Potholes are responsible for a significant number of serious personal injury claims in England and Wales and are notoriously known for posing a health and safety hazard to pedestrians, cyclists and motorists.
Acting on a No-Win No-Fee basis, Victoria Simon and Steven Organ, solicitors in our Marlow Personal Injury Team, recently successfully assisted a claimant in pursuing a personal injury claim against their local council after they tripped on a pothole and fractured their ankle. For years after the accident, the claimant continued to suffer pain, swelling and inflammation in their ankle and this impacted their mobility. Achieving a fair and reasonable five-figure deal, early settlement was obtained in the court proceedings and allowed the claimant to be adequately compensated for the pain, suffering and loss of amenity they suffered in addition to their legal costs.
Claims of this nature can be brought where there is an argument that the local authority have failed to comply with their statutory duty pursuant to section 41 of the Highways Act 1980 to repair and maintain public highways. The local authority may have a special defence under this Act if it can prove it had a reasonable system of repair and inspection in place at the time of the accident, however, whether it can successfully use this defence and absolve itself of liability will depend on a number of factors which will be specific to each case, including: the nature of the defect, the standard of maintenance appropriate for that defect, whether the defect had been reported to the local authority or if it could reasonably be expected to have known about the defect in question and the evidence available.
If you are looking for advice and assistance on a tripping accident and/or a personal injury claim, please do not hesitate to contact us today by calling either our London or High Wycombe offices or by emailing: personalinjury@curzongreen.co.uk.