JimLondon Posted June 4, 2017 Report Share Posted June 4, 2017 Hello all So the mother in law had an accident in Starbucks attached to a Sainsbury's. Basically she was sitting outside in the chairs and tables for customer use and the chairs were to close together, she tried to move to another chair so FiL could sit down and she tripped on the base of a parasol. Ended up in hospital with a broken hip. I mentioned a claim a few days later and as people of her generation do she didn't want to make a fuss. A few days later Starbucks sent her a letter saying sorry you had a fall and please accept a free coffee for you troubles. Well that just annoyed the hell out of her and she now wants to claim. My question to the PW massive is has anyone gone through this themselves and what's the best route, own solicitor or one of the no win no fee mob. What percentage do they keep etc. Thanks for reading I look forward to any advice given Jim Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ehb102 Posted June 4, 2017 Report Share Posted June 4, 2017 A friend had this. She came off her bike in a nasty pot hole and broke her nose. It was a private road and badly maintained. She got an award of £4k, of which the solicitors kept half. She couldn't afford to pay privately and up front so it was £2k she wouldn't have had otherwise. They contacted her, I don't know if that makes a difference. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bigbob Posted June 4, 2017 Report Share Posted June 4, 2017 Your maybe okay there's a lot of them down south its just the amount of sharks in them you just got to weed them out , half of the state not R.O.I or Scotland so we dont have the same choice but it seems every other advert on the telly wants you to sue somebody so theres money in it Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mungler Posted June 4, 2017 Report Share Posted June 4, 2017 Check all your insurance policies, memberships and affiliations - there is legal expenses insurance attached to all manner of things now AA membership, national trust, saga, basc as well as the obvious ones like car and house insurance. Get a claim running through an existing insurance policy and you're more likely to keep more of what you get in compo. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scully Posted June 4, 2017 Report Share Posted June 4, 2017 I'm not sure I understand what she is claiming for. You state the chairs were too close together but she 'tripped' on a parasol base. I'd establish just what constitutes 'too close together' before I did anything. Is there a minimum distance for chairs to be placed apart? Bearing in mind she didn't trip on a chair. I'm a little confused. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kennett Posted June 4, 2017 Report Share Posted June 4, 2017 I'm not sure I understand what she is claiming for. You state the chairs were too close together but she 'tripped' on a parasol base. I'd establish just what constitutes 'too close together' before I did anything. Is there a minimum distance for chairs to be placed apart? Bearing in mind she didn't trip on a chair. I'm a little confused. You were braver than me, whilst I feel for your mother's plight, what is she claiming for? Was the base, chair or table defective? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dodeer Posted June 4, 2017 Report Share Posted June 4, 2017 Be like America soon where people sue for anything. Not being rude but sounds like it was her fault for tripping over. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scully Posted June 4, 2017 Report Share Posted June 4, 2017 You were braver than me, whilst I feel for your mother's plight, what is she claiming for? Was the base, chair or table defective? Not brave, just genuinely confused! If Starbucks were liable then fair enough, but from your post above you're confused too. My Godmother tripped on a kerbstone some years ago, breaking her hip, a wrist and a cheekbone. She simply tripped. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lloyd90 Posted June 4, 2017 Report Share Posted June 4, 2017 (edited) Not brave, just genuinely confused! If Starbucks were liable then fair enough, but from your post above you're confused too. My Godmother tripped on a kerbstone some years ago, breaking her hip, a wrist and a cheekbone. She simply tripped. I worked in personal injury for many years and I have to agree, What exactly are Starbucks liable for? There wasn't anything defective. There was no fault, there was simply a parasol it seems? Are you suggesting all parasols are a danger to the public? Also if a trip like that broke her hip it might suggest she's somewhat elderly and unstable on her feet. I would think there's nothing to claim for and just an unfortunate event. In what way at all were Starbucks negligent that caused her injury? As an aside I hope your mother gets better soon and is back on her feet shortly Edited June 4, 2017 by Lloyd90 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
clakk Posted June 4, 2017 Report Share Posted June 4, 2017 Mum slipped on a wet floor in Littlewoods back when they had shops and they first aided her <just bruised thankfully> got her a taxi home and phoned to make sure she was home ok .Then sent her a cheque for £200 which in the 1970,s was a lot money and well before snatchit,grabit and run were ambulance chasing. She wouldnt have a clue about compo back then and was just pleased to be looked after how times have changed .Hope your mum recovers but has she just tripped up and is now angry because Starbucks have upset her with their feeble freebie or is it a genuine preventable accident JIm as that,s what a good lawyer should ask. I went to a proper lawyer when my hand got pulled into a machine and the back was torn off and had to pay upfront but got all my compo and my costs back plus interest but i would love the full use of my hand back instead .So it worked for me non of this no win no fee rubbish it it,s a genuine claim they should recover your costs in full and not get 1 bean from your compo atb Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
