areas of seriously uneven pavement. One person walking down the road falls in the street after losing their balance.
- The council is repairing a pavement but does not cordon off the broken pavement while work is underway. The pavement defects are left unprotected when work is paused and a pedestrian suffers a serious injury when their foot was caught in a crack.
What Common Injuries Could Be Caused By Tripping On A Pavement?
A pavement tripping accident could cause significant harm, especially if you suffer a surprise fall onto the concrete. Common injuries suffered because of a pavement accident include:
- Broken bones such as ankle fractures.
- Shoulder dislocation or similar arm injuries.
- Serious ligament injuries in the leg or Achilles heel.
- Facial injuries, such as a broken jaw or teeth.
- Head injuries, even including serious head injuries in some cases.
If you suffered injuries due to a cracked or broken road or any other pavement defect, you might be eligible to claim compensation. Call the free helpline number at the top of this page to discuss your potential pavement accident claim with an advisor.
How Do You Prove Pavement Accident Claims?
Pavement accident claims, particularly ones where the defendant denies liability, benefit from having as much evidence as possible that covers the eligibility criteria we discussed earlier. This includes:
- CCTV footage of the incident and its cause.
- Photographic evidence of the accident scene and any visible injuries.
- Results of the medical treatment you receive after the incident. You can ask for a copy of your health records while you are being treated or at any point following treatment.
- Contact details for any potential witnesses. They can give statements later on in the claims process.
- Proof of any out of pocket expenses caused by your injuries. Read the next section of this guide to learn how keeping payslips, invoices or bank statements could affect how much compensation you’re able to receive.
You do not necessarily have to collect all the evidence by yourself. If you work with a solicitor from our panel, you can instruct them to help you gather evidence and use it to give yourself the best possible chance of getting the maximum compensation possible.
Just call the number above to learn more about how our panel’s personal injury solicitors help pavement accident compensation claims run successfully.
What Compensation Could You Receive From A Pavement Accident Claim?
If a personal injury solicitor takes on your claim, they will aim to help you secure compensation addressing the different ways you were affected. A personal injury claim payout can be formed of up to two parts, known as heads of loss.
- General damages is the main head of loss. It aims to address any physical pain or psychological harm sustained in a pavement accident. General damages can compensate for multiple injuries.
- A second head of loss, special damages may form some or even most of your compensation. It accounts for financial damage caused by injuries. This could include the likes of lost earnings, travel expenses or medical bills.
As we mentioned in the previous section, the proof of expenses you collect will help determine what you receive under the special damages head of claim. As for general damages, those working out your payout could take guidance from different sources.
One potential source that could be used is a document featuring guideline compensation brackets for various injuries. We have used this document, the Judicial College Guidelines (JCG), to create the table you see below.
Guideline Compensation Table
You can find JCG figures in this table, except for the first line. Additionally, the table should only be used as a general guide due to the differences between claims.
| INJURY | SEVERITY | COMPENSATION GUIDELINE | NOTES |
|---|---|---|---|
| Multiple Very Severe Injuries And Significant Financial Losses | Severe | Up to £1,000,000+ | A payout that accounts for numerous serious forms of physical or psychological harm. It also covers financial loss such as missed earnings, medical bills or domestic care fees. |
| Head | Very Severe | £344,150 to £493,000 | The affected person gives little, if any, meaningful response to their environment and requires full-time nursing care. |
| Moderate (iii) | £52,550 to £110,720 | Concentration and memory are affected and the ability to work is reduced. However, there is only a limited dependence on others. | |
| Severe Leg | Very Serious | £66,920 to £109,290 | The bracket includes cases of multiple fractures that take years to fully heal. |
| Back | Severe (ii) | £90,510 to £107,910 | Cases that may include, for example, nerve root damage with an associated loss of sensation or impaired mobility. |
| Wrist | Significant Permanent Disability | £29,900 to £47,870 | Despite disability that is permanent and significant, some useful movement remains. |
| Arm | Less Severe Injury | £23,430 to £47,810 | A substantial recovery has been made or will be made. However, there are some significant disabilities. |
| Ankle | Moderate | £16,770 to £32,450 | Fractures, torn ligaments or other issues that lead to serious disabilities such as having trouble walking on uneven ground. |
| Shoulder | Serious | £15,580 to £23,430 | Lower brachial plexus damage and dislocation leading to neck and shoulder pain. |
| Skeletal Injury | Dislocation of Jaw (iii) | £7,880 to £10,660 | A simple fracture that requires immobilisation but a recovery is completed. |
Can You Make A Pavement Accident Claim On Someone Else’s Behalf?
While this guide has discussed the possibility of you making your own claim, you may in fact be intending to seek compensation on someone else’s behalf. You could act as a litigation friend, a trusted person assigned by the courts to claim on behalf of:
- An injured person who lacks the mental capacity to claim.
- A minor under the age of 18.
You can step in for them at any point while their legal time limit to start a personal injury claim is paused.
A personal injury solicitor can still help you with claiming compensation, even if you’re doing it for someone else. Call today to discuss compensation claims for pavement accidents and find out how a solicitor could help.
How Can Solicitors Help With Claims For Pavement Accidents?
If you have a valid claim, a No Win No Fee solicitor from our panel could make the whole claims process more straightforward for you. As well as submitting all the required paperwork within the relevant time limit, they can negotiate the pavement claim settlement to help you towards the outcome you deserve.
Furthermore, they can offer their services under a Conditional Fee Agreement. This is very beneficial if you are worried about legal fees, as the agreement entitles you to:
- Not pay any solicitor fee upfront.
- No payment for their work at all if the claim fails.
In the event of a successful claim, the solicitor collects a percentage of the compensation awarded as their success fee. However, due to a legal cap applied by The Conditional Fee Agreements Order 2013, you are guaranteed to receive the clear majority of your payout.
You may not know if you have a valid pavement injury claim at this point. To find out, all you need to do is contact us and speak with a friendly advisor. You can also ask any questions you might have about pavement accident claims generally. This help is totally free and there’s no obligation to start a case.
Just choose any of these options to get started:
- Call 0330 0433679.
- Contact us through our web form.
Read More About Pavement Accident Claims
Here is some further guidance from more of our personal injury claim guides:
- How to claim compensation after an accident in a park that caused you harm.
- Our guide to slip, trip and fall accidents and how to claim with the support of a No Win No Fee soliciitor.
- Further information about making child injury compensation claims.
You may also get useful information here:
- The GOV.UK portal for reporting an obstruction on the road to your local council.
- Also from GOV.UK; guidance on claiming Statutory Sick Pay from your employer.
- An NHS A-Z of health conditions.
Thank you for reading through our guide. You can contact us at any time about pavement accident claims, so please don’t hesitate to get in touch.
