PUBLIC PLACE INJURY - ROADS & PAVEMENTS
Significant personal injury and other damage can result from pot holes in the road, broken pavements, ungritted roads, badly repaired or uneven pavements and other defects in the roads and pavements in Scotland. Sometimes the damage is to property (such as cars and bikes) and sometimes it is to people. Those affected may be entitled to compensation.
Fortunately, tripping on a broken pavement or an uneven pavement is nothing more than a minor irritation to many. For others, though, it can result in broken bones, muscle damage and other serious injuries, sometimes with long-term consequences for the person injured and their quality of life. That is particularly true of the elderly. According to a recent study by Help the Aged:-
- more than 2,300 older people trip and fall every day on broken pavements in the UK
- more than 26% of people over the age of 65 have fallen on an uneven or broken pavement at some time
When these statistics are looked at in the context of hospital admission rates for injuries like fractured hips, it becomes clear that the annual cost (both financial and emotional) to the UK of its damaged roads and pavements is enormous.
Similarly, the cost to the UK of damage caused by road potholes, damaged road surfaces and other road defects is very significant indeed. The Scottish Government’s statistics show that, at any point in time, nearly 50% of all Scottish roads may require some form of maintenance works carried out on them.
Although included here under the general heading of “public place accidents”, accidents caused by defective roads and pavements have slightly different rules attached to them and, sometimes, it can be difficult to make a successful claim (particularly in relation to accidents caused by things like ungritted roads and icy pavements).
If a local authority can show that it operated a reasonable inspection scheme for road and pavement defects, it will usually escape liability to pay compensation. Similarly, minor defects won’t give rise to a liability (for that reason, pavement defects normally need to measure at least 25mm before a local authority will be liable). If though, a local authority had already been told (or was otherwise aware) of a potential problem but did not fix it, a compensation claim may well succeed.
If you’re unsure whether you may have a valid compensation claim for a personal injury caused by a damaged road or an uneven or broken pavement, call us now on 08448 700 800 to discuss how we can help or simply fill in the CALL ME box and we’ll ring you. Alternatively, you can start your compensation claim immediately by answering a few simple questions on the CLAIM NOW page and we’ll do the rest.
Remember – If you’ve been injured in Scotland, your compensation claim is best dealt with by Scottish specialists and you won’t pay a penny for our help, whatever happens.