team tractor Posted June 4, 2017 Report Share Posted June 4, 2017 I'm not sure I understand what she is claiming for. You state the chairs were too close together but she 'tripped' on a parasol base. I'd establish just what constitutes 'too close together' before I did anything. Is there a minimum distance for chairs to be placed apart? Bearing in mind she didn't trip on a chair. I'm a little confused. my thoughts. Unfortunately accidents happen and this is life. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JimLondon Posted June 4, 2017 Author Report Share Posted June 4, 2017 Thanks for the replies so far, the chairs were placed to close together to the point it left her no room to manoeuvre, table, chairs, parasol and dividing barrier made it pretty cramped. I do understand that there may not be any blame on Starbucks part but then again there may be. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ditchman Posted June 4, 2017 Report Share Posted June 4, 2017 several years ago ...my mrs "tripped...stumbled"...on a local train as there were kids sitting all over the floor...and no supervision............... upshot was that she ended up in Cambridge having surgery on her knee as a result.....................we had loads of sue em lawyers on the phone....not one of them did any good....didnt even get an apology from the rail company...or the school..............school says it wasnt their problem as their responsibility ends when they go out of the school gate in short it was an utter waste of time............ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lloyd90 Posted June 4, 2017 Report Share Posted June 4, 2017 Thanks for the replies so far, the chairs were placed to close together to the point it left her no room to manoeuvre, table, chairs, parasol and dividing barrier made it pretty cramped. I do understand that there may not be any blame on Starbucks part but then again there may be. If they were too close together why didn't they move them further apart? That aside, as mentioned above, is there a legal standard that chairs have to be apart? I very much doubt it! Also how did she trip on the parasol base? Was it under the table? Or a free standing one? All of these questions will be asked. Just trying to help mate, I spent 6 years signing up people for injury claims and it's very very unlikely that's a claim at all. But if you want stick it in! I know the legislation has changed however and it's much harder than it used to be. Be careful you don't end up with a bill! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Red-dot Posted June 4, 2017 Report Share Posted June 4, 2017 Ridiculous thinking of money for a no fault accident. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
owain Posted June 4, 2017 Report Share Posted June 4, 2017 A lot of defendants to these kind of claims are now counter claiming, loss of earnings etc. So if your mother in law sued and was awarded 2k for example, Starbucks could counter claim that she was partly to blame for the accident and that they suffered loss of takings due to it. And she could wind up owing them money. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Harnser Posted June 4, 2017 Report Share Posted June 4, 2017 Don't pay to much attention to the barrack room lawyers on here and we have a few . You have been given sage advice by a real one . Go and speak to a real lawyer . Harnser Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
owain Posted June 4, 2017 Report Share Posted June 4, 2017 We might not be lawyers, but some will have experience of making a claim. I claimed against my employer, (fall at work, and I don't mean a slip, 10ft drop). I was awarded a pay out but it is not a experience I would like to repeat. It's a lot more complicated than is made out on the adverts on the TV. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scully Posted June 4, 2017 Report Share Posted June 4, 2017 Don't pay to much attention to the barrack room lawyers on here and we have a few . You have been given sage advice by a real one . Go and speak to a real lawyer . Harnser The OP originally asked the question on here and stated he looked forward to advice. The OP should by all means speak to a real lawyer, but he should also bear in mind that his MIL didn't want to make a fuss until she grew annoyed that all she was offered was a free coffee, and also bear in mind that consulting a lawyer could cost. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rimfire4969 Posted June 4, 2017 Report Share Posted June 4, 2017 (edited) I wish your Mother Inlaw a speedy recovery. As some of you know I have a caravan and camping park in Cornwall. I have about 3 no win no fee people trying to make a claim from me for various things every year. A few strange ones: A man who tripped in a rabbit scrapping in one of my fields, I did ask if they were suing me or the rabbit, another one had a smashed face while surfing on a nearby beach not even sure how that was my fault, one very aggressive company sent many letters which I kept ignoring as their client tripped while walking their dog on the sand dunes next to my place, in the end they got me on the end of the phone and I pointed out the guy nether stayed with us and that I didn't own the land he tripped on. My insurance company has never paid out for any of these silly claims, I have asked if I can claim from them for the "Stress" but they did not think it worth it. So I see a new business venture. Claiming against the no win no fee for stress on a no win no fee basis. Try a proper lawyer not a mickey mouse company who have very few trained personal. Edited June 4, 2017 by rimfire4969 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JimLondon Posted June 4, 2017 Author Report Share Posted June 4, 2017 (edited) Once again thanks for all the input. Like I said I don't know if there is any blame or even if it's ridiculous to think there is. To clarify a few points, she didn't move the chairs because at 78yrs of age she didn't think she had the strength to, and I think she became annoyed because they offered her a free coffee not because that's all they offered her. I couldn't work that one out either but it seems it did annoy her. I'll advise her to speak to her lawyer. Thank you rimfire the elderly are tougher than we think,but it's still not nice to see them in obvious pain. Edited June 4, 2017 by JimLondon Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bruno22rf Posted June 4, 2017 Report Share Posted June 4, 2017 I would send them hate mail at the very least....How dare they put chairs and Parasols outside so that people can sit and enjoy the fresh air, How selfish of them not to imagine that somebody might stub their toes or worse. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JimLondon Posted June 4, 2017 Author Report Share Posted June 4, 2017 (edited) I would send them hate mail at the very least....How dare they put chairs and Parasols outside so that people can sit and enjoy the fresh air, How selfish of them not to imagine that somebody might stub their toes or worse. Thanks for your input, it's very helpful Edited June 4, 2017 by JimLondon Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wandringstar Posted June 4, 2017 Report Share Posted June 4, 2017 In a normal world, there is nothing there, she tripped over a parasol. my dad went round to check on his elderly neighbour one night, she was too tight to buy an outside light, he tripped on a step and broke his ankle, should he have sued her? On another occasion He was walking up the road minding his own, and a dog ran out of a property and bit him, still dident sue, just called the owner a XXXX and threatened to kick the XXXX out of the dog, problem over in his book. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
figgy Posted June 4, 2017 Report Share Posted June 4, 2017 (edited) The women falling off her bike riding into a large pot holes on a badly maintained private road intrigues me. If it was private what was she doing riding along it? And why didn't she see this large pot hole. Surely the blame LTD with the individuals in a lot of threes instances. Edited June 4, 2017 by figgy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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